How to pronounce Pluie in French?
Updated: March 28, 2021 by Mylene in How to PronounceArray ▪
Pluie is a noun in French that means rain in English.
In French, “la pluie” is a feminine noun, the plural is “les pluies”.
Check the following sentences to see how the French word “pluie” is used in what follows:
- Ils attendaient la pluie avec impatience: They were waiting for the rain with impatience.
- Par temps de pluie, je porte des bottes de pluie: In rainy weather, I wear rubber boots.
- La mariée sort de l’église sous une pluie de confettis: The bride emerged from the church under a shower of confetti.
- Après la pluie, le beau temps: After the rain the good weather. (This expression means that things always look up in the end)
- En effet, la pluie est toujours annoncée vers 10h: In fact, rain is expected at 10am.
- Je ne suis pas né de la dernière pluie: I wasn’t born yesterday. (It is also another well-known French expression)
How to pronounce “Pluie” in French?
The word “pluie” is pronounced /plɥi/:
- /p/: Close the lips and push air through the mouth against the closure. Do not close your teeth. Hold it back very briefly, and then release it with a small puff of air. Do not vibrate your vocal cords when you make this sound.
- /l/: The tip of your tongue should touch the top of your mouth, behind your teeth. Vibrate your vocal cords and let the airflow around the sides of your tongue.
- /ɥ/: To make it, try to pronounce the /y/ sound first and then move very rapidly to pronounce the following vowel. Your vocal cords vibrate.
- /i/: Your tongue should touch the front lower teeth. Your lips should be tensed, and the corners of your mouth slightly stretched apart. Your lips should only be slightly open. Your vocal cords vibrate.
Please note that the letter -e at the end is a silent letter.
This Instagram video will show you the right pronunciation of “pluie” in French. Click on the link to listen to this video or directly play the video shown below.
If you’re interested in taking your French pronunciation to the next level, check our article on how to pronounce French words.
Related Words in French
There are other words and expressions that also refer to rain in French. In the following, I listed a number of alternative words that can replace the words instead of “pluie” in some situations:
Averse: If the rain is sudden and important you can use “averse” to refer to rain. “Une averse” is pronounced /avɛʀs/. Example: Il a été surpris par l’averse: He was surprised by the shower.
Flotte: This is a casual word in French that is used to refer to rain and water in French. La flotte is pronounced /flɔt/. Example: Je n’en peux plus de la flotte! Je veux du soleil! : I don’t want any more rain! I want some sun!
Giboulée: If it’s raining a lot during just a few minutes and there is (or not) hail, you can use the word “giboulée” to refer to rain in French. Une giboulée is pronounced /ʒibule/. Example: Les giboulées sont souvent au mois de mars: the hail showers are often in March.
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