French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "là-bas" in French?

lah-BAH — two open vowels, a hyphen that changes nothing, and a silent "s".

là-bas /la.bɑ/

là-BAS, weight on the second element. The hyphen joins two words into a single unit, and French treats the pair as one rhythmic group with the beat at the end.

Listen: là-bas

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Sound it out

là A light "l" plus an open "ah". The grave accent distinguishes this word from the article "la" in writing but changes nothing in the sound.

bas A "b" plus a long open "ah", with the "s" silent. This is the same word as the adjective meaning "low", used here in its spatial sense.

Hear it in a sentence

Le magasin est là-bas.

The store is over there.

Listen: Le magasin est là-bas.

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"Le magasin est là-bas" ends on the phrase, so both open vowels get their full length. "Magasin" has a single "s" between vowels pronounced "z" and ends in the nasal /ɛ̃/: ma-ga-ZAN. The sentence is a small tour of French "a" sounds, with three of them in a row at the end.

Where English speakers slip

The "s" gets pronounced, giving "lah-BAHSS", which is the commonest slip. It is silent. Learners also flatten both vowels toward the English "a" of "cat" — keep them open and back. And the hyphen sometimes makes people pause in the middle; the two halves run together as one phrase with no break at all.