The pronunciation in final open syllables is always phonemically /ɑ/, but it is phonetically [ɑ] or [ɔ] (Canada [kanadɑ]ⓘ or [kanadɔ]ⓘ), the latter being informal.
There are some exceptions; the words la, ma, ta, sa, fa, papa and caca are always pronounced with the phoneme /a/.
In internal open syllables, the vowel /ɑ/ is sometimes pronounced [ɒː] or [ɔː] (gâteau 'cake' [ɡɒːto] or [ɡɔːto]), which is considered to be informal.
Otherwise, there are many words which are pronounced with the long /ɑ/ even though there is no circumflex: sable, espace, psychiatre, miracle, mardi and as (noun), etc.
Also, many words are pronounced with the long /ɛː/, even though there is no circumflex: aide, presse, cesse, caisse, graisse, sirène, scène, palmarès, etc.
[5] There are a few exceptions, which are pronounced with the short /ɛ/ phoneme even though there is a circumflex: êtes, bêche, extrême, suprême, pimbêche, prête (adjective), etc.
In joual, /wa/ can be pronounced [we] or [wɛ], but [ɛ] is found exceptionally in droit and froid and in inflexions of noyer and croire, as well as in soit.
It is phonetically [wɑː] in formal speech, but it can also be pronounced in some additional different ways ([waɪ̯, wɛɪ̯, wei̯, wɛː, wɔː, wɒː]) in joual (boîte 'box' [bwaɪ̯t]ⓘ).
On the other hand, in grammatical word endings and in the indicative forms of verb être (es and est), the [ɛ] is tensed into [e].
That is also common in France, but failure to tense the [ɛ] in Quebec is usually perceived as quite formal.
For instance, although most adults would probably say that autobus is masculine if they were given time to think, specific bus routes defined by their number are always feminine.
Using le 10 in such a context, although it is normal in France, would be strikingly odd in Quebec (especially Montreal) except in some regions, particularly the Outaouais, where it is usual.
However, the number of -ion words that are masculine, particularly concrete nouns like avion (lion, pion, camion, lampion, etc.
[12] Dental stops are usually affricated before high front vowels and semivowels: in other words, /ty/, /ti/, /tɥ/, /tj/, /dy/, /di/, /dɥ/, /dj/ are then pronounced [t͡sy], [t͡si], [t͡sɥ], [t͡sj], [d͡zy], [d͡zi], [d͡zɥ], [d͡zj] (except in Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine and Côte-Nord).
In joual, some instances of final mute t may be pronounced: There is also the special case of "debout" [dœ̈bʊt] 'standing up' and "ici" [isɪt] 'here' (sometimes actually written icitte).
Many of the features of Quebec French are mistakenly attributed to English influence; however, the historical evidence shows that most of them descend from earlier forms from specific dialects and are forms that have since changed in France, or they are internal developments (changes that have occurred in Canada alone but not necessarily in all parts).
The phone /l/ in article determiners and even more in personal pronouns in most dialects does not exist in the mental representation of these words.
Elle is further modified into [aː] in informal speech, a sound change that is similar to that of [ɛ] into [a] before /ʁ/.
[14] The voice onset time of these sounds produced by Québécoise francophones is, to some extent, longer than that of their French counterparts and so that they are often categorized as aspirated.
[15] The high front vowels in Quebec French show a net tendency to be unvoiced or even lost, as in municipalité /mynisipalite/ → [myni̥si̥pali̥te], [mynspalte].
[18] The dropping of /ə/, which is as frequent in Quebec as it is in France (but occurs in different places), creates consonant clusters, which causes assimilation.
For instance, the first-person singular pronoun "je" may be devoiced before a verb with a voiceless consonant initial.