Foreign languages can be studied at any age and achieved excellent results in a year and a half of intensive regular lessons. Each dialect and different countries have features, difficulties and important aspects of pronunciation, word formation, grammar, which have developed due to historical processes and the mentality of the people. The German language is no exception. Some words and sounds are borrowed from others and modified, there are unique features and distinctive features.
The process of establishing pronunciation is the first and most important stage in learning a language. It holds all other knowledge as the foundation. It is the correct use of sounds that distinguishes a native speaker of German from representatives of other nationalities.
Stages of learning German
To understand the role of phonetics, you should consider the entire learning process:
First stage. The alphabet, pronunciation, combination of letters, putting syllables into words, learning a basic set of concepts - the first lessons consist of similar tasks.
Learning to read. After studying the letters, you can begin training in understanding words in context, composing sentences, and first dialogues. After 2-3 months of training, you can start reading the first entry-level books: small children's stories, adapted texts.
We explain and write. The most difficult moment is to express your thoughts to a foreigner without the opportunity to use your native speech. After about a year of classes, you can include video materials in the training program: films with subtitles, interviews, news broadcasts.
Further training depends entirely on goals and objectives. For a trip to Germany with an excursion of this level it will be enough; for work or relocation, you need to maintain and develop the acquired knowledge. Typically, understanding German speech and the ability to answer questions and carry on a conversation comes after one and a half to two years of study.
Features of the German alphabet
The German alphabet has only 26 letters, and there are almost 2 times more sounds - 42, obtained in different situations and letter combinations. If you divide sounds into groups, you get:
- 15 simple vowels;
- 3 complex diphthongs;
- 24 consonants.
The entire German language is based on consonants, which is why many people call its sound rough and unmelodic. Its main distinguishing feature is word formation; many words are formed by merging simple concepts into one. But the rules quickly become intuitive with careful study and regular repetition.
In general, German is similar to English, but there are umlauts and the ligature ß to represent certain sounds. The analogues of the first can be considered elongated softened vowels, and the second is the sound “s”.
Of the main nuances of articulation and pronunciation of sounds in the German language, the following important points can be highlighted:
- It is necessary to open your mouth wide enough when pronouncing German words, so the sound will be most correct;
- A word starting with a vowel requires significant effort when pronouncing the first letter - it turns out sharp and clear;
- Vowels and some consonants require increased articulation of the lips;
- in simple words the stress falls on the first syllable in the root or on the prefix, in complex words there may be 2 stressed syllables, postfixes are unstressed, in an abbreviation the last letter is highlighted.
Pronunciation of German consonants
At the end of a word, the letter “g” is read “k”, except for the combination ig, in which case the sound will be “хь”. Lustig in transcription looks like [‘lƱstiç]. French concepts and words borrowed from this language suggest reading the letter as “zh”.
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Duplicated consonants are read as one letter, and the vowel before them becomes short, for example, rennen or mutter - mother.
How to pronounce vowels?
The main features of pronouncing vowel sounds are:
- The first letters of the word are pronounced aspirated, with a click;
- Sounds can be short or long;
- In the German language there is the phenomenon of “umlauts” - letters that have no analogues in our language: ä, ö and ü.
Depending on the type of syllable (closed or open), vowel letters can be read differently. And the position of the letter in the word also affects pronunciation: at the beginning and at the end they are pronounced differently.
- The letters a, e, i, o, u, ä, ö, ü are read the same in an open or conditionally closed syllable, as well as in combination with the letter “h”:
- a, ha-, malen, Wahl, read as a simple “a”;
e,he-, lessen, sehen, long sound “e”;
i, hi -, Maschine, ihn, long sound “and”;
o, ho -, rot, wohnen, similar to the Russian sound “o”;
u, hu-, du, gut, Kuh, both alone and in combination with “h” is read as “y”
ä, hä - [ɛː], spat, Zähne, the sound is read as in the word “era”;
ö, hö - [øː], böse, Söhne, similar to our sound in the word “honey”;
ü, hü -, müde, früh, the result is a sound between the Russian “u” and “yu”, a similar pronunciation in the word muesli.
Exceptions to the rules will need to be learned by heart as you build your vocabulary, but the bulk of words used in everyday conversations are read this way.
