Les voyelles nasales · m devant b et p
1 · Am and em often give /ɑ̃/
Compare lampe /lɑ̃p/ and temps /tɑ̃/. The spelling uses m even when the following consonant letter is silent.
La lampe est sur la table.The lamp is on the table.
Nous avons le temps.We have time.
2 · Im often gives /ɛ̃/
In simple /sɛ̃pl/, the nasal vowel is followed by /p/ and /l/. Keep those two consonants.
| un timbre /tɛ̃bʁ/ | a stamp |
| important /ɛ̃pɔʁtɑ̃/ | important |
La réponse est simple.The answer is simple.
3 · Om often gives /ɔ̃/
The spelling in nombre /nɔ̃bʁ/ has the same nasal vowel category as nom /nɔ̃/. The following /bʁ/ remains.
Le nombre de chambres est indiqué ici.The number of bedrooms is shown here.
4 · Keep bonbon with n
Learn bonbon as a whole word. Other exceptions include néanmoins and embonpoint.
Tu veux un bonbon ?Would you like a sweet?
5 · Keep each word’s spelling across a space
In un bon pain, the next word starts with p, but bon keeps its n. This spelling convention works inside a word.
C’est un bon pain de campagne.It’s a good country loaf.
6 · A pronounced m has its own pattern
In ami /ami/, the vowel before m is oral and /m/ is pronounced. The letter alone is not enough: read the whole word.
Mon ami arrive demain.My friend arrives tomorrow.