The 5 French Accent Marks Les 5 Accents Français The 5 French Accent Marks

The 5 French Accents are: Accent Aigu (é) Accent Grave (è) Accent Circonflexe (ê) “C” cédille (ç) Tréma (ë)

Accent Aigu (é) Most popular of the French accents Makes the “AY” sound (“play”) Only found on the letter “e” Slants from top right to bottom left (é) Examples – “bébé”, “médecine,” “intérrogation”

Accent Grave (à) Second most popular Used on the vowels “a, e and u” Defines the meaning between words that sound the same (“à” = at / “a” = has) or (“ou” = or/ “où” – where) Gives the letter “e” a short sound as in “let” Slants from top left to bottom right Examples – “mère”, “problème”, “crème”, “à”, “où”

Accent Circonflexe (ê) Found over the vowels “a, e, i, o, u”. Lengthens the vowel sound Looks like a teepee tent Many times takes the place of “s” in English Examples – “tête”, “hôtel”, “dîner”

“C” cédille –ça va? Found only under the letter “c” before the vowels “a, o, u” Gives “c”an “s” sound Changes a hard “c” to a soft “c” sound Written as an “S” touching the bottom of the “C” Examples –“façon”, “leçon”

Le Tréma - Haïti Makes sure that each vowel has its own pronunciation Found over the letter “e, i, and u” Two parallel dots Least popular accent Examples – “Noël”, “Hawaï”