LingoDrop
French · Pronunciation Guide
How do you pronounce "le père" in French?
luh PEHR — an unaspirated "p", an open "eh", and a throat "r".
The phrase peaks on PÈRE, one syllable. It rhymes exactly with "mère", which is convenient — the two words differ only in their opening consonant.
Listen: le père
Free browser voice. Hear it read by a real native speaker inside the LingoDrop app.
Sound it out
Hear it in a sentence
Mon père est à la retraite.
My father is retired.
Listen: Mon père est à la retraite.
Free browser voice. Hear it read by a real native speaker inside the LingoDrop app.
"Mon père est à la retraite" links the possessive into the noun with no liaison (since "père" starts with a consonant), but "père est" runs together across the vowels. "À la retraite" is the fixed phrase for being retired — French uses "être à la retraite", not an adjective. "Retraite" ends in a pronounced "t" thanks to its silent "e".
Where English speakers slip
The "p" gets aspirated, giving a breathy "phair", and the vowel gets swallowed by an English "r". Hold a hand in front of your mouth: you should feel no puff. Then keep the "eh" flat and make the "r" in your throat. Learners also confuse "père" with "paire" (pair) and "pair" — all three are homophones, distinguished only by context.