French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "ouvrir" in French?

Q: How do you pronounce ouvrir in French?

ouvrir is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /u.vʁiʁ/. It means “to open.” oo-VREER — a rounded first syllable, then a "vr" cluster and a pronounced final "r".

oo-VREER — a rounded first syllable, then a "vr" cluster and a pronounced final "r".

ouvrir /u.vʁiʁ/

ou-VRIR, weight on the second syllable. Two "r"s, both pronounced, both made at the back of the throat while the tongue tip stays down.

Listen: ouvrir

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Sound it out

ou The back "oo" of "soup", lips pushed forward.

vr A "v" straight into a uvular "r". English has this cluster only across word boundaries, so inside a syllable it takes practice — say "v" and let the throat rasp follow immediately.

ir A pure "ee" plus a final uvular "r", fully sounded as in all -ir infinitives.

Hear it in a sentence

À quelle heure ouvre la boulangerie ?

What time does the bakery open?

Listen: À quelle heure ouvre la boulangerie ?

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"À quelle heure ouvre la boulangerie ?" contains a compulsory liaison: "quelle heure" is /kɛ.l‿œʁ/, with the "l" of "quelle" carrying onto the silent-"h" "heure". The verb comes before the subject here, which is normal in questions like this. "Ouvre" is /uvʁ/, one syllable with a fading "-vre" cluster, and "boulangerie" has four: boo-lahn-zhuh-REE.

Where English speakers slip

The "vr" cluster gets broken up by an inserted vowel, giving "oo-vuh-REER", which adds a beat. Keep it tight. Learners also tend to drop the final "r" after over-learning the -er rule, but this is an -ir verb and the "r" is essential. Note too that "ouvrir" conjugates like an -er verb in the present — "j'ouvre", not "j'ouvris" — which surprises people.