Combinations of vowels and consonants
- There are special cases when letters are combined with each other and form a different sound. This happens with both vowels and consonants. There are slightly fewer such situations than in English and French, but more than in Spanish.
- Combinations of letters with each other, when the output produces an unusual result, can be divided into 3 main groups: 2 or 3 consonants, a consonant letter + a vowel, and also 2 vowels together.
- ch [hard “x”], for example words: Buch, machen, lichen;
ch [хь], if the letters come before “i” and “e”, the sound is the same as in the words: Ich, mich, rechts;
sch [w], both at the beginning of a syllable and at the end of it: Schule, Tisch, schreiben;
ck [k], for example: lecker, Scheck;
chs in transcription looks like [ks], found in words: sechs, wachsen;
ph is pronounced [f]: Photo, Physics; - pf is read as [pf], for example in the words: Pferd, Pfennig;
sp [shp] at the beginning of a word and syllable: Sport, sprechen;
st [pcs] at the beginning of a word and syllable: Stunde, verstehen;
ng [nasal n], for example, in the words: Übung, bringen, singen. In this case, the sound “n” is pronounced through the nose, but “g” is not pronounced;
th in the words Theater, Theme read [t];
tsch [h], as in the words: Tschechien, deutsch.
- This is how combinations of consonants in words will be pronounced; after a couple of months of training, they will seem correct and will no longer be striking. A similar situation will occur when combining the following letters:
- qu together make the sound "kv", as in the words: Quadrat, Quelle;
the ending tion is read [tsyon]: Funktion, Production;
ig at the end of the word reads [ich]: richtig, wichtig.
If we consider combinations of vowels with each other, we can identify several unusual options. They are called diphthongs:
- ei = [ai], for example in the words: mein, sein, Arbeit, Ei;
ai is read as [ai] and occurs in the words: Mai, Main;
ie, or [and] long: Brief, hier;
eu in the words Neu, deutsch, Euro are pronounced [oh];
äu [oh], a vowel with an umlaut also gives an interesting combination, for example: Räume, Häuser;
au read [au]: Haus, braun.
These rules will be enough to increase your level of language proficiency to intermediate and move on to reading books and doing exercises.
How to improve your German pronunciation in a short time?
Learning a foreign language is quite difficult, and almost impossible on your own. The correct articulation and pronunciation should be done by the teacher so that an experienced person can hear your mistakes and correct them in time. And only then you can improve and develop your abilities through your own efforts. What basic tips will be relevant for beginners:
- Start with slow pronunciation, let the words sound unusual at first, too picturesque, but then you won’t have to think about the correctness of the sounds.
- Try talking in front of a mirror and pay close attention to your articulation.
- Transcription in Russian letters can help at the initial stage of study, but it is better not to use them, but to immediately learn to read book symbols. They will give more complete information about sounds and pronunciation rules.
- Find an opportunity to listen to your speech: a voice recorder, programs and applications, read aloud. This way you can notice inaccuracies in the pronunciation of individual sounds, difficulties and identify weak points.
- Listen to as much German speech as possible: songs, films, radio, programs. You can listen to them while delving into the essence, trying to translate, or just in the background to develop a habit.
- Read as often and as much as possible: adapted literature, children's books, newspapers and magazines. Try to remember not only the sound, but also the spelling of words; such an integrated approach will speed up learning.
- Speak new words to memorize, keep a dictionary of the words you have learned and read it as often as possible.
- Don’t try to learn all the dialects and their features at once. It’s better to choose the classic book version and stick with it. Later you can add more variety, but at the initial level it will be too difficult to distinguish between the Bavarian and Berlin dialects.
- Diversify your learning, include interesting books, tongue twisters, songs, and communication with native speakers.
- Find people who want to listen to you or help you talk and talk on any topic, choosing words from a phrasebook or textbooks. Live communication is the most effective way to learn a language.
To sum it up...
Learning German is no more difficult than any other, there are features and subtleties, you need to know them. The rest is a matter of time and is developed through lessons, conversations, and exercises. How can you briefly describe the phonetics of the German language:
Learn German easily and with pleasure, raise your level of knowledge and expand your vocabulary using tips on correct pronunciation.
