There are two ways to pronounce “plus” in French. In some situations we pronounce the “s” [plys] but in others we don’t [ply].
Plus pronounced [plys]
We pronounce the “s” of “plus” when it is used in a comparison with a verb, like for examples:
- Tu lis plus [plys] que moi. You read more than me.
- J’ai plus [plys] mangé aujourd’hui qu’hier. I ate more today than yesterday.
Also, we pronounce the “s” when we use “plus” in a comparison with a noun, such as:
- J’ai plus [plys] de livres que mon amie. I have more books than my friend.
- Vous aimez plus [plys] le thé que moi. You like tea more than me.
Plus pronounced [ply]
We don’t pronounce the “s” when we use it in a comparison with an adjective or an adverb, like:
- Elle est plus [ply] sympa que moi. She’s nicer than me.
- On va plus [ply] souvent au restaurant qu’eux. We go to restaurants more often than them.
However, we make the liaison when the adjective that follows “plus” starts with a vowel, for examples:
- Elle est plus optimiste [ply zɔptimist] que lui. She is more optimistic than him.
- Je suis plus âgé [ply zɑʒe] qu’elle. I am older than her.
Lastly, we don’t pronounce the “s” of “plus” when it is used in the negative, like:
- Je n’ai plus [ply] faim. I am not hungry anymore.
- Je n’en peux plus [ply]. I’ve had enough.
Thank you for reading this post. Feel free to share it if you liked it.
Watch a video of this content on my YouTube channel.
Book a French lesson with me on italki.
Find my other post about French grammar here.