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German Vowels
Long vowels Long and short 'a' 'au', 'u' and 'eu' Unstressed '-e' and '-er' Long and short 'i' Long and short 'o' Long and short 'u' The letter 'y'
Short vowels Long and short '' Long and short 'e' 'ei', 'ey', 'ai' and 'ay' The letters 'ie' Long and short '' Long and short ''
German Consonants
The letter 'b' 'chs' at the start of words The letter 'd' The letter 'f' 'gn' and 'ng' sounds The letter 'h' The letter 'k' The letter 'l' 'm' + another consonant 'ng' and 'nk' sounds 'p' + another consonant The letter 'q' 'r' + another consonant The letter 's' 'sp' and 'st' sounds 't' + another consonant The letter 'w' The letter 'z'
The letters 'ch' 'chs' and 'ck' sounds 'd' + another consonant The letter 'g' Loan words containing 'g' The letter 'j' 'k' + another consonant The letter 'm' The letter 'n' The letter 'p' The 'pf' sound The consonantal 'r' The vocalic 'r' The 'sch' sound The letter 't' The letter 'v' The letter 'y'
2. A German vowel is usually long if it is written in a word as a double letter. Sounds 2: Long German 'doubled' vowels Meer (sea) Boot (boat) Paar (pair) Saat (seed)
3. A German vowel is usually long if it is followed by a silent 'h'. Sounds 3: Long vowels before a silent 'h' Lehrer (teacher) roh (raw) Sounds 4: Long 'ie' vowel sounds vier (four) Lied (song) Spiel (game) schier (sheer) Fahrer (driver) Kuh (cow)
4. The German letters 'ie' usually represent a long German 'i' sound.
5. An unstressed vowel at the end of a word is generally long, unless this vowel is an 'e' sound. Sounds 5: Long vowel sounds at the end of a word Lotto (lottery) Sofa (sofa) Vati (daddy) Mofa (moped)
The short German 'a' vowel The short /a/ vowel - which is only spelled 'a' - is a much more clipped vowel. It is a little like a shorter version of the 'a' vowel in the English word 'man'. This vowel can even tend towards the vowel sound heard in the English word'but', albeit pronounced in a more open way. Sounds 2: The short German 'a' vowel Mann (man) Bank (bank) Staat (state) kam (came) Frage (question) Kahn (barge) Hand (hand) Sack (sack) Stadt (city) Kamm (comb) Flagge (flag) kann (can)
The German diphthong 'u' or 'eu' The German 'eu' diphthong - which can be written as 'eu' and 'u', and also as 'oi' or 'oy' in imported loan words - can be equated to the /oi/ sound made in the English words 'toiling' and 'boiling'. The difference however is that the German diphthong requires the lips to be rounded throughout articulation. Sounds 2: The German diphthong 'eu' or 'u' Frulein (Miss) Huser (houses) treu (loyal) scheu (shy) Ruber (robbers) Bruche (customs) Freude (joy) neu (new)
Sounds 3: Differentiating between 'au' and 'eu/u' Traum (dream) Baum (tree) Maus (mouse) Haut (skin) Trume (dreams) Bume (trees) Muse (mice) Hute (skins)
Care should be taken to distinguish between an unstressed German '-e' and an unstressed German '-er'. Although ostensibly quite similar, the tongue should be retracted more quickly in German '-er' sounds than it is in an unstressed '-e'. Sounds 2: Distinguishing between '-e' and '-er' bitte (please) bitter (bitter)
German unstressed '-er' Sometimes referred to as a 'dark schwa', the German unstressed '-er' or vocalic 'r' is articulated with the tongue slightly lower and further back in the vowel area than the 'schwa' sound heard at the end of such German words as 'Liebe', 'Katze' and 'Ratte'. The most common usage of vocalic 'r' is in unstressed "-er" syllables at the end of German words. Sounds 3: Vocalic 'r' in final position Bruder (brother) Mutter (mother) Schwester (sister) Vater (father)
You will also hear vocalic 'r' in the unstressed German prefixes of verbs and nouns that start with er-, ver, zer- and her-. Sounds 4: Vocalic 'r' in unstressed prefixes erlauben (to allow) zerstren (to destroy) vergessen (to forget) hereinkommen (to come in)
Sounds 1: Short German 'i' in initial position ich (I) Irland (Ireland) immer (always) bitte (please) Tisch (table) Winter (winter) Interesse (interest) Insekt (insect) illegal (illegal) Mitte (middle) Fisch (fish) sitzen (to sit)
The German long /i:/ vowel The long German /i:/ vowel - which can be written 'i', 'ih', 'ie' or 'ieh' - sounds a little like the vowel articulated in the English words 'bee' and 'team'. The German sound however is more open, with the lips widely spread, and the tongue should be further forward during articulation. You should also ensure that your tongue remains tense and in the same position in your mouth throughout articulation English sounds can tend to glide off into a diphthong. Sounds 3: Long German 'i' in initial position ihnen (to them) irisch (Irish) Igel (hedgehog) Sounds 4: Long German vowel 'i' in medial position Krise (crisis) Linie (line) When long /i:/ appears in an unstressed syllable in a word, then the same sound is made but with a reduced length. Sounds 5: Reduced length German long 'i' sounds Idee (idea) Mikrofon (microphone) When 'i' occurs before a vowel, it does not constitute a separate syllable, but is instead pronounced very short. Sounds 6: German 'i' before another vowel Station (station) finanziell (financial) ideal (ideal) politisch (political) ihr (her) Iris (iris)