The German alphabet is based on the Latin alphabet with diacritics for vowels ( ä , ö , ü ) and a letter ß , not used in other languages. There are alternative spellings for these letters: ae, oe, ue, ss, but when using them, the uniqueness is lost.
2. Transliteration
Some German letters are transmitted unambiguously into Russian:
| b | → b | n | → n | t | → T | ||
| d | → d | p | → P | w | → V | ||
| f | → f | q | → To | x | → ks | ||
| g | → G | r | → R | y | → And | ||
| m | → m | ß | → With | z | → ts |
3. J
Combinations j + vowel transmitted this way:
At the beginning of a word and after vowels ja → I, jä (je) → e, jo → yo, jo → yo, ju → Yu, ju → yu: Jahns → Jens, July → Yule;
After consonants ja → ya, jä (je) → ye, jo → yo, jo → yo, ju (ju)→ yu: Lilje → Lilje.
Before a consonant and at the end of a word j → th.
4. Vowels and their combinations
German diphthongs are transcribed according to the following rules: eu → Ouch, ei → ah, ie → And. A common tradition is to transmit eu (ei) → Hey (to her) today is considered obsolete, although many first and last names are transmitted precisely according to these rules: Reuters → Reuters, Geiger → Geiger.
After vowels e (ä ) → uh, i → th. At the beginning of the word e (ä , ö ) → uh, ü → And.
In other cases, vowels are transmitted by transliteration: a → A, e (ä ) → e, i → And, o → O, ö → e, u → at, ü → Yu, y → And.
5. S, C, H
Letter combinations sch, chh, ch, ph, rh, th in transcription are transmitted, respectively: sch → w, chh → xg, ch → X, ph → f, rh → R, th → T.
Combinations tsch, zsch And chs entirely belonging to one syllable are transmitted according to the rules tsch (zsch) → h, chs → ks: Achslach → Akslah, Zschopau → Chopau. Sometimes the components of these letter combinations belong to different syllables, in which case they are transmitted independently: Altschul → Altshul.
Before front vowels ( i, e, in borrowings also y) With → ts: Cilli → Cilli. In other contexts c → To: Carl → Charles.
Before letters p And t at the beginning of a word or part of a compound word s → w: Spree → Spree. Single before vowels s → h, otherwise s → With.
In the position between a vowel and a consonant (or between a vowel and e) h omitted in transcription. In other positions h → X.
The tradition is to transmit everywhere h → G today it is considered outdated, but many first and last names are transmitted precisely according to this rule: Tannhauser → Tannhäuser, Heisenberg → Heisenberg.
The “transcriptor” does not know how to divide German words into syllables and compound words into parts.
6. Consonants
Letter combinations gk And tz transmitted according to the rules gk → G, tz → ts.
Doubled ll transmitted differently, depending on the position in the word:
Between vowels ll → ll: Ellerbach → Ellerbach;
At the end of a word and between consonants ll → ll: Tellkoppe → Tellkoppe;
In other positions ll → l or l.
Before vowels l → l, before consonants and at the end of words l → l.
In German names and titles v → f: Volkmar → Volkmar. But in names of foreign origin v can be transmitted through V: Crivitz → Krivitz.
The "transcriptor" always conveys v How f.
7. Double letters
Doubled (long) German vowels are always rendered as one: Klopeinersee → Klopeinersee.
Doubled German consonants are also translated as doubled in transcription if they are located between vowels or at the end of a word. In other positions, doubled German consonants correspond to one consonant letter of the transcription: Blatt → Blatt, Schaffran → Saffron.
Letter combination ck corresponds kk in the position between vowels, otherwise ck → To: Becker → Becker, Dick → Dick.
German is one of the European languages spoken by 120 million people. If you know him, you can communicate freely with Germans, Austrians, Swiss, residents of Luxembourg and Liechtenstein. These are not all countries where many speak the language of Heine and Nietzsche. Learning any language begins with the alphabet, and German will be no exception.
How many letters are in the German alphabet?
The German alphabet consists of 26 letters. It is also based on Latin, but has its own characteristics. What makes the language special are symbols such as umlauts (vowel letters with dots, for example: Ä-ä, Ü-ü, Ö-ö) and the ligature ß.
