French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "rapide" in French?

Q: How do you pronounce rapide in French?

rapide is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /ʁa.pid/. It means “fast / quick.” ra-PEED — the "r" opens the word at the back of the throat, and the final "d" is pronounced.

ra-PEED — the "r" opens the word at the back of the throat, and the final "d" is pronounced.

rapide /ʁa.pid/

ra-PIDE, weight on the second syllable. English stresses the first — RA-pid — so this is a word that needs deliberate rebalancing.

Listen: rapide

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Sound it out

ra A uvular "r" starting the word, which is where it is most exposed and hardest to fake, followed by a short open "ah".

pi An unaspirated "p" plus a tense, pure "ee". Not the lax "ih" of English "rapid".

de A dental "d" kept audible by the silent final "e".

Hear it in a sentence

Ce train est très rapide.

This train is very fast.

Listen: Ce train est très rapide.

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"Ce train est très rapide" ends on the adjective, so the "ee" and the final "d" both get their full value. There is no liaison after "très" because "rapide" begins with a consonant. "Train" is one nasal beat, /tʁɛ̃/, so the sentence opens with two throat "r"s in quick succession — good practice.

Where English speakers slip

English "rapid" supplies the wrong stress, the wrong second vowel, and an American "r" at the front. Fix the "r" first, since it is at the start and cannot be hidden: rasp it at the back of your throat with the tongue tip resting behind your lower teeth. Then lengthen the second vowel into a clean "ee" and put the weight there. The final "d" stays — the silent "e" guarantees it.