The long German 'o' vowel The long German 'o' vowel - which can be written 'o', 'oh', 'oo', and 'eau' - does not have an exact equivalent in English. It is a little like the vowel 'o' in the English words 'so' and 'go'. In German however, this sound must not be allowed to glide off into a 'u' sound, which English speakers ofen find themselves doing. Sounds 2: The long German 'o' vowel Rose (rose) Boot (boat) so (so) Sounds 3: German 'o' vowels wo (where) Rose (rose) Wohl (health) Sohle (sole of shoe) Distinguishing froh (happy) gro (big) rot (red) between long & short
The long German 'u' vowel The long German /u:/ vowel - which can be written 'u' or 'uh' - does not have an exact equivalent in English. It is a little like the vowel sound in the English words 'hoot' and 'boot' but the lips are much more rounded in German and the sound must not be allowed to glide off into a diphthong. Sounds 2: The long German 'u' vowel Tuch (cloth) Uwe (boy's name) Stuhl (chair) Sounds 3: German 'u' vowels Buch (book) Huhn (chicken) Pfuhl (pond) Ufer (riverbank) Distinguishing Grube (ditch) Ute (girl's name) Uhr (clock) between long Busch (bush) Hund (dog) Pfund (pound) unten (below) & short
If 'y' stands at the beginning or end of a word, then it is pronounced in the same way as it would be in English. The word in which it appears is very probably an import from English in the first place. Sounds 2: Words with 'y' in initial and final position Hobby (hobby) Party (party) Yoga (yoga) Handy (mobile phone)
Sounds 1: Short vowels before a double consonant rasch (hasty) bunt (colourful) Sounds 2: Short German vowels before 'ck' lecker (tasty) Lcke (hole) Socken (socks) Wrack (wreck) Bett (bed) Nuss (nut)
This is not always the case however. If the root form of a word contains a long vowel, then the vowel in the inflected form remains long, even if the vowel is followed by two consonants in this inflected form. Sounds 3: Long vowels from a long uninflected stem haben (to have) gro (big) gehabt (had) grte (biggest)
The long German '' vowel The long German '' vowel - which can be written '', 'h', but never '' - has no corresponding long vowel in English. It is best to start with the short German '' vowel outlined above and gradually lengthen it. Sounds 2: The long German '' vowel Mdchen (girl) klglich (pitiful) whlen (to vote) Whrung (currency)
The most common mistake made by English-speakers in articulating this long vowel sound is to produce a slight diphthongisation, i.e. to glide off into an 'aee' sound heard in English words such as 'day' or 'played'. This temptation must be resisted - German vowels do not glide off into a different vowel sound. Try instead to keep the tongue in the same position throughout a long '' vowel sound.
Sounds 1: The short German 'e' vowel wenn (if, when) Dreck (dirt) Fell (fur) fett (fat) echt (genuine) Nest (nest)
The long German /e:/ vowel The long German /e:/ vowel - which can be written 'e', 'eh' or 'ee' - has no corresponding long vowel in English. To pronounce it, you must ensure that your tongue remains tense and in the same high position in your mouth throughout articulation - the sound must not glide off into an 'i' at the end as it can do in English words such as 'day'. Sounds 2: The long German 'e' vowel sehr (very) Meer (sea) Beet (bed) Sounds 3: Distinguishing German 'e' vowels Heer (army) Hehl (secret) Beet (flower-bed) mehr (more) Teer (tar) Gel (gel) between long and short
Note that, unlike in English, the pronunciation of the German letters 'ei' remains consistent - it is always pronounced as the diphthong outlined above.
Sounds 2: The consistency of the German letters 'ei' frei (free) heil (unhurt) Kreis (circle) Rhein (Rhine) dreist (sly) weit (far)
The pronunciation of the letters 'ie' also remains consistent in German. Sounds 3: Distinguishing between 'ei' and 'ie' Wein (wine) Flei (hard work) leider (unfortunately) steil (steep) Wien (Vienna) fliet (flows) Lieder (songs) Stiel (stick)
Unlike in English, where the pronunciation of the letters 'ie' and 'ei' can vary, the sounds represented by these spellings remain consistent in German. Sounds 2: Distinguishing between 'ei' and 'ie' Wein (wine) Flei (hard work) leider (unfortunately) steil (steep) Wien (Vienna) fliet (flows) Lieder (songs) Stiel (stick)
German 'ie' at the end of a word When the letters 'ie' appear at the end of a word, they can be pronounced in two different ways. If the final syllable is stressed, then the letters are pronounced as the long /i:/ vowel outlined above. Sounds 3: German 'ie' in a stressed final syllable Biographie (biography) Akademie (academy) Symphonie (symphony) Philosophie (philosophy)
But when 'ie' appears in an unstressed syllable at the end of a word, then the letters are pronounced as two separate vowel sounds.
