katelyn3 wrote:can you explain why there is liaison between ils avaient but not liaison between peu d'hommes ont mange
(I can understand you without the accent marks, so it's fine.)
"Ils" is a subject pronoun whereas "peu d'hommes" isn't. The liaison between the pronouns and verbs is obligatory, but forbidden between the nouns acting as subjects and the verbs.
or why is there no liaison between partez immediatement but there is liaison between tres intelligent.
It has to do with grammatical groups. For example, "les bons amis américains" form one single group since the words modify each other to make a precise meaning (the + good + American + friends). Same for "ils arrivent" and "ils ont mangé". It's hard for me to explain this one, so I'm trying. haha So, "partez immédiatement", there is generally no liaison between the verbs and adverbs, but "très intelligent" form as an adjectival group, so there's a liaison.
Just a few words to comfort you, the liaison is a complicated thing since it varies somewhat between speakers and the rules are everywhere, so do not worry about it too much if you're a beginner or intermediate learner. Over time if you're that interested in French, you'll get the general idea of it. It's pretty much like for French speakers to get a grasp of the English intonation and stress patterns (advanced stuff, I should add).
Again, I'm trying my best since it's a tricky aspect of French grammar/phonology that can confuse the francophones too.