The language of Kafka and Mann has a phonetic basis. If you study the sound system, it will be clear how the word is written, and its graphic representation will not cause obstacles in pronunciation.
How many vowels are there in the German alphabet?
There are 8 vowels in German, they form twice as many sounds.
Vowels in German can be long or short, and the duration of the vowels can change the meaning completely. Like most European languages, German also has diphthongs:
- Ei - (ai);
- Ai - (ai);
- Ie - long(s);
- Eu - (oh);
- Äu - (oh);
- Au - (ay).
Vowels in words create open and closed syllables. In an open syllable or a conditionally closed one, when the form of the word changes, the syllable can again become open.
How many consonants are there in German writing?
There are 21 consonant letters in the German alphabet.
| Letter | Name | Pronunciation | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bb | (bae) | Subject to the same orthoepic norms as a similar sound in Russian (b) | |
| Cc | (tse) | Participates in combinations ch and chs; before e and i in some cases one “c” is pronounced as (ts). In borrowings it can appear as (c) | |
| Dd | (de) | Similar to Russian (d) | |
| Ff | (ef) | Gives sound (ph) | The letter “v” makes a similar sound in German. |
| Gg | (ge) | Sounds like (g) | At the end of a word in the vicinity of ig it sounds like (хь), close to (ш) |
| Hh | (Ha) | Sounds like (x) | Often in words it is indicated only in writing, one of the unpronounceable consonants of the language. It is often reduced in the position between vowels and at the absolute end of a word |
| Jj | (yot) | Sometimes like (dz) or (z) | |
| Kk | (ka) | Pronounced traditionally as (k) | The -ck remains a sound (k) |
| Ll | (el) | Pronunciation is similar to Russian (l) | |
| mm | (Em) | Gives sound (m) | |
| Nn | (en) | Gives sound (n) | |
| Pp | (peh) | Gives sound (p) | |
| (ku) | Usually like (k) | If combined with qu, the sound (kv) comes out | |
| Rr | (er) | Slightly burry (r) | At the end of a word it can transform into (a) |
| Ss | (es) | (h) at the beginning of a word | At the end of the word it is deafened to (s) |
| Tt | (te) | Gives sound (t) | |
| Vv | (ugh) | Gives sound(ph) | In borrowings gives sound (in) |
| Ww | (ve) | Gives sound(s) | |
| Xx | (X) | (ks) | |
| Yy | (upsilon) | Gives sounds (y) and (y:) | |
| Zz | (tset) | Traditionally gives a combination of sounds (ts) |
Features of consonants and their combinations in German
- The letter C forms an affricate with h – ch (хь) or (с);
- chs gives sound (ks);
- before e and i in some cases one “c” is pronounced as (ts).
Other cases are no less interesting:
- The juxtaposition of the letters Sch gives the sound (sh).
- The affricate ph gives rise to the sound (f).
- The letter combination ts is pronounced (ts). A special feature is the ligature ß (esset), which expresses the short sound of a sound similar to Russian (c). It traditionally stands in the middle of a word or at its end.
- DT or TH produce the same sound (t).
- The letter combinations tsch are similar to the sound (ch).
- And Z or TZ give rise to sound (ts).
German alphabet and speech. 15 interesting facts
- Until about the 12th century, runic writing was widespread in Germany.
- Since the 15th century, the Schwabacher font, which belongs to the Gothic writing style, has spread. It was widespread until the beginning of the last century. However, in the century before last, it began to be supplanted first by Fraktura, and later by Antiqua. They were officially recognized only after the 1918 Revolution.
- Since the 20s of the twentieth century, the Sütterlin font has become popular.
- In 1903, a special telephone directory was published for reading German words by sounds. Initially, they tried to convey the letters in numbers, but this was difficult to remember.
- In military affairs, when encrypting, the ligature ß and affricate ch were replaced by letter combinations.
- During Hitler's reign, they tried to revive the imperial font, but the idea did not take root.
- The stress in German usually falls on the first syllable. When a word has an unstressed prefix, the stress shifts to the second syllable.
- All nouns in German writing, regardless of their place in a sentence, are written with a capital letter.
- The word "girl" in German is neuter. And this is not an isolated case: similar inconsistencies often occur in language.
