Verb drill
Nous avons, ils arrivent: practise French pronoun–verb liaison
Build eight subject–verb phrases with nous, vous, ils and elles. Locate the linking z, compare il aime with ils aiment, then check the boundary.
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In short
In connected speech, nous, vous, ils and elles link to a vowel-initial verb with /z/: nous avons, vous êtes, ils arrivent, elles aiment. Put /z/ between the pronoun and verb. The written words stay separate.
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| French | Connected pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| nous avons | /nuzavɔ̃/ | we have |
| vous êtes | /vuzɛt/ | you are |
| ils arrivent | /ilzaʁiv/ | they arrive |
| elles aiment | /ɛlzɛm/ | they like |
| elles habitent | /ɛlzabit/ | they live |
The h of habitent is mute, so the verb behaves like a vowel-initial word here. Say the /z/ directly into the first vowel: elles habitent. Keep the final -ent silent. This gives /ɛlzabit/; the final /t/ belongs to the stem of habiter.
Il aime danser. Ils aiment danser.
He likes dancing. They like dancing.
The singular phrase has /ilɛm/; the plural has /ilzɛm/. The /z/ makes the plural audible in this pair.
Is there a liaison between nous and the verb?
Vous êtes ici.
You are here.
Say /vuzɛtisi/. The /z/ links vous to êtes. The /t/ before ici is already pronounced in êtes /ɛt/.
That second connection is enchaînement: an existing consonant joins the next syllable. An extra /z/ after êtes would add a sound to this everyday version. In ils sont, the verb starts with /s/, so the subject has no /z/ liaison. Check the start of the verb as well as the pronoun.
Build the phrase, then say it together
Type the present-tense verb requested in brackets. After checking, read each complete sentence aloud. Connect the subject pronoun to the first vowel with /z/; keep the spelling of each verb intact.
1 · Eight connected phrases
- Nous le temps. (avoir)
- Vous ici. (être)
- Ils demain. (arriver)
- Elles danser. (aimer)
- Nous au travail. (aller)
- Vous raison. (avoir)
- Ils une question. (avoir)
- Elles ici. (habiter)