Uploaded January 2019 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
Kinesthetic hand gestures to learn and remember the four French nasal vowels, based on sounds that American English speakers already know.
Note that not everyone agrees on the IPA for these vowels. I choose to write the nasal o as [õ], though some may use [ɔ̃]. I also err toward the more closed sound of it, mostly for the value in differentiating it from [ɑ̃].
Regardless, one should remember that IPA is only a starting point for clear, unaccented communication. Hopefully, this will give the beginning learner a leg up in forming the sounds, and differentiating between them.
Kinesthetic hand gestures to learn and remember the four French nasal vowels, based on sounds that American English speakers already know.
Note that not everyone agrees on the IPA for these vowels. I choose to write the nasal o as [õ], though some may use [ɔ̃]. I also err toward the more closed sound of it, mostly for the value in differentiating it from [ɑ̃].
Regardless, one should remember that IPA is only a starting point for clear, unaccented communication. Hopefully, this will give the beginning learner a leg up in forming the sounds, and differentiating between them.