- Some phraseological units in German are funny when translated directly. The phrase, which we would translate as “You have a pig!” means that the person was called lucky. With the words “This is not your beer!” Germans remind each other not to meddle in other people's affairs.
- The word "fraer", which is considered jargon in Russian speech, comes from German. They call it the groom.
- The longest word in the German language, which is still used in speech and writing, consists of 63 letters.
- Germans often use the words “treasure”, “Romeo” and even “stallion” as endearing words for their lovers.
- John Guttenberg printed the first book on his press not in German, but in Latin. The famous Bible in German translation appeared 10 years later.
- German could become the official language in the United States. After the Civil War, at a meeting of Congress, the English won by chance. It received one more vote than the German language.
Video on the topic
Any language begins with an alphabet, and German is no exception! To learn to read German correctly, you must first become familiar with all German letters and sounds.
The German alphabet is an alphabet based on Latin, it consists of 26 letters:
A a[A], B b[be], C c[tse], D d[de], E e[uh], F f[ef], G g[ge], H h[Ha], I i[And], J j[yot], K k[ka], Ll[el], Mm[Em], Nn[en], O o[O], P p[pe], Q q[ku], R r[er], Ss[es], T t[te], U u[y], Vv[fau], W w[ve], X x[X], Y y[upsilon], Z z[tset].
German alphabet (listen)
Listen to the alphabet:
There are also three umlauts in the German alphabet (Ä, Ö, Ü).
Listen to the umlauts:
Umlauts (two dots above vowels) indicate a qualitative change in the sounds u, o, a.
The correct pronunciation of sounds in words with and without umlauts is very important, since the meaning of the word depends on it. For example, the word “schon” is pronounced hard, with the sound “o” and means “already”, while the word “schön” has a softer sound, close to the Russian “ё”, and means “pleasant, dear”. Be careful about the icons above the vowels to avoid misunderstandings!
To speak German correctly, pay attention to the pronunciation features of the German umlauts:
At the beginning of a word and after vowels, the umlaut “ä” is read as the sound “e”, after consonants: as “e”. To correctly pronounce the umlaut “ö”, the position of the tongue should be as for “e”, and the lips as for “o”. Thus, a sound will be produced that is vaguely similar to the Russian “ё”. By the way, “е” can also be called an umlaut, because it is a qualitative change in the sound “e” in the Russian language. So, to pronounce umlaut ü, the position of the tongue should be as with “i”, and the lips as with y. You will get a sound somewhat similar to the Russian “yu”.
Umlauts are not only not so easy to pronounce, but also to type. If you don't have a German layout, you can use the generally accepted character substitution:
ä – ae
ö–oe
ü – ue
Another unusual sign of the German language is the ligature (i.e., connection of letters) “eszet” (ß).
Most often, “esset” is equated to the letters “ss”, however, in addition to the sound, [s] indicates the length of the previous sound, so replacing “ß” with “s” is not worth it - “ss” signals the brevity of the previous sound, which is important to remember when learning the rules reading.
Like umlauts, “eszet” is not part of the alphabet and is taken outside of it. However, in dictionaries these letters are in alphabetical order: Ää follows Aa, Öö follows Oo, Üü follows Uu, ß follows “ss”.
The rules for reading German words are quite simple and follow simple rules, and therefore there is no transcription in the German language - it appears only in some complex words, most often coming to German from other languages.
The stress is placed before the stressed syllable, and the long sound is indicated by a colon.
From sound to letter. Learning to read in German
In German, different letters can make the same sound. The table below will help you figure out which letters and letter combinations are read the same in German.
Remember! An open syllable is considered to be one that ends with a vowel: da. A closed syllable ends with a consonant: das.