Sounds 4: German 'ie' in an unstressed final syllable Familie (family) Folie (film, foil) Petersilie (parsley) Materie (matter)
The short German '' vowel The short German '' sound - which can only be written '' and never features at the end of a word - is best described as a shorter, tenser and much more open version of the sound outlined above. Sounds 2: The short German '' vowel Hlle (hell) Lffel (spoon) Krone (crown) gro (big) Koller (anger) schon (already) offen (open) Flotte (fleet) Telefon (telephone) Stcke (sticks) ffnung (opening) krnen (to crown) grer (bigger) Kln (Cologne) schn (beautiful) ffnen (to open) Flte (flute) Fn (hairdryer)
The short German '' vowel The short German '' sound - which can be written '' and sometimes 'y' - is best described as a shorter version of the sound outlined above, but with slightly less lip-rounding. Sounds 2: The short German '' vowel Stck (piece) Brcke (bridge) dnn (thin) jung (young) gut (good) Schule (school) Kuh (cow) Stuhl (chair) Busch (bush) Kuss (kiss) drucken (to print) Bruch (break) Mnze (coin) Percke (wig) glcklich (happy) jnger (younger) Gte (goodness) Schler (schoolboy) Khe (cows) Sthle (chairs) Bsche (bushes) Ksse (kisses) drcken (to press) Brche (breaks)
But when the German consonant 'b' appears at the end of a word it is pronounced as a /p
This change in sound at the end of the word is not as surprising as it may seem. The /b/ and /p/ phonemes are both bilabial plosives and only differ in that you use your vocal cords to form the sound /b/, i.e. it is 'voiced', whereas we do not use our vocal cords to make the /p/ sound i.e. we call it 'voiceless'. To put this to the test: Put your fingers lightly on your throat such that they rest on your voice box. Say the German word Bein (= leg) and feel how your vocal cords vibrate as you form the initial sound. Now say the German word Pein (= agony). Note that there is no vibration in your vocal cords this time. To help you distinguish between the /b/ and /p/ sounds that the letter 'b' can make depending on its position in the word, listen to the following pairs of words. In the first word of each pair, 'b' will be pronounced /b/ as it appears in the middle of the word. In the second word in each pair, the letter 'b' appears at the end of a word, and is therefore pronounced as a /p/. Sounds 4: Distinguishing between /b/ and /p/ lieben (to love) rauben (to rob) Diebe (thieves) Diebstahl (theft) lieb (kind) Raub (robbery) Dieb (thief) gelb (yellow)
In South Germany and Austria however, this initial 'ch' sound can be pronounced as a /k/ phoneme and this articulation is viewed as an acceptable variant to the standard pronunciation. Click either here or on the sound icon on the left to hear the same 'ch' words in the box above, but this time pronounced as one might expect to hear them in Bavaria. Imported words beginning with 'ch' A number of words beginning in 'ch' that have been imported from French require the 'ch' sound to be articulated in the manner that we would be accustomed to hear in France. Sounds 2: 'ch' in initial position in French loan words Chef (boss) Champagner (champagne) Charme (charm) Chauvinist (chauvinist) To complicate matters further, other words with 'ch' in initial position have been imported from English and retain the pronunciation that you would expect to hear in English. Sounds 3: English 'ch' in initial position chartern (to charter) Chat (chat) checken (to check) Cheeseburger (cheeseburger) Chance (chance) Chauffeur (chauffeur) Chaussee (avenue)
Sounds 1: 'd' in initial position danke (thank you) doch (yes (after negative)) dieser (this) Sounds 2: 'd' in medial position Mode (fashion) Lieder (songs) wieder (again) Sounds 3: 'd' in final position Lied (song) Rad (wheel) Bad (bath) Tod (death) Laden (shop) Feder (feather) Bruder (brother) deutsch (German) dunkel (dark) Dusche (shower)
But when the German consonant 'd' appears at the end of a word it is pronounced as a /t/.
This change in sound at the end of the word is not as surprising as it may seem. The /d/ and /t/ phonemes are both alveolar plosives and only differ in that you use your vocal cords to form the sound /d/, i.e. it is 'voiced', whereas we do not use our vocal cords to make the /t/ sound i.e. we call it 'voiceless'. To put this to the test: Put your fingers lightly on your throat such that they rest on your voice box. Say the German word Dorf (= village) and feel how your vocal cords vibrate as you form the initial sound. Now say the German word Torf (= peat). Note that there is no vibration in your vocal cords this time. To help you distinguish between the /d/ and /t/ sounds that the letter 'b' can make depending on its position in the word, listen to the following pairs of words. In the first word of each pair, 'd' will be pronounced /d/ as it appears in the middle of the word. In the second word in each pair, the letter 'd' appears at the end of a word, and is therefore pronounced as a /t/. Sounds 4: Distinguishing between /d/ and /t/ Hunde (dogs) wenden (to turn) leider (unfortunately) landen (to land) baden (to bathe) Hund (dog) Wand (wall) Leid (suffering) Land (land) Bad (bath)
The German 'ph' sound As in English, the letters 'ph' are pronounced as an /f/ phoneme in German. In fact, many words that originally contained the letters 'ph' have now been Germanified such that they are now spelled with an 'f'. You would now write Telefon, for example, rather than Telephon, and Fotografie rather than Photographie. Even after the recent German spelling reforms however, a number of 'ph' words remain, sometimes as the sole acceptable spelling of a lexical item, sometimes as an accepted variant to the spelling with 'f'. Sounds 4: The German 'ph' sound Philosophie (philosophy) Physik (physics) Phrase (phrase) Phonetik (phonetics)
Note in particular that the initial 'g' in a 'gn-' consonant cluster is pronounced even when this occurs at the start of a word. This is also true of the 'kn-' cluster. Sounds 2: 'gn' and 'kn' in initial position Gnom (gnome) Knie (knee) Kneipe (pub) Gnade (mercy) Knecht (vassal) Knopf (button)
