French words in English
There have been French words in English since the time of Chaucer. For example, he imported those that end in -sion or -tion (though he often also put -cion or -cioun). More recent additions are ménû, machìne (-sh-), façàde (*fəssàd), crèpe and elìte (the accents show stress and pronunciation, see English phonemes). English more-or-less French pronunciation is typified by the proper names *Cítron, *Përzho and *Rénno for Cítroen, Pëugeot and Rénault. Pronouncing French words too Frenchly sounds pretentious in an English context. Why say Stephàne Grapellỳ when it is so much easier to say *Stéfən Grəpélly? Boulougne (*Bəlŏin, as opposed to French Bûlónyə) and Páris (with s sounded) have anglicised pronunciations, as do the painters Dègàs (*Dâygà for *Dəgá - the name was originally de Gas) and Rénoir (*Rénwà instead of *Rənwàr - the anglicised pronunciations are of course spurned by those anglophones who have learnt French, but even they would not normally in an English context pronounce the final r in Renoir); by contrast the more recently famous Nigér has a French-style pronunciation, *Nìzhãir - in contrast to Nigêria (*Nîjêria).
But many more French words and phrases are less assimilated than those above, and they are often written, like other foreign words, in italics. They can retain their written French accents in (especially British) English. None of these accents should be regarded as compulsory in English, but they are often used.
List of French words
This is a list of words that may retain their French written accents, or be written in italics, or have a strange or little-known pronunciation in English, in any combination. The accents in the pronunciation column show stress and pronunciation (see English phonemes).
| Spelling, French accents optional | Pronunciation |
|---|---|
| à deux | *à-də |
| aileron | âileron |
| à la mode | *àlà-môde |
| blasé | *blàzây |
| bête noire | *bét-nwà(r) |
| bon mot | *bón-mô |
| bon ton | *bón-tón |
| bon vivant | *bon-vìvàn |
| café | cáfè |
| canapé | cánapè |
| canard | cánard |
| cause célèbre | *côze-celébrə |
| chauffeur | shô-fër |
| Cítroën ™ | *Sítrən |
| confrère | cónfrére |
| crème | créme |
| crèpe | crèpe |
| cliché | *clìshây (AmE stresses 2nd syllable) |
| clientèle | *cleeontél |
| compère | cómpére host, cf. compãre contrast |
| coup de grace | *coôdəgràss |
| coup de théâtre[1] | *coôdətay-átrə |
| coupé | coûpè |
| cortège | *cŏr-tèzh |
| curaçao | *curəssòw |
| debâcle | debàcle |
| débris | BrE *débrêe or dèbrêe, AmE dəbrêe |
| début | *dèbyû or *débyû |
| débutant | *dèbyûtàn or *débyûtàn |
| déclassé | declássè |
| déjà vu | *dèzhà-vû |
| demimondaine | démimon-dâne |
| double-entendre | doôblon-tóndrə |
| éclair | eclãir |
| éclat | *è-clà |
| élan | *è-làn |
| émigré | émigrè |
| en fête | *ón-fét |
| enfant terrible | *ónfànté-rìbl |
| engagé | *ongázhây |
| entrée | *óntrây |
| exposé | *expôzây, cf. expôse |
| façade | *fassàd |
| fête garden | = fâte destiny |
| fiancé man, fiancée woman | *fì-ànsây |
| flânerie | *flánə-rìe |
| flâneur | *flanëur |
| folie à deux | *folìà-dë |
| frottage | *frótàzh |
| fusilage | *fûsilàzh |
| honi soit qui mal y pense | *ónny-swà-kêe-málly-pànss |
| laissez-faire | lây-sây-fãir |
| joie de vivre | *zhwàdvìvrə |
| le mot juste | *ləmô-zhûst |
| madame, as in a brothel | madáme, cf. mádam, as when shopping |
| maître d'hôtel | métradô-tél, mâitradô-tél |
| matinée | mátinèe |
| mélange | *mây-lànzh |
| ménage à trois | ménàzhà-twà |
| menu | *ményu |
| métier | *mâytiây |
| mot juste | *mô-zhûst |
| naïve | *nî-yêeve |
| naïveté[2] | *nî-yeevì-tây |
| outré | oûtrè |
| nouveau riche | *noôvô-rêesh |
| parvenu | pà(r)vən(y)û |
| passé | pássè |
| pâté | pátè |
| protégé | *prôtezhây |
| Provençal | *Provonssàl |
| raison d’être | *râizon-détrə |
| résumé | *rézyumây, *râyzyumây, cf. resûme (*rizyûme) |
| risqué | *rískây, *rêeskây |
| rôle | rôle part (= rôll over, eat) |
| roué | roûè (*roôwây) |
| savoir-faire | sávwà-fãir |
| savoir-vivre | sávwà-vìvrə |
| séance | *sâyónce |
| soixante-neuf | *swàsont-nəf |
| soupçon | *soûpsón |
| table d’hôte | *tàbla-dôte |
| tête-à-tête | *tétà-tét |
| vis-à-vis | *víza-vêe, vêezà-vêe |
| voilà | *vwà-là |