It’s Time to Talk About Your Pronunciation.

Pronunciation is probably the most neglected part of learning French.

In many classes, it gets rushed to make more time for grammar and vocabulary. And online, pronunciation is often reduced to repeating random words without really understanding how the sounds are produced.

But pronunciation has a huge impact on two things : being understood and feeling confident when you speak.

Today, we are going to focus on one small sound that reveals a major difference between English and French pronunciation: the French “O.”

Why focus on just one sound?

Because after years of teaching French, I have found that pronunciation improves much faster when you train one sound at a time instead of trying to fix everything all at once.

And pronunciation is physical. Your mouth has to learn entirely new positions and movements. So I filmed video drills to guide you step by step.

Watch my mouth, listen carefully, compare the English and French sounds, and slowly train your own pronunciation, from isolated syllables to a full sentence.

In English, the “O” sound often glides. When you say words like no or studio, your lips naturally move at the end, creating a second, hidden sound: an “ow” or “w.”

French “O” sounds do not glide. They stay completely stable from beginning to end: short, pure, and controlled.

Let’s see that in action! Watch my mouth in the video below as I practice these syllables (pay attention to the lips: in English, they move, in French, they stay stable).

🗣️ o, bo, lo, so

Now it is your turn. (Tip: practicing in front of a mirror makes this much easier.)

In the video below, I pronounce each word first with an English-style “O,” and then with the French “O.”

Watch my lips carefully, listen to the difference, and repeat after me (the goal is not to sound perfect immediately. The goal is to start noticing and training the movement.)

🗣️ Beau - Solo - Studio

And finally, let’s put it all together with a short sentence. As you watch the video, shadow my pronunciation. Watch my lips and really exaggerate the "O" sound to get your muscles used to this new shape!

🗣️ Je vis solo dans un beau studio.

Pronunciation is not just about listening differently. It is also about learning entirely new mouth movements.

One important difference between English and French is that many English vowels naturally glide and change shape, while French vowels usually stay much more stable from beginning to end.

And this is true for many other French vowel sounds too, not just the “O.”

Your muscles need repetition before these new movements start feeling natural. But please remember: having an accent is not a problem. Accents are beautiful. The goal is clarity and confidence, not perfection. You are learning another language, and that alone is already something to be proud of.

If you liked this kind of interactive lesson, let me know in the comments: which French sound should I cover next time? Maybe the U?

À la semaine prochaine,

Marie