The consonant sound 'ng' The '-ng' consonant combination is pronounced in a manner that is similar to its English equivalent in words such as 'thing' and 'bring'. Although it is not represented by a single letter of the alphabet, 'ng' constitutes a distinct consonant, and it is described as a velar nasal. This means that it is formed in the soft palate (velum) towards the back of the vocal tract, with the back of the tongue pressed against the velum. It is described as 'nasal' because the sound is expelled through the nasal cavity and not the oral tract. This sound can cause difficulties for native English speakers because, although English also has the 'ng' consonant, there are two varieties of this in English. There is a noticeable difference in the way that the words 'finger' and 'ringer' are pronounced in English. If you say them to yourself, you will notice that these two words do not quite rhyme. There is an extra 'g' sound in 'finger' (and words such as 'younger', 'longer' and 'hunger') that is not articulated in 'ringer' (and words such as 'singer' and 'longing'). Only one form of the '-ng' consonant sound exists in German however. It does not have the extra /g/ phoneme that we find in 'finger', 'younger', 'longer' and 'hunger', which means that care needs to be taken with the pronunciation of their German equivalents "Finger", "jnger", "lnger" and "Hunger". It is when the '-ng' consonant sound appears in the middle of a word that English speakers need to pay the most attention Sounds 3: 'ng' in medial position Hunger (hunger) singen (to sing) Menge (amount) Sounds 4: 'ng' in final position lang (long) Meldung (announcement) Frhling (spring) Wohnung (apartment) Ring (ring) streng (severe) abhngig (dependent) Finger (finger)
But the letter 'h' is not pronounced at all if it used merely to indicate that the preceding vowel is a long one. Sounds 2: Words in which 'h' is not pronounced stehen (to stand) fahren (to travel) gehen (to go) Lehrer (teacher)
The consonant cluster 'th' is always pronounced as the phoneme /t/. This is true regardless of whether 'th' appears at the beginning, middle or end of a word. Sounds 3: The 'th' consonant cluster Theater (theatre) Theorie (theory) Apotheke (chemist's) Methode (method) Psychopath (psychopath) As in English, the letters 'ph' are pronounced as an /f/ phoneme in German. In fact, many words that originally contained the letters 'ph' have now been Germanified such that they are now spelled with an 'f'. You would now write Telefon, for example, rather than Telephon, and Fotografie rather than Photographie. Even after the recent German spelling reforms however, a number of 'ph' words remain, sometimes as the sole acceptable spelling of a lexical item, sometimes as an accepted variant to the spelling with 'f'. Sounds 4: The German 'ph' consonant cluster Philosophie (philosophy) Physik (physics) Phrase (phrase) Phonetik (phonetics) Thema (theme) sympathisch (pleasant) Mathematik (mathematics) Athlet (athlete)
Sounds 1: The German clear or front 'l' alleine (alone) wild (wild) Polen (Poland) Unheil (disaster) Leute (people) Sounds 2: 'l' in final position viel (much) Stil (style) Kiel (Kiel) Ventil (valve; outlet) Nil (Nile) subtil (subtle) hell (bright) Frulein (young lady) Teil (part) Schal (shawl) lallen (to babble)
As it is the end of words where native English speakers are most tempted to use a dark 'l'.
The clear 'l' is also used in final '-el' syllables. Make sure that you do not unconsciously raise the back of your tongue when articulating these sounds, as we do for example in English 'cattle', 'subtle' or 'scuttle'. Sounds 3: German '-el' in final position Schlssel (key) Apfel (apple) Mittel (means) Wandel (change)
Sounds 4: German '-eln' in final position wandeln (to change) angeln (to fish) sammeln (to collect) Kartoffeln (potatoes)
Sounds 2: Clusters with 'm' in medial position Lampe (lamp) Ampel (traffic light) Tempel (temple) Rampe (ramp)
Sounds 3: 'm' in final position Amt (office) plump (clumsy) Hemd (shirt)
The consonant cluster 'nk' In the consonant cluster written as "-nk", the sound produced is a combination of the velar nasal "ng" heard at the end of English words such as 'thing' and bring', followed by the phoneme /k/. This is less complicated than it sounds, equating to how we pronounce English words such as 'thin-king. Sounds 3: The 'nk' consonant cluster in initial position sinken (to sink) Enkel (grandchild) trinken (to drink) Onkel (uncle)
Sounds 4: The 'nk' consonant cluster in initial position trinken (to drink) denken (to think) danken (to thank) Frankreich (France)
This consonant cluster is also heard when 'nk' appears as the end of a word, either on its own or followed by a further consonant. Sounds 5: The sound 'nk' in final position Punkt (point) sinkt (sinks) winkt (waves) trinkt (drinks)
Sounds 6: Distinguishing between 'ng' and 'nk' sounds singen (to sing) Engel (angel) Finger (finger) sinken (to sink) Enkel (grandchild) Finken (finches)
Attention should be paid however to the German consonant clusters 'psy', 'pn' and 'pt'. In all of the clusters, the 'p' sound is spoken at the beginning of the word in German, whereas it is silent in similar English constructions. Sounds 2: Consonant clusters 'psy', 'pn' and 'pt' Psychologie (psychology) Psychothriller (psychothriller) pneumatisch (psychothriller) psychisch (psychic) Psychiatrie (psychiatry) Pterodaktylus (pterodactyl)
Sounds 3: 'p' + consonant in medial position Lampe (lamp) Waspe (wasp) Tempel (temple)
Sounds 4: 'p' + consonant in final position Haupt (head) Schnaps (schnaps) klappt (functions) Schlips (tie)
The German 'ph' sound As in English, the letters 'ph' are pronounced as an /f/ phoneme in German. In fact, many words that originally contained the letters 'ph' have now been Germanified such that they are now spelled with an 'f'. You would now write Telefon, for example, rather than Telephon, and Fotografie rather than Photographie. Even after the recent German spelling reforms however, a number of 'ph' words remain, sometimes as the sole acceptable spelling of a lexical item, sometimes as an accepted variant to the spelling with 'f'. Sounds 5: The German 'ph' consonant cluster Philosophie (philosophy) Physik (physics) Phrase (phrase) Phonetik (phonetics)
In a small number of words imported from French, such as Boutique, the letter 'q' is spoken as a /k/ phoneme if the letter occurs in medial and final position. But these words are very much the exceptions. The 'kv' sound is found in medial position in most other imported words - e.g. in the German word Aquarium.