| Sound | Pronunciation | Letter | Position in a word | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [A] | [A] | A | in a closed syllable | das |
| ah |
in an open syllable |
|||
| [s] | [With] | s | at the end of words and after long vowels | das, Naß |
| [z] | [h] | s | before and between vowels | Saat |
| f | Faß | |||
| ff | in the middle and end of a word | paff | ||
| v | at the beginning and middle of a word | Vater | ||
| [v] | [V] | w | at the beginning and middle of a word | was |
| [n] | [n] | n | at the beginning, middle and end of a word | nah, an |
| nn | wann | |||
| [d] | [d] | d | at the beginning and middle of a word | das |
| t | At the beginning, middle and end of a word | Tat | ||
| tt | In the middle and end of a word | Satt | ||
| d | at the end of a word | Sand | ||
| [ts] | z | at the beginning, middle and end of a word | Zahn | |
| tz | in the middle and end of a word after short sounds | Satz | ||
| [b] | [b] | b | at the beginning and middle of a word between vowels | Bahn |
| p | at the beginning and middle of a word | paß | ||
| pp | in the middle and end of a word after short sounds | knapp | ||
| b | at the end of a word and before a consonant | ab | ||
| [m] | [m] | m | at the beginning and middle of a word | Mann |
| mm | Damm | |||
| [g] | [G] | g | at the beginning and middle of a word | Gast |
| [ŋ] | [n] | ng | in the middle and end of a word after a short sound | Sang |
| [ŋk] | [nc] | nk | in the middle and end of a word after a short sound | Bank |
| k | at the beginning and middle of a word | kann | ||
| ck | in the middle and end of a word after a short sound | Sack | ||
| g | at the end of a word | Tag | ||
| [kv] | qu | Quant | ||
| [ks] | x | Axt | ||
| [i] | [And] | i | in a closed syllable | Ist |
| i |
in an open syllable |
|||
| ie | ||||
| ieh | ||||
| ih | ||||
| [u] | [y] | u | in a closed syllable | und |
| [y:] | u |
in an open syllable |
rufen | |
| uh | Uhr | |||
| [ə] | [e] | e | in the final syllable | Tasse |
| [R] |
r | at the beginning of a word or syllable | Rat | |
| rr | after a consonant, short vowels and long | Paar, Brust | ||
| [r] | [A] | r | at the end of a word | Vater, wir |
| [ɜ] | [e] | e | in a closed syllable | Bett |
| [ɜː] | [e:] | ä | in an open syllable | Käse, Bar, |
| [e:] |
e |
in an open syllable |
Rede, Weg, Tee, sehen | |
| [ʃ] | [w] | sch | at the beginning, middle and end of a word | Schuh |
| [ʃt] | [PCS] | st | at the beginning of a word | Strasse |
| [ʃp] | [shp] | sp | at the beginning of a word | spat |
| [ouch] | ei | at the beginning, middle and end of a word | ein, mein, | |
| [O:] | o, oo | in an open syllable | Brot, Boot, | |
| [o] | [O] | o | in a closed syllable | oft |
| [x] | [X] | ch | after short sounds a, o, u | Fach, doch, Buch |
| [ç] | [xx] | ch | after short sounds | ich, recht, weich |
| g | in the suffix -ig | ruhig | ||
| [j] | [th] | j | at the beginning of a word before vowels | ja |
| [ay] | j | before the vowels a, o, u in French. borrowings | Journal, Jargon | |
| g | before the vowels e, i in French. borrowings | Ingenieur | ||
| [pf] | pf | at the beginning, middle and end of a word | Pfad, Apfel, Kampf | |
| [Ouch] | eu | at the beginning, middle and end of a word | Euch, neun, neu, Räume |
Lesson assignments
Try to put your knowledge into practice by doing the following exercises. Don’t be afraid to look at the table; over time, all the sounds will be remembered, and the need for hints will disappear by itself!
Exercise 1. Read the following words:
Mein, liegen, Freunde, Tasche, Tag, jetzt, Jacke, spielen, stehen, wachsen, zusammen, Stunde, Träume, täglich, ruhig, schon, Bitte, Spaß, selten, ziemlich, oft, neun, Brot, die, Baum, Naß.
Listen:
Answers to Exercise 1.
Mein [mine], liegen ['li: gen], Freunde [; freunde], Tasche ['tashe], Tag [so], jetzt [ezt], Jacke ['yake], spielen ['spi: flax], stehen ['shte:en], wachsen ['waxen], zusammen [tsu'zamen], Stunde ['shtunde], Träume ['troime], täglich ['taglikh], ruhig ['ru: ikh], schon [sho: n], Bitte ['bite], Spaß [shpa: s], selten ['zelten], ziemlich ['tsimlikh], oft [oft], neun [noyn], Brot [brot], die [di:], Baum [baum], Naß [on: s].
