French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "mauvais" in French?

Q: How do you pronounce mauvais in French?

mauvais is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /mo.vɛ/. It means “bad.” mo-VEH — the "au" is a pure "oh", the "ai" is an open "eh", and the final "s" is silent.

mo-VEH — the "au" is a pure "oh", the "ai" is an open "eh", and the final "s" is silent.

mauvais /mo.vɛ/

mau-VAIS, weight on the second syllable. The two vowels are quite different in colour — a rounded "oh" then a flat "eh" — which gives the word a clear two-part shape.

Listen: mauvais

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Sound it out

mau An "m" plus a closed "oh" from the "au" spelling. Flat and steady, no glide.

vai A "v" plus an open "eh" /ɛ/, as in "bed". The "ai" spelling gives this open vowel here, not the closed "ay" it makes in "aimer".

s Silent. It marks the masculine form and can surface as a "z" in liaison before a vowel — "un mauvais élève".

Hear it in a sentence

Ce film est vraiment mauvais.

This movie is really bad.

Listen: Ce film est vraiment mauvais.

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"Ce film est vraiment mauvais" places the adjective after the noun phrase, at the end where the pitch peaks, so you can hear the open "eh" at full length. "Vraiment" is built from "vrai" plus "-ment" and ends in the nasal /ɑ̃/: vray-MAHN. The feminine form of the adjective, "mauvaise", would add an audible "z" sound: mo-VEZ.

Where English speakers slip

Learners pronounce the final "s", giving "mo-VESS", and often read "ai" as "ay", giving "mo-VAY" — which sounds like a different word. Keep the second vowel flat and open, and leave the "s" silent. It also helps to learn "mauvais" alongside its feminine "mauvaise", where that same "s" becomes a clear "z" and the word gains a syllable.