Sounds 2: Consonantal 'r' in an initial 'dr-' cluster drei (three) Drama (drama) drauen (outside) drehen (to turn)
Sounds 3: Consonantal 'r' in a medial and final position cluster hart (hard) Firma (company) Berg (mountain) warten (to wait) Wirt (landlord) kurz (short)
But when the letter 's' appears at the end of a word, it is always articulated in the same way as English 's' in words such as 'sink' or 'sue'. This means that German 's' at the end of a word must be distinguished from the /z/ sound made at the end of English words such as 'homes', 'towns' or 'roads'. To practise the difference in pronunciation required when the German letter 's' appears at the middle and the end of a word. Sounds 2: 's' in medial and final position Reise (journey) Preise (prices) Glser (glasses) Lose (lots) Reis (rice) Preis (price) Glas (glass) Los (lot)
The letters 'ss' and '' A double 's' (written 'ss' or '') is always pronounced as an unvoiced English 's' in words such as 'seal' or 'self'. This sound is written 'ss' when the preceding vowel in a word is short. It is written '': after a long vowel e.g. 'Fu', 'Ma', 'Spa' after a diphthong e.g. 'wei', 'hei', 'heit'
Sounds 3: The letters 'ss' and '' Schloss (castle) wei (white) Strau (ostrich) wissen (to know) dreiig (thirty) grer (bigger)
In the first word of each of the three pairs, the 's' is articulated as a /z/ phoneme. In the second word in each pair, an /s/ phoneme is required. Sounds 4: 's' and 'ss/' in medial position weisen (to point) reisen (to travel) Gleise (train tracks) weien (to whitewash) reien (to tug) gleien (to glimmer)
But when 'sp' and 'st' occur in the middle or at the end of a word, then these consonant combinations are pronounced as they would be in English. This means that 'sp' is pronounced as it would be in the English word 'lisp' and 'st' is pronounced as it would be in the English word 'lost'. Sounds 2: 'sp' and 'st' in medial and final position Wespe (wasp) Donnerstag (Thursday) Liste (list) Knospe (bud) Gast (guest) Husten (cough)
An exception to the above rule occurs when words beginning with 'sp' and 'st' are used as the final element in a compound noun. Although these sounds are positioned in the middle of the compound noun, the consonant combinations are still pronounced as they would be at the start of a word, i.e. as 'schp' and 'scht-'. Sounds 3: 'sp' and 'st' within compound nouns Hauptstadt (capital city) Ballspiel (ball game) Hauptstrae (high street) Profisport (professional sport)
Attention should be paid to words that start with the German consonant cluster 'tsch', as the initial 't' of the consonant cluster needs to be pronounced Sounds 2: The consonant cluster 'tsch' tschs! (goodbye!) Tscheche (Czech (male)) bunt (colourful) kalt (cold) hart (hard) tschechisch (Czech) Tschechin (Czech (female)) Welt (world) fast (almost) Sport (sport)
The consonant cluster 'th' is always pronounced as the phoneme /t/. This is true regardless of whether 'th' appears at the beginning, middle or end of a word. Sounds 4: The 'th' consonant cluster Theater (theatre) Theorie (theory) Apotheke (chemist's) Methode (method) Psychopath (psychopath) The German consonant cluster '-tz' is also pronounced in the same way as English 'ts'. Sounds 5: Words containing the letters 'tz' Dutzend (dozen) hetzen (to rush) Netz (net) pltzlich (suddenly) Thema (theme) sympathisch (pleasant) Mathematik (mathematics) Athlet (athlete)
trace of a hiss. It is called a 'fricative' consonant, which means that is articulated by forcing air through a narrow gap in the vocal tract in such a way that friction is audible. The /v/ phoneme, the sound that is made when you say the German letter 'w', is thus formed in the same manner and the same place as the German /f/ phoneme. The difference is that you use your vocal cords to make the /v/ sound, but not when you articulate /f/. To feel the difference between the two consonants, place your hands over your ears and repeat the German words fein and Wein (which begins with the /v/ phoneme, despite its spelling). When you say fein, the only thing that should hear is the airstream passing out through your mouth. But when you say Wein, you should be able to feel your entire head vibrate. Sounds 1: The German letter 'w' Wagen (car) Wasser (water) wunderbar (wonderful) Wein (wine) Winter (winter) erwarten (to expect)
