An Introduction to French Pronunciation

Mute e 87
(ii) before onze, onzième, e.g. le onze mars /lc fz mars/, plus
de onze /ply dc f:z/, il n’en a que onze /il ne n a kc f:z/, le tome
onze /lc tbmc f:z/, le onzième jour /lc fzjεm ʒu:r/; but note
that before the expression onze heures meaning ‘eleven o’clock’
the mute e may be either pronounced or not, e.g. (il est) presque
onze heures /prεsk fz œ:r/ or /prεskc fz œ:r/, (à partir) d’onze
heures /dfz œ:r/ or (à partir) de onze heures /dc fz œ:r/;
(iii) before un meaning ‘the number 1’, e.g. compter de un à
dix /kfte dc j a dis/, entre un et six /etrc j e sis/; note the
difference between ( j’)en demande un, (il ) en demande un, (ils)
en demandent un /e dmedc j/ meaning ‘(I am, he is, they are)
asking for one [i.e. just one, not more than one]’ and ( j’)en
demand(e) un, (il) en demand(e) un, (ils) en demand(ent) un /e
dmed j/ meaning ‘(I am, he is, they are) asking for one
(of them)’ (i.e. with no emphasis on ‘one’).
11.9.2 In conventional usage, there is a widespread tendency
for clusters consisting of a stop or /v/ + /r/ or /l/ followed by
mute e at the end of a word, e.g. notre, impossible, to lose
their second consonant, /r/ or /l/, when immediately followed
within the same stress-group by a word beginning with a
consonant, e.g. not(re) maison /nbt mεzf/ for /nbtrc mεzf/,
impossib(le) d’y aller /hpbsib di ale/ for /hpbsiblc di ale/, une
liv(re) de pommes /yn liv dc pbm/; for more on this, see 16.5.3.