Trap 9 of 22 · French speakers
Vowels that glide: table, radio, private, photo
Les voyelles qui glissent : table, radio, private, photo
What French speakers do
You use pure French vowels: TA-ble, ra-DIO, pri-VÉ, pho-TO. Each vowel holds one position.
The American rule
When A, I or O sound like their letter name, they move: A → ay (eh-ee), I → eye (ah-ee), O → oh (oh-oo). Let your mouth slide.
French vowels are pure: the mouth takes one position and stays there. Many English vowels are diphthongs — the mouth slides from one position to another during the vowel.
- A as in table = ay: start at è, slide to i → TAY-bul
- I as in private = eye: start at a, slide to i → PRY-vit
- O as in photo = oh: start at o, slide to ou → FOH-doh
The cognates are the hardest place to remember this, because the French word gives you the pure vowel for free. Table in French and table in English share every letter — and not one sound.
The words
table
/ˈteɪbəl/
✗TA-bluh
✓TAY-bul
“Let's book a table for two.”
radio
/ˈreɪdioʊ/
✗ra-DYO
✓RAY-dee-oh
“I heard it on the radio.”
data
/ˈdeɪtə/
✗da-TA
✓DAY-duh
“We need more data.”
basic
/ˈbeɪsɪk/
✗ba-ZIK
✓BAY-sik
“These are the basic rules.”
major
/ˈmeɪdʒɚ/
✗ma-ZHOR
✓MAY-jer
“It's a major problem.”
change
/tʃeɪndʒ/
✗SHANZH
✓CHAYNJ
Also starts with CH, not SH.
“Things change fast here.”
private
/ˈpraɪvət/
✗pri-VÉ
✓PRY-vit
“This is a private conversation.”
final
/ˈfaɪnəl/
✗fi-NAL
✓FY-nul
“This is my final offer.”
idea
/aɪˈdiə/
✗i-DÉ
✓eye-DEE-uh
“That's a great idea!”
climate
/ˈklaɪmət/
✗kli-MAT
✓KLY-mit
“The climate is changing.”
photo
/ˈfoʊtoʊ/
✗fo-TO
✓FOH-doh
“Can I see the photo?”
total
/ˈtoʊtəl/
✗to-TAL
✓TOH-dul
“The total is fifty dollars.”
local
/ˈloʊkəl/
✗lo-KAL
✓LOH-kul
“We buy from local farmers.”