how to pronounce y

/i.ɡʁɛk/

audio example by a male speaker

audio example by a female speaker

the above transcription of y is a detailed (narrow) transcription according to the rules of the International Phonetic Association; you can find a description of each symbol by clicking the phoneme buttons in the secction below.

y is pronounced in two syllables

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1.

2. example pitch curve for pronunciation of y

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video examples of y pronunciation

An example use of y in a speech by a native speaker of standard french:

“… en grève pas du tout il y en a où il y …”

meanings of y

pronoun:

There (at a place).
With verbs: see Appendix:French verbs followed by à for verbs which use this structure.
With adjectives. Only used with handful of adjectives (the most usual being y compris, which is a special case), mainly in legal language.
There, thither (to there).
Used as a pronoun to replace à followed by an indirect object.
He: alternative form of il.
They: alternative form of ils.
They: alternative form of elles.

character:

A letter in the French alphabet, after x and before z.

y frequency in french - A1 level of CEFR

the word y occurs in french on average 2716.1 times per one million words; this frequency warrants it to be in the study list for A1 level of language mastery according to CEFR, the Common European Framework of Reference.