The little hat often stands where English kept an s.
The circumflex accent in French is the little hat on â, ê, î, ô and û. It looks decorative, but it usually carries history: in many words it marks a letter that disappeared, very often an s that English kept.
This guide shows what the circumflex accent means, the word pairs it tells apart, how it changes the sound of some vowels, and what the 1990 spelling reform changed.
The circumflex, accent circonflexe in French, can sit on any vowel except y: â, ê, î, ô, û. It is common in everyday words such as être, fête, hôpital, île, goût and même.
It belongs to the spelling of the word, like the other accents of our page on French accents. Leaving it out makes the word misspelled, even when the meaning stays clear.
In Old French, many words had an s after a vowel that stopped being pronounced. When the s disappeared from the spelling, a circumflex took its place. English borrowed many of these words before that change, which is why the s is still there in English.
| French | Old French | English cousin |
|---|---|---|
| forêt | forest | forest |
| hôpital | hospital | hospital |
| fête | feste | feast |
| île | isle | isle |
| coût | cost | cost |
| bête | beste | beast |
This gives you a useful trick: if an English word has an s where the French one has a circumflex, the two are probably related.
In a few short words, the circumflex is the only thing that separates two different words. Here it is never optional.
| Without | With |
|---|---|
| du (some, of the) | dû (owed, past participle of devoir) |
| sur (on) | sûr (sure) |
| mur (wall) | mûr (ripe) |
| tache (stain) | tâche (task) |
| jeune (young) | jeûne (fasting) |
Dû keeps its circumflex only in the masculine singular: due, dus and dues have none.
On e, the circumflex gives an open sound, the same as è: fête sounds like the start of fait. On o, it usually gives a closed sound, as in côte or hôtel, different from the open o of cote. On a, it marks a deeper sound in some accents (pâte and patte), but many speakers no longer make the difference.
On i and u, the circumflex changes nothing in the sound: île and il start the same way. To type ê and the other vowels, see our guide on how to type French accents.
A few verb forms always carry a circumflex. Être has it (être, vous êtes). The passé simple puts it on the nous and vous forms: nous fûmes, vous fûtes, nous parlâmes. The imperfect subjunctive has it in the third person singular: qu'il fût, qu'il eût.
You will see these forms mainly in books, but they explain many circumflexes you meet when you read.
Only in part. The 1990 spelling reform made the circumflex optional on i and u: maître or maitre, coût or cout are both accepted. It stays where it separates two words (sûr, dû, mûr) and in the verb endings above. On a, e and o, nothing changed.
Both spellings are correct, as our guide to the 1990 French spelling reform explains. Choose one and keep it through a whole text.
The circumflex often replaces a lost s, separates a few word pairs and opens the sound of e. Keep it on a, e and o, and on the words it tells apart; on other i and u, the 1990 spelling lets you choose.
What does the circumflex mean in French?
It usually marks a letter that disappeared, most often an s: forêt for forest, hôpital for hospital. In a few words, it separates two meanings, as in sur and sûr.
How do you pronounce ê in French?
Like è, an open e: fête, tête, même. The circumflex on e always gives that open sound.
Was the circumflex removed from French in 1990?
No. The 1990 reform made it optional on i and u only, and kept it where it changes the meaning or marks a verb form. On a, e and o, it is unchanged.
How do you type a circumflex on a keyboard?
On a French keyboard, press the ^ key, then the vowel. Our guide to typing French accents covers Mac, Windows and phones.
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