Words that contain both the German letter 'w' and the German 'v' can initially cause beginners some problems, as we need to make two mental adjustments from the sounds that we are accustomed to making when we see these letters written in English. Sounds 2: Words containing the letters 'w' and 'v' Volkswagen (Volkswagen) verschwinden (to disappear) Wiedevereinigung (reunification) Note also that the letter 'w' is also pronounced as a /v/ sound when it appears in a cluster with other consonants. Sounds 3: Consonant + the German letter 'w' Schweiz (Switzerland) zwei (two) Schweden (Sweden) zwar (actually, in fact) wie (how much) vorwrts (forwards) viel
Note that the German letter 'w' is pronounced when it appears in 'wr-' consonant clusters. In the following examples, contrast in particular the difference in articulation between the German word Wrack and its English equivalent wreck, and wringen and its English equivalent wring. Sounds 4: The German 'wr-' consonant cluster Wrack (wreck) wringen (to wring)
Sounds 1: The German letter 'z' zwei (two) Zug (train) Ziel (destination) Herz (heart) zwlf (twelve) Zimmer (room) Zelt (tent) Salz (salt)
The German consonant cluster '-tz' is also pronounced in the same way as English 'ts'. Sounds 2: Words containing the letters 'tz' Dutzend (dozen) hetzen (to rush) Netz (net) pltzlich (suddenly)
Learners of German often have difficulties in distinguishing between the letter 'z' and 's', particularly when they occur at the start of a word. Sounds 3: The German letters 'z' and 's' in initial position Seile (ropes) sang (sang) Sumpf (morass) sinken (to sink) Zeile (line) Zange (pliers) zum (to the) Zink (zinc)
2. 'ch' after the front vowels 'e', '', 'i', 'ei', 'eu', 'u' and '', or after a consonant When the letters 'ch' follow the front vowels 'e', '', 'i', 'ei', 'eu', 'u' and '', or a consonant, a different sound is required that is articulated much further forward in the mouth. It resembles the 'h' sound made at the start of English words such as 'huge', 'humour' or 'humane', but the German sound needs to be articulated more vigorously and with the sound drawn out. Sounds 2: 'ch' after a front vowel or consonant Blech (tin) Bche (streams) Bcher (books) Bruche (customs) Mnch (monk) Stich (sting) mchte (would like) euch (you (informal)) Dolch (dagger) Storch (stork)
Note that the diminutive '-chen' is always pronounced in this way regardless of whether it follows a front or back vowel: Sounds 3: Front 'ch' in medial position Hhnchen (chicken) Becher (cup, tub) Sounds 4: Front 'ch' in final position ich (I) mich (me) Milch (milk) reich (rich) Note that the consonant sound in an -ig suffix is also pronounced as a front "ch". Sounds 5: The "-ig" suffix richtig (correct) lustig (funny) eilig (hurried) Honig (honey) traurig (sad) fertig (finished) dich (you (informal)) euch (you (informal)) weich (soft) fechten (to fence) stechen (to sting)
Differentiating between back and front 'ch' In phonetics, the two 'ch' sounds are represented by different phonemes. The phoneme /x/ is used to represent the sound made when vowels 'a', 'o', 'u' and 'au'. The phoneme // is used to represent the sound made when vowels 'e', '', 'i', 'ei', 'eu', 'u' and '', or if it follows a consonant.
'ch' 'ch'
follows follows
the the
back front
Sounds 6: back 'ch' sounds Brauch (custom) Strauch (bush) Buch (book) Loch (hole) Tuch (cloth)
Differentiating
between Bruche (customs) Strucher (bushes) Bcher (books) Lcher (holes) Tcher (cloths)
front
and
in
the
same
way
as
the
letter 'k'.
The
vowel
Sounds 2: The German 'ck' sound Stck (piece) Stock (stick) Backpulver (baking powder) meckern (to complain) Buckel (hunchback) Rock (skirt) Schreibblock (writing pad) schrecklich (dreadful)
Sounds 5: A 'ch' and 'ck' tongue-twister Mechthild und Eckhard machen schrecklich Krach. (Mechthild and Eckhard are making a dreadful din.)
