Hats on letters

é, è and ê each change the sound

Accents are not decoration. They tell you how to say the letter. é (accent aigu) points up and says 'ay', like café. è (accent grave) points down and says 'eh', like the e in bed: père, très.

ê (accent circonflexe) is the little hat. It usually marks the spot where an old s disappeared: forêt was forest, hôpital was hospital, île was isle. Spot the hat, imagine the s, and the English word often appears.

Examples

Practice (sample)

Listen. Which spelling is right?

1. a forest
   foret / forêt / forét
   Answer

   forêt. the hat marks the lost s of forest.
2. very
   trés / très / três
   Answer

   très. the sound is 'eh' → accent grave.
3. a coffee
   cafè / café / cafê
   Answer

   café. the sound is 'ay' → accent aigu.
4. a hospital
   hôpital / hópital / hopital
   Answer

   hôpital. hospital → the s vanished → hat.
5. the first (masc.)
   premiér / premier / premièr
   Answer

   premier. no accent: -ier already says 'yay'.
6. a father
   pére / père / pêre
   Answer

   père. 'peh-r' → accent grave.

The online game draws fresh questions from a bank of 16, in two levels.