How To Say Pétanque

How To Say Pétanque Overview

Pétanque is a game similar to bowls. It is played with metal balls, and the object is to lob and roll your ball closest to the 'target' ball which is called a 'cochonnet'. Cochonnet literally means 'piglet' (from the French 'cochon' which is  a pig). Pétanque is very popular in the South of France, although it is played all over France, and in many former colonies. The game can also be referred to as 'boules' which is a generic word covering all games of this nature. The Italian equivalent is called 'Bocce'.

There is a clear and concise guide to how to play Pétanque here.

Pétanque Pronunciation

'Pétanque' is fairly straightforward to pronounce as French words go. The 'n' is nasalized, and the 'q' sounds like a 'k'. The final letters are silent. I've included the pronunciation of all related words in the audio.

Bocce Pronunciation

In Italian you pronounce all the syllables, so don't leave out the 'e' on the end. When you see 'cc' followed by an 'e' or and 'i' in Italian, say it like the '-tch' in 'catch'. So Bocce is pronounced BOHT/tcheh. The audio pronunciation is easy to follow.