Note that the German consonant cluster '-dt' is also pronounced as a /t/ phoneme. It occurs most frequently in the word Stadt and its compounds. Sounds 3: The consonant cluster 'dt' Stadt (city) Stdte (cities)
As before, whenever the German consonant 'd' appears at the end of a word, it is pronounced as a /t/ phoneme. Sounds 4: Consonant + 'd' in final position Deutschland (Germany) Geld (money) Herd (cooker) Kind (child) Bild (picture) Bord (board)
Sounds 2: 'g' in medial position Vogel (bird) sagen (to say) Auge (eye) Sounds 3: 'g' in final position klug (intelligent) Katalog (catalogue) Krieg (war) This change in sound at the end of the word is not as surprising as it may seem. The /g/ and /k/ phonemes are both velar plosives, the difference being that you use your vocal cords to form the sound /g/, i.e. it is 'voiced', whereas we do not use our vocal cords to make the /k/ sound i.e. we call it 'voiceless'. To put this to the test: Put your fingers lightly on your throat such that they rest on your voice box. Say the German word Gabel (= fork) and feel how your vocal cords vibrate as you form the initial sound. Now say the German word Kabel (= cable). Note that there is no vibration in your vocal cords this time. To help you distinguish between the /g/ and /k/ sounds that the letter 'g' can make depending on its position in the word, listen to the following pairs of words. In the first word of each pair, 'g' will be pronounced /g/ as it appears in themiddle of the word. In the second word in each pair, the letter 'g' appears at the end of a word, and is therefore pronounced as a /k/. Sounds 4: Distinguishing between /g/ and /k/ brgen (to vouch for) Jrgen (Jrgen) tagen (to meet (of government)) fliegen (to fly) The '-ig' ending When 'g' forms part of discussed elsewhere on this site. Burg (castle) Jrg (Jrg) Tag (day) Flug (flight) Sieg (victory) Zug (train) Fliege (fly) Lage (situation) zeigen (to show)
But when the German consonant 'g' appears at the end of a word it hardens to a /k/ phoneme.
an -ig suffix
it
is
pronounced
as -ich using
the // phoneme
Sounds 5: The "-ig" suffix richtig (correct) lustig (funny) eilig (hurried) Honig (honey) traurig (sad) fertig (finished)
The consonant sound 'g' in English loan words A further group of German words have been imported from English and thus retain the English pronunciation of the 'g' consonant Sounds 4: Loan words with English 'g' sounds Manager (manager) Teenager (teenager) Management (management)
Sounds 1: Words starting with the letters 'j' ja (yes) jetzt (now) Jubel (jubilation) Jacke (jacket) Majonse (mayonnaise) jung (young) jeder (each) Jugend (youth) Jahr (year) Boje (buoy)
The proximity of German 'j' to English 'y' can be seen by the fact that many words imported from English that originally began with a 'y' are spelled in German with an initial 'j'. Sounds 3: Imported words starting with 'j' Jacht (yacht) Jo-Jo (yo-yo) Jod (iodine) Joghurt (yoghurt) jodeln (to yodel) Jota (iota)
There is an ever-growing number of exceptions to this rule however. The influx of English terms beginning with the letter 'j' into the German language has been accompanied by the retention of the English 'j' sound in spoken German. Sounds 4: Words starting with an 'English' letter 'j' Job (job) Jet (jet) Jeans (jeans) Jackpot (jackpot) Jazz (jazz) Jeep (jeep) Jumper (jumper) joggen (to jog)
To complicate matters yet further, a further set of words beginning in 'j' have been imported from French. Sounds 5: Words starting with a 'French' letter 'j' Journalist (male journalist) Journalistin (female journalist) Journal (journal) Jalousie (blind)
When 'k' appears as the second element in an initial consonant cluster, it retains its /k/ phoneme. Sounds 2: The 'sk' sound in initial position Skandal (scandal) Skelett (skeleton) Sklave (slave) Skulptur (sculpture)
But be careful of the pronunciation of the German word Ski! It is pronounced as "Schi", an alternate version of the word, and often catches out learners of German. Sounds 3: How to pronounce 'Ski' Ski (to ski) fahren ich fahre (I am skiing) Ski
The consonant cluster 'nk' In the consonant cluster written as "-nk", the sound produced is a combination of the velar nasal "ng" heard at the end of English words such as 'thing' and bring', followed by the phoneme /k/. This is less complicated than it sounds, equating to how we pronounce English words such as 'thin-king. Sounds 4: The 'nk' consonant cluster in initial position sinken (to sink) Enkel (grandchild) trinken (to drink) denken (to think) trinken (to drink) Onkel (uncle) danken (to thank) Frankreich (France)
This consonant cluster is also heard when 'nk' appears as the end of a word, either on its own or followed by a further consonant. Sounds 6: The sound 'nk' in final position Punkt (point) sinkt (sinks) singen (to sing) Engel (angel) Finger (finger) winkt (waves) trinkt (drinks) sinken (to sink) Enkel (grandchild) Finken (finches)
Sounds 1: 'm' in initial position Mann (man) Musik (music) Minute (minute) Sounds 2: 'm' in medial position kommen (to come) Sommer (summer) Zimmer (room) Sounds 3: 'm' in final position Lamm (lamb) Baum (tree) Dom (cathedral) Reichtum (wealth) Name (name) Bume (trees) Riemen (strap) Maus (mouse) mehr (more) modern (modern)
The German 'n' sound is also used in consonant clusters in which it retains its alveolar nasal sound. Sounds 2: The 'schn' cluster in initial position Schnee (snow) Schneider (tailor) Sounds 3: 'n' in medial position Tunnel (tunnel) Linie (line) genug (enough) Miene (expression) schnell (quick) Schnaps (schnaps)
Sounds 4: 'n' in final position schn (beautiful) braun (brown) essen (to eat) sein (his; to be)
