There is one French word that gives quite a hard time to the new learners of the language on how to properly pronounce it: It is *PLUS*
Indeed, one can sometimes hear it pronounced it as “PLUSS” (with the “s” sound), and other times as “PLU” (without the “s” sound.)
So, how do we tell the difference?
Heureusement (thankfully), there is une astuce (a trick), and it is actually quite easy.
Make sure you remember it well:
- When you want to say “MORE“, then you must pronounce the “s.”
- When you want to say “NOT ANYMORE, NO LONGER, NO MORE“, you simply drop the “s.”
For example:
- Pronounce the “s” in: “Je souhaite lire plus de livres en français” (“I would like to read more books in French.”)
- Drop the “s” in: “Je ne veux plus fumer” (“I don’t want to smoke anymore.”)
Pretty easy, non?
Well, don’t get too happy yet!
There are exceptional cases to remember about “PLUS” in the sense of “MORE“:
-1- If “PLUS” comes right before an adverb or an adjective, then the “s” must be dropped:
Examples:
- You don’t pronounce the “s” in “Je parle plus couramment le français qu’avant” (“I speak more fluently French than before”), since “couramment” is an adverb.
- You don’t pronounce the “s” in: “Il m’est plus facile d’apprendre le français que le grec” (“It’s easier for me to learn French than Greek“), because “facile” is an adjective.
-2- An exception is also made if the said
adverb or adjective starts with a vowel, then the “s” becomes a “
Z“, in order to perform the so-called “
liaison“:
- “Je suis plus âgé que vous” (“I am older than you”), which is to be pronounced as “plu-Z-agee.“
I hope that after reading this post, vous n’aurez plus de problème (you won’t have a problem anymore) with the proper pronunciation of “PLUS” in this sentence!
