French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "l'hôtel (m.)" in French?

Q: How do you pronounce l'hôtel (m.) in French?

l'hôtel (m.) is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /lo.tɛl/. It means “hotel.” loh-TEL — the "h" is silent, the article fuses on, and the circumflex marks a lost "s".

loh-TEL — the "h" is silent, the article fuses on, and the circumflex marks a lost "s".

l'hôtel (m.) /lo.tɛl/

l'hô-TEL, weight on the second syllable. English also stresses the second here, so the rhythm lines up — the difference is entirely in the vowels and the silent "h".

Listen: l'hôtel (m.)

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Sound it out

l'h The article "le" elided before the mute "h", which French treats as no consonant at all.

ô A closed "oh". The circumflex marks a lost "s" — the older form was "hostel", which is exactly what English borrowed twice, as "hostel" and "hotel".

tel An unaspirated "t", an open "eh", and a light forward "l" that is fully pronounced.

Hear it in a sentence

Je cherche un hôtel pas cher.

I'm looking for a cheap hotel.

Listen: Je cherche un hôtel pas cher.

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"Je cherche un hôtel pas cher" carries a liaison: "un hôtel" is /œ̃.n‿o.tɛl/, with the nasal releasing into a real "n" across the mute "h". "Chercher" needs no preposition — never "chercher pour". "Pas cher" is the idiomatic way to say inexpensive, literally "not expensive".

Where English speakers slip

Learners aspirate the "h", which blocks the liaison and makes "un hôtel" sound broken. There is no "h". The first vowel also picks up an English glide; keep it a steady "oh". And the final "l" goes dark in English mouths — keep it bright, with the tongue tip forward.