This book is an introduction to French phonetics addressed primarily to English speakers who wish to improve their pronunciation of French systematically. Since a contrastive phonetic study of English and French finds a natural place in such a manual, French speakers learning English will also be able to glean useful elements for a better understanding and a more effective correction of pronunciation errors characteristic of a French accent in English.

This manual can be viewed concurrently as an initiation to general phonetics and as an opening to French phonology. As such, it is also addressed to those who are interested in language in general and French in particular, and who wish to familiarize themselves with the study of the production and function of sounds. My goal here is to establish, for readers without previous linguistic background, a bridge allowing them to approach with greater facility more detailed and more technical works on French phonetics and phonology.

Special note to English-speaking students learning French

For English-speaking students learning French, the goal of this manual is two-fold: first, to provide them with a theoretical perspective on the sound system of French, especially in contrast with the English system; and secondly, to guide them in as practical a manner as possible through the development of a better pronunciation of French. These two aspects, theoretical and practical, are closely linked.