1. Vowels in the French language:
* The 12 basic vowel sounds: French has 12 distinct vowel sounds, which can be represented by a variety of spellings. These are:
* Open: [a] as in "father", [ɑ] as in "father" (but more open), [ɛ] as in "bed", [e] as in "bet", [œ] as in "fur"
* Mid: [ø] as in "her", [ə] as in "about"
* Close: [i] as in "see", [y] as in "rue", [u] as in "too"
* Diphthongs: [wa], [ɥi], [jœ] (which are combinations of two vowels)
* How French vowels are spelled: Unlike English, French spelling is more consistent. You can usually tell how a vowel will be pronounced based on its position in a word and the letters around it.
2. The "French vowel" pronunciation:
* [y] This is the specific sound of the vowel "u" in French, which is different from the English pronunciation. It's a high, front, rounded vowel, similar to the "u" in the German word "fühlen" (to feel).
3. "French" vowel in other languages:
* [u] as in "flute" This vowel is sometimes called the "French u" in other languages like Spanish and Italian. It's important to note that the French "u" is not identical to the English "oo" sound as in "flute", but it's closer than the "u" in "put".
To fully understand what you mean by "French vowel", please provide more context. Are you asking about:
* How French vowel sounds are different from English vowel sounds?
* The specific pronunciation of a particular French vowel sound?
* The rules for spelling French vowels?