Learning a new language is hard work. One thing that may make it seem harder is learning to use accent markings, or diacritics. Especially to native speakers of English, figuring out diacritics can seem like a hassle, but they’re a very important part of the French language. Accent markings not only deal with spelling but can also relate to the pronunciation and meaning of the words as well. I know how tempting it is to want to defy these little modifiers, but it’s important to learn them if you want to become fluent.

 

There are five different diacritics used in the French language: the acute, the grave, the circumflex, the diaeresis, and the cedilla. Rarely the tilde may be used, but it’s generally used for words and names of Spanish origin that have been incorporated into the French language, so we won’t be covering it.

 

The Acute Accent

 

Also known as l’accent aigu, the acute accent points to the right and upward, only appearing above the letter E. The use of this accent changes the letter’s pronunciation to “ay”.

 

l’école (school)

 

aimé (loved)

 

étrangler (to strangle)

 

The Grave Accent

 

L’accent grave points to the left and upward and can be found on an A, E, or U. On the A and U, it usually serves to distinguish between words that would otherwise be homophones. On the E, however, it alters the pronunciation to sound like “eh”.

 

ou (or)
où (where)

 

la (definite article, singular feminine noun)
là (there)

 

secrète (secret)

 

The Circumflex

 

Le circonflexe looks like a little pointed hat worn by vowels. This diacritic can be helpful in determining the meaning of a word. It often means that in a previous version of the word, there used to be an S. Often the word is not a direct translation, but is similar in meaning.

 

forêt (forest)

 

maître (master)

 

Le circonflexe also serves to distinguish between homophones.

 

du (contraction of de + le)
dû (past participle of devoir)

 

The Dieresis

 

Le tréma looks like two dots above a letter. It’s usually placed above the second of two consecutive vowels when both vowels are to be pronounced separately.

 

ambigüe (ambiguous)

 

égoïste (selfish)

 

The Cedilla

 

La cédille looks like a little tail under the letter C. As far as diacritics go, this one is pretty simple for language students to remember because it is only used with the C and serves as a pronunciation guide to indicate the C should be pronounced as an S.

 

garçon (boy)

 

soupçon (suspicion)

 

Accent marks can seem like a pain in the backside to learn at first, but keep giving it your all. They’re graphic expressions of pronunciation, and, after you master them, your diacritic knowledge will bring you that much closer to becoming the fluent student we both know you can be.

 

Have you been having trouble with diacritics, or do you consider the accent marks simple compared to another part of French language acquisition?