Key Haitian Creole sounds, nasal vowels, and stress patterns, with plain-English pronunciation notes and minimal pairs. Front: the word or sound pattern. Back: the meaning plus a pronunciation note.
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- ou
- Pronounced like "oo" in "food." Example: "ou" (you) sounds like "oo."
- an
- A nasalized "ah" sound, said through the nose. Example: "manman" (mother).
- en
- A nasalized "eh" sound. Example: "byen" (well) sounds like a nasal "bee-ehn."
- on
- A nasalized "oh" sound. Example: "non" (no) sounds like a nasal "noh."
- r
- Pronounced softly, closer to an English "w" or a light guttural touch, much weaker than a rolled Spanish r. Example: "rat" (rat) sounds close to "wat."
- ch
- Pronounced like "sh" in "shoe," never like "ch" in "chair." Example: "chat" (cat) sounds like "shaht."
- y
- Pronounced like "y" in "yes" when it starts a syllable. Example: "pye" (foot, leg) sounds like "pyeh."
- ny
- Pronounced like the "ny" in "canyon," a palatal n sound. Example: "manyen" (to touch).
- j
- Pronounced like the "s" in "measure," a soft "zh" sound, not like English j in "jump." Example: "jou" (day) sounds like "zhoo."
- w
- Pronounced like English "w" in "we." Example: "wi" (yes) sounds like "wee."
- è
- An open "eh" sound, like the e in "bed." Example: "mèsi" (thank you) sounds like "meh-see."
- ò
- An open "oh" sound, like "aw" in "saw." Example: "bò" (near) sounds like "baw."
- Word stress
- Haitian Creole generally stresses the last syllable of a word. Example: "kreyòl" is stressed as kreh-YOL.
- Vowel length
- Haitian Creole rarely blends or doubles vowel sounds; each vowel letter is short and clear, unlike English vowel blends.
- Silent letters
- Unlike French, Haitian Creole spelling avoids silent letters entirely, every letter written is meant to be pronounced.
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