S between vowels: why it becomes a Z sound
Understand why ‘s’ often sounds like ‘z’ between vowels (maison, chose) and how to control it.
What you’ll learn Understand why ‘s’ often sounds like ‘z’ between vowels (maison, chose) and how to control it.
Key ideas (keep these in your head) • Single ‘s’ between vowels is often voiced: /z/ (maison). • Double ‘ss’ stays unvoiced: /s/ (passe). • This voicing change is common and affects comprehension and spelling intuition.
Real examples (French → what you often hear → English) • Une maison → une mai zon → A house • Je passe → je passe → I pass / I’m passing • C’est une chose → c’est une choze → It’s a thing
Drills
z_sound maison, raison, chose, visage
s_sound passe, classe, dessus, possible
Common mistakes (and quick fixes) • Keeping /s/ in maison (sounds foreign). Fix: voice it to /z/ between vowels. • Voicing ‘ss’. Fix: keep double ‘ss’ crisp /s/.
Quick self-check Record: maison / passe / raison / classe. Can you keep the /z/ vs /s/ contrast consistent?
About this lesson
How to practise “S between vowels: why it becomes a Z sound”
This lesson is part of the Pronunciation series on Chase in French. Train your ear and mouth on the sounds that make French French — nasal vowels, liaison, the R, and the rhythm patterns native speakers actually use.
Follow the Ears → Mouth → Eyes method: first listen to how native speakers say it, then repeat it out loud until it feels natural, and only then look at the spelling. Short, repeated practice over several days beats one long session.
Want guided feedback on your accent? The Chase in French Academy and live classes turn lessons like this into structured training, and the weekly podcast lets you hear these patterns in real conversation.
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