sam8758

[wraith minnow]

Please be patient

Our volunteers look into many questions every day; sometimes it takes them a little while to answer.

Pro tip: you can rename the thread title with `.tr <thread name>`

Make it descriptive, including relevant context, but also to the point. This way you improve your chances of getting a more relevant and specific answer.

[alpine scaffold]

Icl est la fiche d'activite de quoi je parle ( Ignore the markings as they may be incorrect)

[wary star]

so you know what liaisons and enchainements are @alpine scaffold ?

[alpine scaffold]

isn't it something to help you speak more fluently?

[wary star]

I mean, what kind of pronunciation change a liaison or an enchainement causes

[alpine scaffold]

that' s part of what. I don't understand

[wary star]

consonants can be pronounced or be silent
in a word like "pour" for instance, you do pronounced the ending -r
in a word like "dans", the ending -s is silent and not pronounced

let's start with enchainements
when a word ends with a consonant and the next starts with a vowel, French assumes it's more natural to pronounce the ending consonant and the starting vowel at the same time
"pou__r__ __a__ller" is one such example. the r and the a are pronounced as a single syllable
pou-ra-ler

do you understand what enchainements are?

[alpine scaffold]

yes!

So it all depends on whether the final consonant is pronounced or not, right?

[wary star]

enchainement doesn't change the sounds, it just changes the rhythm

that said, there are times where a word ends in a silent consonant, and the next one starts with a vowel... and they're both pronounced as one syllable!
that's a liaison. The ending consonant for the first word is not silent anymore, and links to the second word

the main difference between an enchainement and a liaison is based on whether the ending consonant is silent or not
"pou__r__" => you pronounce the R
"pou__r__ a__ller" => you still pronounce the R, but as part of the next word, that's an enchainement
"dans" => you do not pronounce the S
"dan__s un instant" => you do pronounce the S (like a z), as part of the next word, that's a liaison

liaisons are a pretty complex topic to be honest. Because it evolved very organically, the rules are not easy. Check this message and the chart below for more: #leçon-du-jour message

[alpine scaffold]

Thanks so much! When my professor explained this lesson in French, I was so lost and didn't know how to ask questions! this helped alot

I appreciate it!

[wary star]

enchainements are not that hard to picture. You're shifting when you pronounce the consonant sound. It still requires you to know what sounds are silent or not.

liaisons are very hard for learners, though. Not only you need to know silent sounds, the rules telling you when they apply and don't apply are very intricate, and to be completely honest, you shouldn't learn all the rules. It's still good to know the important mandatory and forbidden liaisons, don't get me wrong, but you'll mostly get it through a lot of listening

[alpine scaffold]

yeah exactly, enchaînements make more sense, and as I'm learning french in university, liasons are a concept that is very much used all the time. They didn't teach it when I learned French in core growing up, so better to learn it now rather than never!