French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "le travail" in French?

Q: How do you pronounce le travail in French?

le travail is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /lə tʁa.vaj/. It means “work / job.” luh tra-VYE — the "-ail" ending makes a "y" sound, so the word ends in a glide, not an "l".

luh tra-VYE — the "-ail" ending makes a "y" sound, so the word ends in a glide, not an "l".

le travail /lə tʁa.vaj/

le tra-VAIL, weight on the final syllable, which ends in a glide. The plural is irregular — "travaux" — so the noun changes shape entirely when it means "roadworks".

Listen: le travail

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Sound it out

tr An unaspirated "t" into a uvular "r", made without the tongue tip.

a A short open "ah", unstressed.

vail A "v", another open "ah", then a "y" glide from the "-il". The "-ail" spelling at the end of a word always works this way: travail, détail, ail.

Hear it in a sentence

J'aime beaucoup mon travail.

I really like my job.

Listen: J'aime beaucoup mon travail.

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"J'aime beaucoup mon travail" elides "je" before the vowel of "aime", giving one fused syllable. "Beaucoup" ends in a silent "p" and has two rounded vowels. Note that "travail" is the job or the work itself, while "travailler" is the verb — and neither carries the English "travail" sense of suffering, despite the shared root.

Where English speakers slip

The ending gets a real "l", producing "tra-VILE" or "tra-VAL". It is a "y" glide: tra-VYE. Learners also stress the first syllable, and the "tr" cluster picks up an American "r". The false-friend problem is worth flagging too — French "travail" is neutral, everyday work, with none of the English word's connotations of hardship.