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The Consonants not given below have the same, or nearly the same, sound as in English.

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e, i, y

h is usually silent, but is pronounced in a few words, which must be learnt by heart

j is pronounced like jee

I Double l, preceded by i, are pronounced nearly as y

r in the middle of a word is sounded more strongly than in English

s at the beginning of words has the same sound as in English, but between two Vowels it has the soft sound of z

t has usually the same sound as in English, but it has the sound of s in many words before i, followed by a, e, o

x is sounded like ks in

gz in 88 in

z in

Examples. capitale, a capital.

ceci, this.

reçu, received.

vend-il, does he sell? (pronounce, vent-il).

un grand homme, a great man (pronounce, un granthomme).

gant, glove. agir, to act.

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Many Consonants at the end of words are not pronounced,

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In reading French, when one word ends with a consonant, and the following word begins with a vowel, or silent h, the two words are pronounced together, as if they formed only one word. But this junction does not take place when there is a pause in the sentence. The tin the word et, and, is never pronounced with the following words. The final e, preceded by a consonant, is not pronounced when followed by a word beginning with a vowel: elle a = ella.

EXERCISE IN READING.

Les hommes, les enfants, des arbres, nos amis, vos habits, nous avons, vous avez eu, ils ont, pas encore, avec un enfant, ses plus cruels ennemis.- Songez à vos affaires.-Mon oncle est arrivé. Il avait encore beaucoup à faire. Un homme et une femme. Cet habit est à moi.-Les Anglais sont industrieux.Vous en avez eu assez.-La ville allait être prise.

III. THE ARTICLE (l'Article).

There are three Articles, the DEFINITE (l'article défini), the INDEFINITE (l'article indéfini), and the PARTITIVE (l'article partitif).

Definite :
Indefinite:

SINGULAR (Singulier).

Masculine (Masculin). Feminine (Féminin).

le (1)

un

la (1')

une

PLURAL (Pluriel).

les

(no plural).

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l' is used instead of le, la, before a vowel or h mute.

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l'ami,

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the fathers.
the mothers.

the friends (masc.)

(instead of le ami).

l'amie,

the friend (fem.)

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(instead of la amie).

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[The Partitive Article is given on p. 12.]

Present Tense of the Verb "To have."

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2. J'ai une rose. 3. Le père a la rose.
5. Il a le jardin. 6. Le père a un jardin.

7. L'enfant a la pomme. 8. Un enfant a une pomme. 9. Le père
a le livre. 10. L'enfant a un livre. 11. L'oncle a un cheval.
12. L'enfant a un oncle et une tante.

1. I have the book. 2. We have a father and a mother. 3. He has the rose. 4. We have a garden. 5. He has the apple. 6. The mother has a book. 7. The child has a book. 8. You have an uncle and an aunt. 9. We have a horse. 10. The aunt has a garden. 11. The child has a horse. 12. You have a garden.

Present Tense of the Verb " To have," used Interrogatively.

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NOTE.-In Interrogative sentences, when the subject is a substantive, the noun is placed first, and the pronoun is also used after the verb, as :

L'enfant a-t-il? Has the child? Lit. The child has he?

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Oui, j'ai un livre.

oncle et une

Oui, j'ai le 9. L'enfant

1. Avez-vous un père et une mère? 2. A-t-elle un tante? 3. A-t-il un ami? 4. A-t-elle une amie? 5. Ont-ils un jardin ? 6. Ai-je la rose? 7. Avez-vous le livre ? livre. 8. Avez-vous un livre? a-t-il une rose? Oui, l'enfant a une rose. 10. Le père a-t-il un chien? Non, il a un cheval. 11. La tante a-t-elle un jardin ? Oui, elle a un jardin. 12. L'oncle a-t-il un habit? un habit.

Oui, il a

1. Has he an uncle and an aunt? 2. Have they a father and a mother? 3. Have they (masculine) a friend (masc.)? 4. Have they (feminine) a friend (fem.)? 5. Has she the rose? 6. Have I the book? 7. Have you the rose? Yes, I have the rose. 8. Have you a garden? Yes, I have a garden. 9. Has the child a coat? (say, The child, has he a coat?) Yes, he has a coat. 10. Has the uncle a horse? (say, The uncle, has he a horse ?) No, he has a dog. 11. Has the mother the book? (say, The mother, has she the book?) Yes, she has the book. 12. Has the father a horse? (say, The father, has he a horse?) Yes, he has a horse.

IV. THE SUBSTANTIVE (le Substantif).

1. FORMATION OF THE PLURAL (Formation du Pluriel). GENERAL RULE (Règle générale).

The Plural is formed by adding s, which is not sounded.

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1. Substantives ending in s, x, or z, remain unchanged

in the Plural.

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2. Substantives ending in -au or -eau, in -eu or -œu, take x in the Plural, instead of s.

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NOTE.-The following seven words ending in -ou also

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All the other words in -ou follow the general rule, and have the Plural in 8: as,

le clou, the nail.

les clous, the nails.

3. Substantives ending in -al or -ail change these letters into -aux in the Plural: as,

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Obs. There are a few exceptions to this rule: as, le bal, the ball; l'éventail, the fan; &c., which form the plural bals, éventails, &c.

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