LECTURE: GERMAN CONSONANT PRONUNCIATON

German Consonants

Most German consonants are pronounced much as they are in English. The exceptions
are C, J, L, Q, R, S, V, W, and Z.

German words are pronounced phonetically. That is, if you know how to pronounce the
individual letters of German alphabet and certain combinations of letters and know the
rules for placing stress, you will be able to read German words correctly even without
ever hearing them.

B: This letter is pronounced as it is in English, except a final B is pronounced more

like a P. The word halb (“half”) is pronounced as if it were spelled halp.
Example word: Beginning & Middle of the word: sounds as B in English -
beginnen (to begin), der Bär (the bear), geben, (to give), graben (to dig)
B: Last and before “s” (sounds more like a “p”) – der Dieb (the thief), gelb
(yellow), Lebst (live) – (du-form), gibst (to give) – (du-form)
Word of Caution: Prefixes ending with “B”are pronounced as if they were the
end of the entire word. Example: abbiegen (to turn)

Except in the ligatures CH and SCH, the letter C is not a genuine German
letter and is used only in borrowed foreign words. Pronunciation tends to
C: follow the original source language. Many of the borrowed words come from
French. Therefore, the CH in words like Chance, Chef, Chauvinist, etc. is
pronounced like the CH in champagne. The words Chat, Cheeseburger or
checken (‘t̠ ʃƐkn) (check), which were borrowed from English, are pronounced
like in English. The initial CH in words like Chor (Choir), Christ (krIst) (Christ,
Christian) and Chromatik (Chromatics) are pronounced like a K.
C: with consonants or open vowel – sounds as K as in English. Example: das
Café (the café), der Clown (the clown), die Currywurst (the currywurst),
Currywurst (German: [ˈkœʁiˌvʊɐ̯ st] ⓘ) is a fast-food dish of German origin consisting of
steamed, fried sausage, usually pork (German: Bratwurst), typically cut into bite-sized chunks
and seasoned

This letter is pronounced as a rasping sound made in the back of the mouth
CH: something like clearing the throat before you spit. The Scots use this sound to
pronounce “loch” (as in Loch Ness). CH is pronounced this way. Here are some
examples: machen (make), Buch (book), Sache (Matter), ach! (oh!)
 CHS is a separated KS sound as in the English word “vixen”. Examples
include sechs, wachsen, (to grow) Fuchs (fox), Ochse (ox).
CK is pronounced K. The preceding vowel is always short. Example: backen
(to bake), die Flecken (the spots/stains) der Bock (the buck, the ram)
C followed by front vowel – Example: der Circus (the circus), circa (circa),
(approximately), der Cent (cent). When the letter C is followed by a vowel sound
which is made with the front of the mouth, it takes on TS sound similar to German Z.

D: This letter is pronounced as it is in English, except a final D is pronounced

more like a T. The word Rad (“wheel”) is pronounced as if it were spelled Rat.
D: Front & Middle –Example: doch (nevertheless), das (the), werden (will,
become), wieder (again)
D: Last letter – Example: der Tod (tud) (the death), die Wand (the wall), das Schild
(sign, shield) If it is placed at the end of the word, it takes on the pronunciation most
similar to letter T.

F: Pronounced just like in English - Example: der Fisch (fish), französisch (French),
der Neffe (nephew), das schiff (the ship)

G: This letter is pronounced like it usually is in English (“good” or “green”).

G: Front & Middle –Example: der Gott (the God), grillen (to grill), eng (tight),
bringen (to bring), der Regenbogen (the rainbow)
G: Last letter – If the letter G is found at the end of a word, it sounds more of a
letter K. Example: der Tag (the day), der Krieg (the war), das Flugzeug (the
airplane)
The suffix IG (used to convert a noun into an adjective) can be pronounced in
IG: various ways. The Westphalians pronounce it as if it were spelled ICH (see CH
above). The Rhinelanders pronounce it as if it were spelled ISCH. Others
pronounce it like the IG in “pig.” Take your choice.
IG: Last letter and before consonant – If letter IG is found at the end of a
word, it can be pronounced as E or ich. Both are acceptable. Example: der
König (the King), die Ewigkeit (the eternity), witzig (funny), fünfzig (fifty)
Exception: das Signal (the signal)
IG before vowel – Example: die Heilige (the saints), der Igel (hedgehog)
G (French word) – Example: die Garage (the garage), orange (orange), der
Ingenieur (the Engineer)
H: H after a vowel – Example: das Jahr (the year), sehen (to see), gehen (to go)
H all other instances - Example: der Held (the hero), der Gesundheit (the
health), heute (‘hɔyte) (today)
J: This letter is pronounced like the English initial Y in “yes”.
J (most of the time) – Example: das Jahr (the year), jetzt (now), die Jacke (the
jacket), die Majonäse (the mayonnaise)
J (in English words) – Example: der Job (the job), die Jeans (the jeans), der Jeep
(the jeep)
J (in French words) – Example: der Journalist (the journalist), der Jargon (the
jargon)

