Languages › French French-English Spelling Equivalents Orthographe française-anglaise Share Flipboard Email Print French Vocabulary Pronunciation & Conversation Grammar Resources For Teachers By ThoughtCo Updated February 28, 2020 Because French and English both have a lot of Latin influence, and because there is also a lot of French influence in English, there are a number of similar spelling patterns in the two languages. Learning these spelling equivalents can help you to: Recognize French words (cognates)Spell French words (common spelling equivalents) But be careful—this chart is just a guideline. As always, there are thousands of exceptions. Also, you need to watch out for faux amis. Equivalent Suffixes French English Exemple Example Related lesson -ain(e)-en(ne) -an américain(e)canadien(ne) AmericanCanadian Adjectives -aire -ary militaireextraordinaire militaryextraordinary -ais(e)-ois(e) -ese japonais(e)chinois(e) JapaneseChinese Languages -ance-ence -ence dépendanceviolence dependenceviolence -ant-ent -ent dépendantapparent dependentapparent en + -ant -ing en étudianten lisant studyingreading Present participle -çon -sson -shion-son leçonfaçonmaçon lessonfashionmason -é(e)-i(e)-u(e) -ed-t [b] épeléfinirépondu spelled/speltfinishedresponded Past participle -é-e-i -y qualitégloireparti qualitygloryparty -el(le) -al personneléternel personaleternal -er-ir-re to + verb épelerfinirdéfendre to spellto finishto defend Infinitives -eur -or [a]-our [b]-er auteurcouleuremployeur authorcolor/colouremployer Professions -eux/euse -ous joyeuxnerveux joyousnervous -if/ive -ive positifmotif positivemotive -ique -ic-ical musiquelogique musiclogical -isation -ization [a]-isation [b] réalisationautorisation realization/realisationauthorization/authorisation -iser -ize [a]-ise [b] idéaliserformaliser idealize/idealiseformalize/formalise -isme -ism journalismeréalisme journalismrealism -iste -ist-istic optimistematérialiste optimist/optimisticmaterialistic -ment -ly évidemmentrapidement evidentlyrapidly Adverbs -oire -ory gloiremémoire glorymemory -re -er [a]-re [b] mètrethéâtre meter/metretheater/theatre -tion -tion rationqualification rationqualification Other spelling equivalents é- s- étatétudier statestudy French accents in- in-un- inactifinconscient inactiveunconscious French prefixes ^ _s forêthôpital foresthospital Key (x) Indicates the extra letter(s) needed for the feminine form of the French suffix /x Indicates the different suffix for the feminine noun or adjective [a] Applies mainly to American English [b] Applies mainly to British English Cite this Article Format mla apa chicago Your Citation ThoughtCo. "French-English Spelling Equivalents." ThoughtCo, Feb. 28, 2020, thoughtco.com/french-english-spelling-equivalents-1371253. ThoughtCo. (2020, February 28). French-English Spelling Equivalents. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/french-english-spelling-equivalents-1371253 ThoughtCo. "French-English Spelling Equivalents." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/french-english-spelling-equivalents-1371253 (accessed March 1, 2021). copy citation