LingoDrop
French · Pronunciation Guide
How do you pronounce "mille" in French?
meel — and unusually for French, the "ll" here is a genuine "l" sound, not the "y" you get in most "-ille" words.
One syllable, ending on that "l". The word is also invariable — it never takes an "s" in the plural, so "deux mille" looks and sounds exactly the same.
Listen: mille
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Sound it out
Hear it in a sentence
Ce vélo coûte mille euros.
This bike costs a thousand euros.
Listen: Ce vélo coûte mille euros.
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"Ce vélo coûte mille euros" gives "mille" before a vowel, and since the word already ends in a pronounced "l", that "l" simply carries over into "euros": meel-ZUR-oh is wrong, meel-ø-ʁo with the "l" attaching to the next syllable is right. "Coûte" ends in a silent "e" that keeps the "t" audible, and the circumflex on "û" marks a lost "s" from the older spelling "couste".
Where English speakers slip
Having learned that "-ille" is usually pronounced "ee-y" (as in "fille", "gentille"), diligent learners produce "mee-y" for "mille", which is the one place that rule does not apply. The other error comes from English "mill" and "mile": the vowel is a long, pure "ee", so aim at "meel". Keep the "l" light and forward, not the dark, back-of-the-mouth "l" English uses at the end of words.