How Do You Pronounce EU in French

The letter combination EU appears often in the French language, but do you know how to pronounce it? Depending on how its used, the EU takes on the sound of an English U. This French lesson will explain how and when its used and give you some example vocabulary words to use as practice. How to Pronounce the French EU The French letter combination EU can be pronounced in two different ways and they  are quite similar to one another. When EU is an open syllable -- the vowel is the last sound in the syllable -- it sounds more or less like the U in the English word full:  listen.When in a closed syllable, EU is pronounced with a slightly more open mouth: listen. There is an exception to the EU pronunciation rules. When used as the past participle of avoir, eu  is pronounced like the French U. French Words With EU Its time to practice your EU pronunciation with a few words. You can click on each word to hear the proper pronunciation, but give it a try on your own first. neuf  (nine)feu  (fire)peu  (a little) Did you notice how  neuf  used the closed syllable EU while  feu  and  peu  use the open syllable sound? You can almost expect to say full and pull with those two words. Dont Get EU Confused With These If you see the letter combination of EUIL, the sound will be different. This is more of an OO sound as in good followed by a Y. Here it is in use:  une  feuille  (leaf). The  vowel combination of AU  has a closed O sound, as does  the combination EAU.   If youre reading fast, it can be very easy to mistake either for EU.