French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "bon" in French?

Q: How do you pronounce bon in French?

bon is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /bɔ̃/. It means “good (m.; f. bonne).” A nasal "boh" — one syllable, rounded lips, air out through the nose, and absolutely no "n" at the end.

A nasal "boh" — one syllable, rounded lips, air out through the nose, and absolutely no "n" at the end.

bon /bɔ̃/

One syllable. Where "bon" sits in a phrase decides its weight — as an adjective before a noun it is usually light and leads into the noun's stressed syllable, as in bon COURAGE.

Listen: bon

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Sound it out

b Straightforward "b", the same as English.

on The nasal vowel /ɔ̃/. Round your lips as if for "oh", let the soft palate drop so air escapes through your nose, and keep the tongue flat and low. The "n" is purely a spelling cue telling you to nasalize.

Hear it in a sentence

Ce gâteau est très bon.

This cake is very good.

Listen: Ce gâteau est très bon.

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"Ce gâteau est très bon" puts "bon" at the very end, which is where the phrase's pitch peak lands — so here the nasal vowel gets its full length and you can really hear it. Note that "très bon" makes no liaison, because "bon" starts with a consonant; the silent "s" of "très" stays silent. The circumflex in "gâteau" is historical and does not change the vowel for most speakers.

Where English speakers slip

English speakers borrow the pronunciation from phrases already in English — "bon voyage", "bon appétit" — where we say a clear "bon" with a full "n". That final consonant does not exist in French. It also matters here because the feminine form "bonne" DOES have a real "n" and a non-nasal vowel: /bɔn/. Say "bon" with an "n" and you have effectively said the feminine form, which is a grammar error as much as a pronunciation one.