La liaison

NOTE: This post was originally published on 12/12/18. Since I have new material to add, I'm re-posting it today with the latest updates. 

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The grammar lesson today was about the liaison, which is not an easy topic. It is an important one to master, though, because it occurs in virtually every sentence.

I've compiled several sources I've found into this class handout: liaison.pdf. (*NEWLY UPDATED*)

Writing this document was very useful for me, too. It definitely helped clarify things in my mind! The problem I ran into is that the list of necessary and forbidden liaisons is a bit different in all sources I consulted. I tried to summarize what I've learned. I hope the result is more useful than confusing.

The third page of this document compiles exercises I've found on several web pages, including those linked below.

3/6/19 UPDATE: The link above is a new version of the class handout. I've taken into account the feedback I received in class (thanks!!) and numbered the different rules for easy reference. I've also re-worded the third part (optional liaisons) so it fits the exercice better. (I think it makes things simpler, too.) And, most importantly, I've added a page with the corrected exercice. I've tried to differentiate clearly between the different types of liaisons, with reference to the rules, so you can figure out why each liaison is pronounced or not. 

I've also recorded the exercice. Here's the audio file:  🔊Liaisons.mp3


The easiest page I've found on this topic comes from our old friends at Podcast Francais Facile. They present things really clearly, so I recommend you have a look at their site:

https://www.podcastfrancaisfacile.com/phonetique-2/les-liaisons-obligatoires-pdf.html

https://www.podcastfrancaisfacile.com/cours/la-liaison-en-francais-2.html

If you'd like to see the information in video form, you can try the following episode of Français avec Pierre. (A little warning, though: his list of liaisons to avoid is much larger than all my other sources, so the information you'll find there is a little different from the one in my handout.)

https://www.francaisavecpierre.com/la-liaison-en-francais

Finally, the most important thing with the liaison is to listen to A LOT of French -- TV, podcasts, audiobooks, etc. -- until the liaisons, those to make and those to avoid, start feeling natural.