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20 French Words that Learners Have Trouble Pronouncing

By Frederic Bibard Published:

2 min read

Need help on some of the most difficult French words to pronounce? Check this list that comes with FREE audio in the form of podcasts that are available now

French pronunciation can be a total pain sometimes.

When I asked the people over at the Talk in French page on Facebook which French words they simply couldn’t pronounce, I received a whole truckload of answers. As Elizabeth described it in her comment, “It’s easier to list the ones I can pronounce.”

I totally feel your pain. Which is why in this series of articles, I have provided the pronunciation for the most troublesome words submitted via the Facebook post. This is the 3rd part. You can also check out the

Part 1

Part 2

and

Part 4

So, are you ready? Let’s hear it!

Hurluberluan eccentric person, a weirdo(0:01 min)
Instructioneducation(0:14 min)
Jaune vs. jeuneJaune is yellow while jeune means young(0:27 min)
Je préféreraisI would prefer…(0:42 min)
Jouecheek(0:51 min)
Journalnewspaper(1:01 min)
JuilletJuly(1:14 min)
Jusjuice(1:25 min)
L’emploiemployment(1:36 min)
L’environnementthe environment(1:48 min)
La serrurerielocksmithing; the trade of a locksmith(2:00 min)
Le thétea(2:13 min)
Les oiseauxthe birds(2:25 min)
Libelluledragonfly(2:37 min)
Maintenantnow(2:50 min)
Malheureusementunfortunately(3:02 min)
Merci beaucoupthank you very much; thanks a lot(3:14 min)
Mille-feuillea French dessert made of thin layers
of puff pastry and fillings
(3:27 min)
Probablementprobably(6:07 min)
Prononciationpronunciation(6:19 min)

Which word on this list is the most difficult for you to pull off? Try practising it with the audio.

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