French accents, also known as diacritics or accent marks, are symbols placed above certain vowels in French words to indicate pronunciation or distinguish between different words that are spelled similarly. There are five accents used in French:
- Accent aigu (´): Placed only above the letter e, it changes the pronunciation of the vowel to an open /e/ sound. For example, "café". CAFE, été=summer
- Accent grave (`): Also used only with the letter e, it changes the pronunciation to a closed /ɛ/ sound. For example, "père", mère. a - è= très, When it comes with A & U, pronunciation remains same but the meaning is changed Ex: 1-la-the VS là -there, 2-ou-or VS où =where
- Accent circonflexe (ˆ): Can appear over the vowels a, e, i, o, and u. It usually indicates a historical change in pronunciation and sometimes a difference in meaning. For example, "hôtel" versus "hotel" ("hotel" means "to shoot").
- Tréma (¨): Placed over the vowels e, i, and u to indicate that they are pronounced separately from the preceding vowel. For example, "naïve", Noël
- Cédille (¸): Appears under the letter c and changes its pronunciation from /k/ to /s/ when followed by the vowels a, o, or u. For example, "garçon".
These accents are essential in French writing as they can alter the meaning of words and affect pronunciation. For the best understanding kindly go through the attached video:
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