In Case You're Curious About Pronouncing French Words

Have you ever wondered about the French words that we use in common American speech? Numerous examples abound, from the more obvious to the more subtle. If you're like most non-French-speaking people, you don't much care if you're observing the proper pronunciation. But if you've thought of impressing anybody with your international culture and sophistication (maybe savoir faire?), here's a short guide to everyday French expressions.

My favorite mispronounced and misused word is "concierge." I've heard such pronunciations as "con-see-ay," "con-serge" and "con-ser." None of those is correct, regrettably. In deference to the French "r" that takes some practice, let's just go with "con-see-ayrge." Having studied French for a zillion years, I know that a concierge is a caretaker or superintendent. It's a nice concept to go to a laser clinic and meet your concierge. But technically, the concierge at that clinic might just as easily be the one who maintains the building heating/ventilating and air conditioning systems.

Another one that I enjoy very much is "genre." Somehow Americans have the tendency to shy away from French words by just dropping off the back end. Consequently, I hear "gen" or worse yet, "gen-ree." The correct pronunciation looks like "djawn-re." And genre means sort or type. Through its Americanization, it's been used to describe types of fine art or music and by no means is this incorrect. But there's no long A at the end of genre. And it doesn't rhyme with sting-ray.

As a culture, we have serious issues with words pertaining to French food. A good example of this is the word "gratin" which technically means bread crumbs and cheese. Common variations of the word include words that rhyme with "rattin, ratta or rattene." Again, the French "r" is a challenging concept but it's a good idea to remember (unless being correct is simply too much work) that last letters in French words are generally not pronounced unless they are c, r, f or l. In other words, "gratin" is "gratah," or something close.

Other fun concepts for common words are "crepes" which are not "creeps," "quiche" which is not a word that rhymes with "dickey" and "flambe," a word that does not sound like an f with a sheep offspring at the end. It would be reasonable to call me picky, I suppose. But it is good cocktail party conversation, the way to impress someone whom you've just met from an online dating service and a terrific impression to be made at a French restaurant. French is a beautiful, melodic language and I am accustomed to the butchering of it in my solitary moments. But if you're interested in a study that is fascinating, historic and poetic, this is a language to be pursued.