Description
It's story time! Welcome to a French coffee shop and fancy restaurant where you'll be introduced to a number of common French loanwords in English. A loanword is a words borrowed from a foreign language.
American English is packed with French words; how do we pronounce them? Well, I know a lot of you are saying we butcher them, that's okay (I don't disagree with you!) In general, the pronunciation of a words depends on how popular / common a word is. If a French word is common in American English, naturally, there's an expected way to pronounce it, even if it's not how it is pronounced normally in French.
The goal of this episode is to teach you how we pronounce the common ones and what to do when you come across uncommon loanwords. Here is a sample of some of the words in today's episode.
PatisserieCroissantsBaguettesEclairsCreme bruléeSouffléCrepesFacade (less commonly spelled façade in English)ChicFaux pasMaitre d’ (or also spelled maître d')SommelierConnoisseurHors d'oeuvres (we say this word often and I guarantee most people can't spell it!)Champagne VinaigretteOmelet (or also spelled omelette)FauxCliché (less commonly spelled cliche in English)RisquéChauffeurEntrepreneurRendezvous À la mode (also spelled a la mode)À la carte (also spelled a la carte)C'est la vieDéjà vu (also spelled deja vu)*****
Premium Content: This episode is part of Season 3. By purchasing Season 3 transcripts, you'll be able to access the full episodes, the full PDF transcripts for episodes 101 - 150, an Mp3 download and the premium podcast player to work on your pronunciation.
Get ALL PREMIUM CONTENT FOR SEASONS 1 - 3 (with 5 in-depth courses to improve your English, includes all transcripts + mp3s)Get ONLY the Transcripts for Episodes 001 - 150Get the Free E-Book: 101 American English Slang Words *****
Support the show
In this 3-part episode, you'll hear a casual discussion about one of life's most mundane topics: peeing and pooping. It's taboo to talk about, which is strange given how it's one of the most common things in the world.
In part 1, you’ll hear about potty training, you’ll hear a joke and learn...
Published 03/21/23
If you don't know who Dr. Seuss is, you should!
He was a cartoonist and author that brought us The Cat in the Hat, The Grinch, Green Eggs and Ham and over 40 other incredible books for children and adults around the world. He's been called "the father of contemporary children's literature." One...
Published 03/08/23