French · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "triste" in French?

Q: How do you pronounce triste in French?

triste is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /tʁist/. It means “sad.” treest — one syllable, with a throat "r" and a final "st" cluster you do pronounce.

treest — one syllable, with a throat "r" and a final "st" cluster you do pronounce.

triste /tʁist/

One syllable, closed firmly by the "st". Unlike most French adjectives it has the same form for both genders, so nothing changes when it modifies a feminine noun.

Listen: triste

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Sound it out

tr An unaspirated "t" straight into the uvular "r". Tongue tip stays down; the friction is at the back.

i A tense, pure "ee". Not the lax "ih" of English "trist".

ste An "s" and a "t", both pronounced, kept audible by the silent final "e". The word ends on a crisp consonant cluster rather than fading.

Hear it in a sentence

Ne sois pas triste.

Don't be sad.

Listen: Ne sois pas triste.

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"Ne sois pas triste" is a negative imperative, and it uses "sois" — the irregular command form of "être" — which is /swa/, one syllable with the "oi" as "wa" and a silent "s". The negation wraps around it in the normal way, and in speech the "ne" would often be dropped: "sois pas triste".

Where English speakers slip

English speakers laxen the vowel toward "ih" and give the "r" an American curl, producing "trrist". The vowel should be a clean, long "ee" and the "r" a rasp at the back. Some learners also drop the final cluster after learning about silent consonants — but the silent "e" is precisely what keeps "st" alive. The word ends audibly, on a firm "st".