K: Example: die Sekunde (the second), können (can), klein (small), krank (sick),
Lecker (delicious)

The German L is pronounced somewhat different than the English. Try curling
L: the tip of your tongue up to touch just behind the top front teeth and keep the
back part of the tongue lower as you pronounce it.
L: Example: die Lüge (lie), Liegen (to lie, be located), heilen (to heal), der Teil (the
part), wild (wild)

M: Example: der Mond (the moon), der Schimmel (the mold), atmen (to breathe), das
Heim (the home)

The German N is pronounced as in English, but English speakers have a

NG: tendency to insert an extra G following an NG sound if another syllable
follows. The Germans pronounce the word länger (longer) as läng-er, not läng-
ger.
N: Example: lang (long), hängen (to hang) der Wein (the wine), fahren (to drive),
danken (to thank)

This letter combination is pronounced very nearly like a simple F, but not quite.
PF: It is more like the PF in “stepfather”. The P becomes a little explosive puff
before the F. Examples include Pferd (Horse), Pfarre (parish), Pfeffer (pepper),
Pfütze (puddle)
P: Example: Prost (cheers), springen (to jump), die Gruppe (the group), kaputt
(broken), der Tipp (the tip)
 As in English, Q is always followed by U in German words. The combination
Q: QU is pronounced KW (except in the borrowed word “queue”). Examples are
quälen (torment), quer (across), Quelle (source), Quatsch! (Nonsense!)
Q: Example: das Quiz (the quiz), die Quittung (the receipt), bequem (comfortable)

Most North Germans tend to swallow their final R’s to the point of non-
R: existence (like Bostonians or New Zealanders who pronounce “car” as cah).
South Germans, Swiss German speakers and Austrians almost tongue trill their
R’s like a Scotch “burr.”* *Burr - /bər/ (noun)
1.a whirring sound, such as a phone ringing tone or the sound of cogs turning.
2.a rough edge or ridge left on an object (especially of metal) by the action of a tool or machine.
R: (consonant R) – Example: der Regen (the rain), rot (red), hören (hear), der
Herr (the gentleman), dürr (skinny) die Rosen (the roses)
Vocalic R: (consonant R) – Example: das Tor (the gate), der Herd (the stove)
Vocalic consonant R ending in er - die Mutter (the mother), die Schwester (the
sister), der Bruder (the brother),
Vocalic R: (after long vowel at the end of a word) –Example: das Tor (the goal)
Mehr (more), der Chor (the choir), das Bier (the beer)
Vocalic R: (at the middle of a word after a consonant) –Example: der Herd (the
stove), das Pferd (the horse)

A single S at the beginning of or in the middle of a word is pronounced like

S: the English Z. Example: singen (to sing), sitzen (to sit), reisen (to travel), leise
(quiet)
At the end of a word an S is pronounced as it is in English. A double S (ss) is
pronounced like the English S although it may be broken into separate syllables
(was-ser) - (water). A double S following a long vowel is often represented by an
eszett (ß).
Example: (doubled anywhere or at the end) – das Gleis (track, platform), das
Glas (the glass), das Schloss (the castle), wissen (to know – facts)
Note: There has been a highly controversial reform of German spelling in 1996
in which the use of eszetts (ß) has been changed. The usages given in this
course refer to German as it has existed for nearly the last hundred years
because many people still use eszetts in the old way.
ß: (after a long vowel or diphthong)
Example: der Fuß (the foot), fließen (to flow), die Straße (the street), Beißen (to
bite)
 ß: (after a long vowel or diphthong) Example: Beißen (to bite)
Present Past Tense
ich beiße - I bite ich biss - I bit
du beißt - you bite du bissest - you bit
er beißt - he bites er biss - he bits

SCH represents the sound SH as in “ship”, “shoe”, “shred” or “shadow”.

