B has the same sound as in English; as _bal_, ball. It is pronounced in
the middle and at the end of words.
C has the sound of _k_ before _a_, _o_, _u_, _l_, _n_, _r_, except when
it has a cedilla under it, in which case it is pronounced like _s_, as
_reçu_. It is also pronounced like _s_ before _e_, _i_, and _y_. _Ch_ has
the sound of _sh_, except when it is followed by a consonant, in which
case it is pronounced like _k_; as in _chronologie_.
D has the same sound as in English. It is sounded in the middle of words,
as in _adverbe_. When it is final, and carried to the following word, it
sounds like _t_, as in _grand homme_, which is pronounced _gran-tomme_.
F is pronounced like the same letter in English, as in _fleur_, flower.
It is sounded at the end of words; but in _neuf_ it is pronounced like
_v_ when followed by a word beginning with a vowel or _h_ mute, as in
_neuf enfants_, which words are pronounced _neu-van-fan_.
G has the hard sound of _g_ in the English word _go_, before _a_, _o_,
_u_, _l_, _m_, _r_, as in _gomme_, _gris_, gum, gray. But it has always
the soft sound of _s_ as in _pleasure_ before _e_, _i_, _y_, as in
_génie_, _gîte_.
When combined with _n_ in the middle of words, it has a liquid sound,
somewhat similar to that of _ni_ in the English word onion, as _régner_,
_saigner_, _agneau_, _compagnon_, etc. Every word in which this sound
occurs is preceded by a star (*) throughout this work. Whenever _gn_ is
not liquid, it sounds as in the English word ignorant.
H is sounded with a guttural impulse, when aspirated, as in _héros_,
hero. When mute it has no use but that of showing the etymology of the
word, as in _honneur_, honor. It is always silent after _t_, as in
_méthode_, _arithmétique_, which are pronounced _métod_, _a-rit-mé-tik_.
The aspirated _h_ is marked throughout this work with a dagger (†).
J has always the sound of _s_ in _pleasure_, and is subject to no
irregularity.
K has always a hard sound, as in the English word king, and is subject to
no irregularity.
L has two sounds. The first is precisely the same as _l_ in the English
word lily. The second is liquid. The liquid _l_, whether double or
single, is always preceded by _i_. It is similar to the sound of the last
_i_ in William.
It is to be remarked, that _i_, followed by _l_ or _ll_, and preceded
by another vowel, is always silent in pronunciation; it only serves
to indicate the liquid sound of the _l_, as in _paille_, _soleil_,
_patrouille_, which ought to be pronounced _pâ-i_, _solé-i_, _patrou-i_.
But when _i_ is not preceded by another vowel, as in _fille_, it retains
its natural sound, and serves at the same time to indicate the liquid
sound of _l_. And here in _fille_, pronounced _fi-i_, we find both the
_i_ natural and the _i_ which stands for _ll_.
Whenever _i_ begins a word, as in _illusion_, the _l_’s are never liquid.
The liquid _l_ is marked throughout this work with a star (*).
P has the sound of the same letter in English, as in _peine_, pain.
When combined with _h_, it has the sound of _f_, as in _philosophe_,
philosopher.
Q has the hard sound of _k_, as in the English word _quaker_. Whether
initial or medial, _q_ is always followed by _u_, which is not sounded
except in a few words that are noticed in the course of this work.
R has the same sound as in English, but is articulated much more
strongly, as in _rivière_, river. It is always sounded at the end of
words, when preceded by the vowels _a_, _i_, _o_, _u_. In substantives,
adjectives, and verbs ending in _er_, it is silent, unless it is followed
by a word beginning with a vowel or _h_ mute, as in _dernier ouvrage_,
which is pronounced _dernié-rouvraj_.
S has two sounds. The first is hissing, as in the English word _sister_;
the second is soft, as in the English word _please_. It has uniformly
the hissing sound at the beginning of words, and the soft between two
vowels. Both sounds occur in _saison_. It preserves its hissing sound in
compound words, as in _parasol_, _vraisemblable_; and when it happens to
be sounded at the end of words, as in _Pallas_, _Brutus_, _vis_.
When _s_ final is joined to the following word, it is always articulated
like _z_, as in _dans un cas important_, which must be pronounced
_dān-zun-kâ-zin-por-tān_.
T has two sounds; one hard, as in the English word _tutor_, and the other
like the hissing _s_, as in _sister_. Both occur in _situation_, which is
pronounced _si-tuā-sion_. It has the hissing sound before _i_, connected
with some other following vowel or vowels, as in _patience_, _factieux_,
which are pronounced _pasian-s_, _fak-sieû_.
When _t_, however, is immediately preceded by _s_, it preserves the hard
sound, as in _bastion_, _question_, which are pronounced _bas-tion_,
_kès-tion_.
X has generally the sound of _ks_. In all words beginning with _x_ or
_ex_, followed by a vowel, it has the sound of _gz_, as in _Xavier_,
_exil_, which are pronounced _gzavié_, _èg-zil_. When final, it is joined
to the following word, and sounds like _z_, as in _beaux yeux_, _dix
hommes_, which are pronounced _bô-zieû_, _dî-zom_. X has the sound of
_ss_ in _Auxerre_, _Auxonne_, and _Bruxelles_.