French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "curieux" in French?

kü-RYUH — the tight French "u" first, then a throat "r", a "y" glide, and a rounded vowel.

curieux /ky.ʁjø/

cu-RIEUX, weight on the second syllable. Two beats, not three — the "-rieux" ending is a single glide-plus-vowel unit.

Listen: curieux

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Sound it out

cu A hard "k" plus the vowel /y/: tongue in the "ee" position, lips rounded. Not "kyoo".

ri A uvular "r" plus the "i" acting as a "y" glide into the next vowel.

eux The rounded vowel /ø/, as in "deux", with the "x" silent. The feminine "curieuse" turns that "x" into a "z".

Hear it in a sentence

Les enfants sont curieux.

Children are curious.

Listen: Les enfants sont curieux.

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"Les enfants sont curieux" carries an obligatory liaison at the start: "les enfants" is /le.z‿ɑ̃.fɑ̃/. The plural "x" on "curieux" is silent and the word is invariable in the masculine plural, so singular and plural sound identical. "Sont" ends in a silent "t" with no liaison here.

Where English speakers slip

The English "curious" supplies a "kyoo" at the front and three syllables. French has a pure front-rounded /y/ with no glide before it, and two beats. Learners also split "-rieux" into "ree-UH". And note the meaning is narrower than English — "curieux" can also mean odd or strange, so "c'est curieux" often means "that's peculiar".