:

SP when at the beginning of a word or following verb prefixes, they are

and pronounced SCHP or SCHT. In the body or at the end of a word they are
ST: pronounced as they would be in English. Examples for SP include Spachtel
(spatula), Spur (track), spinnen (be crazy), versprechen (promise), pronounced
SCHP but Haspel (reel), Raspel (grater) or Wespe (vɛspə) (wasp*) pronounced
SP. Regarding the combination ST, in the words Storch (stork), Stoß (Push),
Stuhl (chair), Sturm (storm) it is pronounced as SCHT but in the words
Dienstag, (Tuesday), Gäste (guests), Kasten (crate) or Kunst (Art) it is ST.
***A Wasp (Vespula vulgaris) is any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is not a
bee or an ant. Less familiar, the suborder Symphyta includes the sawflies and wood wasps.

T: Example: der Tag (the day), der Teil (the part), tragen (to carry), raten (to advise),
das Auto (the car), gut (good), rot (red)
V: This letter is pronounced like F except in a few borrowed words (Vase, Verb,
Veranda) in which it is pronounced like in English.
V: (in German words) Example: viel (much), der Vögel (the bird), der Volk
(the people), der Vater (the father), das Veilchen (the violet – flower)
V: (in foreign words) Example: die Vase (the vase), das Klavier (the piano), das
Verb (the verb), privat (private), die Universität (the university)
W: This letter is pronounced like V in English.
Example: die Welt (the world), die Wolke (the cloud), Verschwinden (to
disappear), vorwärts (forwards)
W on rare English words – Example: wow (wow!), die Show (the show)
X: X: Example: die Hexe (the witch), das Taxi (the taxi), die Flex (angle grinder)

Z: This letter is pronounced like TS in “sits” or “tsunami”. Examples are Herz

(heart), plötzlich (suddenly), Zimmer (Room), zerbrechen (break).
Z: Example: das Zimmer (the room), zwischen (between), der Zug (the train),
das Ziel (the goal), das Salz (the salt), das Netz (the net), plötzlich (suddenly)
German Syllables and Stress

German syllables begin with a consonant if one is present and divide before single consonants
or between double consonants. Each syllable is pronounced clearly and distinctly, often
separated by a glottal stop. There is no slurring together of syllables or liaison between words (if
you are trying to sound sober). Typically, the first syllable of a word is stressed. The main
exceptions to this rule are inseparable verb prefixes such as be-, er-, ent-, miss-, ver-, wider-,
zer-, and ge- which prefixes past participles. Separable verb prefixes are stressed when attached
to the verb. Compound nouns have a secondary stress on their component parts. Words of
foreign origin such as The’ater and Exekuti’on bring their foreign stress with them.

German Accents

Apart from separate languages like Low(land) German/Frisian and Swiss German, there are
many dialects of High(land) German or Hochdeutsch; the language this guide tries to address.
Some of the more extreme of these dialects are Saxon, Swabian, and the dialects spoken in rural
Bavaria and Cologne. Other big cities have language idiosyncrasies. In Hamburg the SP’s and
ST’s are pronounced more like they are in English. The Berliners have a tendency to pronounce
the past participle prefix ge- as if it were spelled ye- (as in Old English – Anglo-Saxon – where it
lingered on in such forms as y-ronne and y-falle in Chaucer’s Middle English). Being human, a
German enjoys speaking his own dialect and disparages or laughs at the dialects of others.

Capitalization & Punctuation

 Sie (the formal "you") is always capitalized. This also applies to the related forms Ihnen
and Ihr, although not to the reflexive pronoun sich.
 Unlike the English I, the first-person singular pronoun ich is not capitalized unless it
begins a sentence
 Unlike in English, adjectives describing nationality, ethnicity and religion (the
American car) are not capitalized in German (das amerikanische Auto) unless they’re
part of a proper noun (Deutsche Bank)
 As in the rest of continental Europe, decimal points and commas are reversed in
writing numbers (e.g. a coffee might cost 1,50€ while a car costs 15.000€)
 Typically the format for German quotation marks is „__“ (rather than “___”), with the
opening quote mark upside down and both of them curling outwards
 French chevron-style quotation marks («___») are also sometimes used, although
German tends to invert them (»___«)
 German never uses the “Oxford comma” at the end of a list
 Unlike in English, a comma can link two independent clauses in German
 du and its related forms (dich/dir/euch) used to be capitalized like Sie, and some people
still capitalize them, especially in correspondence. This is certainly not wrong, but's no
longer standard, and you don't need to do it unless you want to.