The final consonants are not pronounced unless the ensuing word begin with a vowel; but they must always be pronounced as under: Abraham, Abraham air, air avec, with bis, again brut, rough calcul, calculation cap, cape car, for Cérès, Ceres chef, (sing.) chief cuiller, spoon David, David dot, dowry échec, check est, east exact, exact fer, iron fier, proud fil, thread gratis, gratis mer, sea ouest, west Pallas, Pallas poil, hair rétif, restive sac, sack sel, salt seul, alone Sieur, Sir sot, fool sud, south troc, truck, barter Vénus, Venus The following is a list of those words which the English find most difficult to pronounce. aiguïlle, needle angelique, angelic anguille, an eel armée, army Avignon, Avignon bouillir, to boil Boulogne, Boulogne Bretagne, Brittany brouillard, fog campagne, country canaille, rabble chèvrefeuille, honeysuckle chien, dog cigogne, stork citrouille, pumpkin croix, cross cuvier, a fish-tub deuil, mourning égayant, rejoicing épagneul, spaniel Espagnol, Spanish éternité, eternity fruit, fruit observatoire, observatory œillet, pink oignon, onion orgueil, pride oseille, sorrel parapluie, umbrella Although the preceding words are introduced in this part of the Grammar, yet it may be better for the pupil not to attempt to pronounce them till he has made some progress in the language, because their correct pronunciation requires a very delicate ear. OBSERVATIONS RESPECTING THE EVERY noun, in French, is either of the masculine or feminine gender, whether the being or thing that is named be animate or inanimate. The genders of animate or living beings may easily be distinguished; thus, all male animals are masculine, and all female animals are feminine; but the genders of inanimate things can only be learned by practice; for which purpose we have generally marked the genders of the nouns throughout the work. 1. The sexes are sometimes distinguished by different names; as, 2. Some are distinguished by their terminations; as, Masculine. le tigre, the tiger le lion, the lion le loup, the he-wolf un lapin, a (buck) rabbit un canard, a drake un Juif, a Jew un paysan, a countryman un cousin, a (male) cousin un ami, a (male) friend un acteur, an actor un pécheur, a sinner le défendeur, the defendant le vengeur, the avenger Feminine. la tigresse, the tigress la lionne, the lioness la louve, the she-wolf une lapine, a (doe) rabbit une cane, a duck une Juive, a Jewess une paysanne, a country-wo man. une cousine, a (female) cousin la défenderesse, the defendant 3. Sometimes the same word (though masculine or feminine) is used to designate both sexes; as, une baleine, a whale; un requin, a shark; une corneille, a crow or rook ; un crapaud, a toad; une grenouille, a frog, &c. 4. Majesté, Majesty; and sentinelle, sentinel, are feminine. 5. Amour, love; délice, delight; and orgue, organ, are masculine in the singular, and feminine in the plural. * The articles must be of the same gender as the nouns to which they refer; but when a noun begins with a vowel or h mute, then " is put instead of le or la. 6. Automne, autumn, is masculine when the adjective precedes; as un bel automne, a fine autumn; but it is feminine when the adjective follows; as, une automne froide et pluvieuse, a cold and rainy autumn. 7. Personne, substantive, is feminine; and personne, pronoun, is masculine. 8. The following nouns designate both sexes; auteur, author or authoress; docteur, doctor or doctress; écrivain, writer; orateur, orator; philosophe, philosopher; poète, poet or poetess; témoin, witness, &c. - [Vide Grammaire des Grammaires, p. 93.] The following nouns are sometimes masculine and sometimes feminine, depending generally upon the manner in which they are used; but in some instances, they appear to be nouns of similar orthography and different origin. un enfant (a boy), a child bits, &c.) une enfant (a girl), a child sign un exemple, an example un enseigne (an officer), an en- une enseigne, a sign une exemple (a written model), la greffe (a branch), the graft les guides, the reins une livre (a weight), a pound une manche (of a coat), a un livre, a book un manche, a handle sleeve |
