LingoDrop
French · Pronunciation Guide
How do you pronounce "la robe" in French?
lah ROB — a throat "r" at the front, a short open "o", and a pronounced "b".
The phrase peaks on ROBE, one syllable. The word means a dress, not a dressing gown — that is "un peignoir" — so the English cognate is a false friend.
Listen: la robe
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Sound it out
Hear it in a sentence
Cette robe est très jolie.
This dress is very pretty.
Listen: Cette robe est très jolie.
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"Cette robe est très jolie" uses the feminine demonstrative "cette" with an audible "t", and the feminine "jolie" whose silent "e" makes it sound identical to the masculine. "Robe est" runs together across the vowels. "Très" makes no liaison before "jolie", since it begins with a consonant.
Where English speakers slip
The English word "robe" supplies a long diphthong and no throat "r". French has a short open "o" and an initial rasp. The meaning shift is the other issue — French "robe" is a woman's dress, so telling someone you are wearing "une robe" means something quite specific. Both the sound and the sense need adjusting.