This exam tips covers Read-Aloud Tips & Common Errors within Nasal vowels: an, en, on, in for GCSE French. Revise Nasal vowels: an, en, on, in in Phonics: French Sounds and Spellings for GCSE French with 10 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 4 of 4 in this topic. Treat this as a marking guide for what examiners are looking for, not just a fact list.
💡 Read-Aloud Tips & Common Errors
- Never add a separate "n" or "m" sound after a nasal vowel — «enfant» is [ɑ̃fɑ̃], not "on-font".
- Check for doubled letters (nn / mm) in your Read-Aloud text — they always block nasalisation.
- «en» is almost always [ɑ̃] in the same nasal family as «an» — the AQA exam uses both spellings for the same sound.
- The word «un» [œ̃] is technically a fourth nasal in formal French, but in modern spoken French many speakers merge it with [ɛ̃]. Both are acceptable for GCSE.
- Practise the minimal pair «bon» [bɔ̃] / «bonne» [bɔn] aloud — that contrast shows your phonological awareness to the examiner.
❌ Common error: Saying «dans» as "donce" or "dance" (English-style), or pronouncing a full [n] after the vowel.
✓ Correct: «dans» = [dɑ̃] — the vowel is nasal, the n is not pronounced separately, and the final s is silent.
Why it costs marks: Anglicising nasal vowels is one of the most audible markers of non-French phonology. The AQA examiner specifically listens for nasal vowels in the Read-Aloud task — mispronouncing them reduces your AO7 (pronunciation and intonation) mark.
Practice questions for Nasal vowels: an, en, on, in
What is the key feature of a nasal vowel in French?
Which statement about the spellings 'an' and 'en' in French is correct?