French for Australian / NZ Speakers
Your personalised pronunciation map based on the Australian / NZ English accent. 18% of coached French sounds transfer directly from your accent.
3
Direct Transfer
Sounds you already make
11
Small Adjustment
Close — needs a tweak
3
New Sounds
Focus practice here
Your accent gives you a 18% head start — 3 sounds you already make
Sounds That Transfer Directly (3)
You already make these French sounds in your Australian / NZ accent. Recognition, not learning.
French oi
Free point. The French 'oi' is just 'wa'. Say 'mwa' — that's 'moi'. Your Australian 'wa' in 'watch' is actually slightly...
French j / ge (soft g)
Direct transfer. Your 'zh' in 'pleasure' is the French 'j'. Use it exactly as-is....
French semi-vowel /j/ (yod)
Direct transfer — your 'y' in 'yes' is the French /j/. The challenge is purely spelling-based: recognising that '-ille' ...
Sounds That Need Adjustment (11)
Close to sounds in your accent — small modifications will get you there.
French r
Good news — you already drop your r's in words like 'car' and 'garden', so you won't be tempted to insert an American-st...
Nasal vowels (an/en, in, on)
Australians nasalise vowels in casual speech more than they realise — say 'dancing' quickly and feel the buzz in your no...
French eu/oeu
This is one of your biggest advantages as an Australian speaker. Your vowel in 'bird' and 'nurse' is already very close ...
French gn
Same bridge as American English — your 'ny' in 'onion' is the starting point. Compress the 'n' and 'y' into a single sou...
French é (closed e)
Australian 'ay' in 'say' starts from a more open position than American 'ay' and has a wider diphthong. You need to aim ...
French è (open e)
Australian 'e' in 'bed' has shifted higher than in most other English accents — it's closer to the 'e' in French 'é' tha...
French schwa (e muet)
Your schwa in 'about' is the starting point. The French version needs a touch more lip rounding — purse your lips slight...
French open o vs closed o
Your open 'o' in 'hot' is already a good match for French open 'ɔ'. For the closed 'o', your Australian 'go' starts more...
French dental l
Like American English, Australian English has a dark 'l' at the end of words — and yours may be even darker than the Ame...
French a (front vs back)
Your Australian 'car' vowel (the long 'ah') is very close to the French back 'a' in 'pâte'. Your 'cat' vowel is raised a...
French h (silent vs aspirated)
Australian English sometimes drops 'h' in casual speech ('e went to 'is 'ouse'), which actually helps here. In French, t...
Genuinely New Sounds (3)
No equivalent in Australian / NZ English. These deserve your focused practice time.
French u
Your Australian 'oo' in 'goose' is already more fronted than American English — you're halfway there. Push your tongue s...
French semi-vowel /ɥ/
This sound is the French 'u' spoken as a quick glide. Since your fronted 'oo' vowel gives you a head start on French 'u'...
French nasal 'un' /œ̃/
Since your 'bird' vowel already bridges to French 'eu', the nasal version is one step further. Take that rounded central...
Your Australian / NZ Advantages
Non-rhotic (no interfering r habit)
Fronted 'oo' vowel (bridge to French u)
'Bird' vowel is closest English equivalent to French eu
Natural nasalisation
H-dropping tendency helps with silent h
Frequently Asked Questions
How hard is French for Australian / NZ English speakers?▾
What French sounds do Australian / NZ speakers already make?▾
What are the hardest French sounds for Australian / NZ speakers?▾
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