Care should be taken in distinguishing the 'pf' sound from the German /f/ phoneme. Sounds 2: Distinguishing between 'pf' and 'f' Pfund (pound) Pfand (deposit) Pflug (plough) Fund (discovery) Fand (found) Flug (flight)
Finally, try to distinguish between the 'pf' and 'f' sounds within the same word by listening to the following four German words which contain both sounds. Sounds 3: 'pf' and 'f' sounds in the same word Pfeffer (pepper) Pfeife (pipe) Pfiff (whistle) Pfaffe (cleric)
The consonantal 'r' The German consonantal 'r' is described as a 'roll' or 'trill', by which we mean that the speech organs strike each other several times in quick succession in the articulation of this sound. In northern and central Germany, this sound is made towards the back of the vocal tract, with the back of the tongue raised towards the uvula in order to create a narrow passage. When the airstream moves through this passage, the friction thus created causes the tongue to touch the uvula either once (uvular flap) or several times (uvular roll). The 'r' sound thus created has a rasping throat-clearing quality which can be equated to a less extreme version of the sound produced when gargling. The sound called the 'uvular fricative' is similar to the uvular sounds outlined above, but this time there is no contact with the uvula when the back of the tonge is raised and nor does the uvula vibrate as it would if you were gargling. The best way to reproduce this sound is to form an 'ach' sound, remembering to articulate it right at the back of the mouth. If you gradually start to vibrate the vocal cords while forming this sound, then the uvular fricative 'r' emerges. Although originally used in informal contexts, this variant of consonantal 'r' is slowly emerging as the most common pronunciation of the sound in Germany. In South Germany and Austria, on the other hand, the 'r' sound is formed much further forward in the mouth. With the alveolar roll or apical roll, the tongue touches the alveolar ridge quickly and repeatedly. Which variant of the German consonantal 'r' you adopt will depend either on your teacher or on the region of the German-speaking world that you visit or live in. While it is probably advisable for beginners to adopt an uvular 'r', as it less easy to confuse this sound with English 'r', the most important thing is to be consistent and not mix and match different types of consonantal 'r'.
Sounds 1: German consonantal 'r' in initial position rot (red) rechts (on the right) Reise (journey) Rauch (smoke) Rad (wheel) Regen (rain) richtig (correct) ruhig (quiet)
Sounds 2: Consonantal 'r' in medial position stren (to disturb) geboren (born) gerade (straight) hren (to hear) Lehrerin (teacher) Forum (forum)
It is used here instead of vocalic 'r' because the preceding vowel is short. Sounds 3: Consonantal 'r' in final position Herr (gentleman) Narr (fool) drr (thin) Geschirr (cutlery)
The vocalic 'r' is also used in the final position in a word when the 'r' follows a long vowel. Sounds 2: Vocalic 'r' after a long vowel Tor (gate; goal) mehr (more) Bier (beer) Uhr (clock) vier (four) Chor (chorus)
Vocalic 'r' is also heard when the letter 'r' follows a long vowel but precedes another consonant. Sounds 3: Vocalic 'r' after long vowel + before another consonant Pferd (horse) sprte (felt) Herd (cooker) fhrte (led)
You will also hear vocalic 'r' in the unstressed German prefixes er-, ver-, zer- and her. Sounds 4: Vocalic 'r' in unstressed prefixes erlauben (to allow) vergessen (to forget)
zerstren hereinkommen (to destroy) (to come in) Distinguishing between vocalic 'r' and consonantal 'r' In the following pairs of words, the first word contains a vocalic 'r' in final position. The second word in each pair however contains a consonantal 'r'. Sounds 5: Vocalic 'r' or consonantal 'r'? jnger (younger) Meer (sea) clever (clever) die (the younger one) Meere (seas) der (the clever one) clevere jngere
Note in particular how adding an '-in' suffix can change the articulation of what was previously a vocalic 'r'sound. Sounds 6: Vocalic and consonantal 'r' within the same word Frankfurter (Frankfurter sausage) Lehrer (male teacher) Reporter (male reporter) Bruder (brother) Lehrerin (female teacher) Reporterin (female reporter)
The German 'sch' sound retains its pronunciation when it is used in combination with other consonants. Sounds 2: The 'schn' cluster in initial position Schnee (snow) Schneider (tailor) schnell (quick) Schnaps (schnaps)
Attention should be paid to words that start with the German consonant cluster 'tsch', as both the initial 't' and the 'sch' need to be articulated. Sounds 3: The consonant cluster 'tsch' tschs! (goodbye!) Tscheche (Czech (male)) tschechisch (Czech) Tschechin (Czech (female))
Sounds 1: The German letter 'v' in initial position viel (much) Viertel (quarter) Vogel (bird) Volk (people) vier (four) von (from) Vater (father) verlieren (to lose)
It is therefore necessary to distinguish very clearly between: The letter 'v' which is actually pronounced as an /f/ phoneme. The phoneme /v/ which represents the sound made by the German letter 'w' (in words such as 'Wein', 'wei' etc.) In some German words however, the letter 'v' is pronounced as the phoneme /v/. These words include a number of items that are used very frequently in German. Sounds 2: The letter 'v' as phoneme /v/ Klavier (piano) November (November) privat (private) Vase (vase) Universitt (university) Verb (verb)
If 'y' stands at the beginning or end of a word, then it is pronounced in the same way as it would be in English. The word in which it appears is very probably an import from English in the first place. Sounds 2: Words with 'y' in initial and final position Hobby (hobby) Party (party) Yoga (yoga) Handy (mobile phone)