A little late to the topic, but I wanted to let you know that in Québec, a trompe-l’œil, is not only used for something that is painted. It is also used for anything that is created to look like something else. For example, a fern whose pot is actually a speaker is a trompe-l’œil, because it fools the eye into thinking it is a plant in a pot.

Cool; I would love to have stuff like that in my house, if I could only be creative enough to think of things.

bel, you must be some sort of interloper, eh?

Bel, how do you pronounce trompe l'oeil? Wordsmith gave it has "tromp lye", but I've heard it as "tromp loy" and "tromp lay", and my dictionary gives "tromp lay."

It's French. Therefore unpronounceable.

>It's French. Therefore unpronounceable.

Not so! French has only 5 vowels, after all - ong, ong, ong, ong and ong.

So, it's "tromp long"!

> unpronounceable
> ong, ong...

LOL!

But you have to get the accents right to distinguish between the short ong, the long ong and the longeur ong

In reply to:

---

So, it's "tromp long"!

---

I guess not, according to Vernon. It must be 'trongp long.'

****It's French. Therefore unpronounceable.

I think you may have it right in this case ASp.

Trompe l'oeil is nearly impossible to translate phonetically into English.

It's the "l'oeil" that's the kicker.

Trompe is easy...pronounced like Trump (as in Donald Trump) but substitute the U with the same O as in HOME

The sound of "l'oeil" is a combination of "LE" (as in all those fancy French restaurants...Le Petit Chat, Le Café...) and the "Y" in "Yes" but with the slight roll you get with double Ls of the Spanish language.


Not sure that makes it any clearer.

(please disregard any errors in keys...Hubby has "restarted" my computer and I can't find most of my punctuations.)

Wordwind, that little joke was not mine originally.
http://www.wordsmith.org/awad/awadmail124.html

Oh, thanks, Vernon. In the spirit of the scholarly pedantic or pedantically scholarly, I'll quote from the link you provided:

"a Robert Benchley bon mot claims that French has five vowels, namely ong, ong, ong, ong, and ong."

...just in case anyone cares to quote Mr. Benchley directly.

Thanks, Bel. I think I understand the sound you mean, although it will take practice before I'm willing to try it in public.

You can practice it on me. I promise I won't laugh.

Don't forget you have to pucker your lips a little when you're saying L'oeil.

> You can practice it on me... Don't forget you have to pucker your lips

vien ici, cherie :{}

I'm very suspicious monsieur Maverick...is this really about learning how to pronounce l'oeil. Sounds more like if you are interested in the French tongue.

Do French skills need constant practice? You know, that feeling of being let down by vocabulary, feeling it's on the tip of your tongue yet not quite coming to you... <EG>

But I have never been less than dazzled at the stylish way French women roll their 'r's.

Why is the o squished up against the e: œil?

If the o weren't squished up against the e, would there be a discernible difference in pronunciation?

> If the o weren't squished up against the e, would there be a discernible difference in pronunciation?

yep, it ud be e see, er!