From La Cédille to L'accent Circonflexe: The Usage of French Accents Marks

Intonation, stress, accent – how much do they mean for understanding a language? Diacritics give an extra reason to get confused and again emphasize context's importance. Today, we will take French accent marks as an example of the importance of this language aspect.

This feature appeared during the Renaissance and was transferred from Latin, making the language more diverse. This is one of the most critical stages of learning French, since one designation can completely change a word's meaning and sound.

Types of French Accent Marks

In total, linguists distinguish six accents in French, and you can even find some in English. For example, café or fiancé are borrowed terms, and the accent mark indicates that the letter “e” should be doubled. Anyway, let's get back to the French alphabet. There are plenty of other words with e or o with an accent.

Acute Accent (L'accent Aigu)

One of the most popular grammar points in France. It is represented by the sign “´” and is placed above the letter “e,” making the pronunciation more closed and bright. For example, the word école [ekɔl] becomes softer, while without the accent, the “e” would sound like the English “a.”

Grave Accent (L'accent Grave)

It is represented by the sign “`” and is also placed above the letter e in French, turning it into è. This accent changes the pronunciation of the letter, making it more open and low. For example, in the word père [pɛʁ] (father) and the English name Emma, ​​the pronunciation of the “e” is the same.

Cedilla (La Cédille)

Unlike the other marks, this sign goes on the consonant letter “c”, turning it into “ç”. It softens the pronunciation of the sound, as in the word garçon (boy), because without the cedilla, the letter “c” is pronounced like “k.” This accent helps to maintain the correct pronunciation before the French letters “a,” “o,” and “u.”

Circumflex (L'accent Circonflexe)

This mark is placed on the vowels â, ê, î, ô, û and has several meanings. It can indicate that the pronunciation has been changed, or a letter has been lost in a word. For example, in the word forêt (forest), e with an accent reminds us that there is no letter “s”. This accent can also serve as a substitute for stress, lengthening the sound.

Trema (L'accent Tréma)

This option is similar to the German umlaut. But make sure to distinguish them; the French version means something different. Trema emphasizes that the vowels like u with an accent should be pronounced separately from each other. You can find it in the letters ë, ï, ü. For example, the “ai” in “naïf” would be pronounced as [ɛ] without the accent.

Usage and Pronunciation

Great, now you know the name of the French accents. Well, it's time to learn how to use them! Interestingly, you can't put accents wherever you want because only vowels can contain them. Of course, French wouldn't be French without the exception of cedilla, but let's pretend that's how it should be.

Pronunciation Changes with French Accents

As we said above, accents change sounds in different ways. But what do they have in common? Depending on where the accent is in the word, it can affect the sound: make it more expressive or “rounded.”

Examples of Words with Accents

Oh man, what a time to learn French. One little dash can completely change a word. But don't worry, we got you. Although accents can change the meaning of a term, they are easy to remember. Here are some examples:

As you can see, some words can sound the same regardless of the accent. Speakers of some dialects pronounce these words differently, paying more attention to stress.

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Typing French Accents

Typing French on a keyboard is similar to English – you just need to get used to new key combinations like capital e with accent, depending on the OS. Switching to a new habit can be challenging when you've been using a language without accents all your life. We have some mini-guides to help you learn this faster.

Typing on Mac

The algorithm is simple: get used to the Option key to add an accent. 

• How to type e with an accent? Just hold the Option and press the E key. Then, release both keys and press the E again, and voila – your first French accent is ready! 
• The same works with cedilla – hold the Option and press the C key to produce ç.
• To type grave accent, hold the Option and press the backtick key. Release both keys and type the desired letter. 
• To get trema, hold Option and press U. Then release both keys and press the letter you need. 
• For circumflex, repeat all the steps from the previous point, but instead of U, press I.

Typing on PC

You can enter a French accent using key combinations with Alt and the numeric keypad on a Windows gadget. 

• For the aigu accent, hold down the Alt key and type 130 for é. 
• For the grave accent, use Alt 138 for è, Alt 133 for à, or Alt 151 for ù. 
• To enter a circumflex, use Alt 136 for ê. 
• For a trema, use Alt 137 for ë. 
• To enter a cedilla, type Alt 135 for ç.

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Conclusion

Accents in French seem like a trifle once you begin to understand the issue in detail. They can change the sound of a word and even its meaning by 180 degrees. French generally has five main accents, four of which are used on vowels. They indicate clearer syllable pronunciation and separate sounds from each other. Why are they essential for beginners? This is the basis of your speaking skills. By learning accents, you can pronounce words more confidently and develop your unique manner of speech. Isn't that cool?