As a rule, it is a good idea to start learning foreign languages from the very basics, i.e. from the alphabet and reading rules. The German language is no exception. German alphabet, like English, is based on the Latin alphabet, but it also has some differences that you need to know.
So, German alphabet contains 26 letters. A distinctive feature is considered to be umlauts (vowel letters with dots, for example: Ä-ä, Ü-ü, Ö-ö) and the ligature ß. Visually it looks like this:
German alphabet pronunciation
Just knowing the alphabet is not enough, since in some combinations not all letters are read as they are written. Here are some solid rules for reading German:
|
Rules for reading individual letters: |
||
| s= [z] | Before vowels. | S ofa, s o, S onne |
| s= [s] | At the end of a word/syllable. | W as d as H aus |
| ß = [s] short | Can't read like the double "s" in the word "cash"! | gro ß ,fu ß ball, blo ß |
| h= [exhale] | At the beginning of a word or syllable it is read as a slight exhalation. After the vowel is not read, but gives length to the vowel sound. | H anna, h aben, h elfen, wo h in S eh en, ih m, B ah n h of |
| y= ["soft"] | Something between “u” and “yu” as in the word m Yu if | t y Pisch, G y mnastik |
| r= [“burry” r] | At the beginning of a word or syllable. | R enate, R egel, R epublik, ge r adeaus |
| r= [a] | At the end of a word or syllable. | wi r, mi r,ve r Gessen, Zimme r |
| x= [ks] | Te x t, bo x en | |
| v= [f] | In most cases. | v iel, v erstehen, v or |
| v= [in] | In borrowings. | V erb V ase |
| w=[in] | W o, w ir, W ohnung, W inter | |
| c= [s] | In borrowed words. | C ity |
| c=[k] | In borrowed words. | C afe, C computer |
| ä = [e] | As in the word " uh ra" | H ä nde, kl ä ren |
| ö ["soft" about] | As in the word "m" e d." | K ö nnen, K ö ln, Ö sterreich |
| ü ["soft"] | As in the word "m" Yu sli." | m ü de, m ü ssen, f ü nf |
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Longitude and shortness of vowels: |
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| a, e, i, o, u, ä, ö, ü= , , , , , [ ɛː ], [ øː ] [ yː] [: ] = longitudesound | In an open or conditionally closed syllable (i.e., when the form of the word changes, the syllable can become open again). The length and shortness of a sound affects the meaning of a word! | m a len, l e sen, Masch i ne, r o t,d u, g u t,sp ä t,b ö se, m ü de |
| ah,eh,ih,oh,uh, äh, öh, üh = [a:], [e:], [i:], [o:], [u:], [ɛː], [ øː] [ yː] [: ] = longitudesound | W ah l, s eh en, ih n, w oh nen, K uh, Z ah ne, S Oh ne, fr uh | |
| aa, ee, oo= , , [: ] = longitudesound | S aal, S ee,B oo t | |
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We read the following combinations like this: |
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| ch= [hard "x"] | Bu ch, ma ch en, la ch en | |
| ch= [xx] | Before "i" and "e". | Ich, m ich, r ech ts |
| sch= [w] | Sch ule, Ti sch, sch reiben | |
| ck= [k] | le ck er, Sche ck, | |
| chs= [ks] | se chs,wa chs en | |
| ph= [f] | Ph oto, Ph ysik | |
| qu= [kv] | Qu adrat, Qu elle | |
| th= [t] | Th eater Th ema | |
| tsch= [h] | Tsch echien, deu tsch | |
| tion= [tsyon] | Funk tion, Produk tion | |
| pf= [pf] | Pf erd, Pf ennig | |
| sp= [shp] | At the beginning of a word and syllable. | Sp ort, sp rechen |
| st= [pcs] | At the beginning of a word and syllable. | St unde, ver st ehen |
| ng= [nasal n] | The letter “g” is not readable, but the sound “n” is pronounced through the nose. | Übu ng, bri ng en,si ng en |
| ig= [ugh] | richt ig, wicht ig | |
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Rules for reading diphthongs (double vowels) |
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| ei= [ouch] | m ei n, s ei n, Arb ei t, Ei | |
| ai= [ouch] | M ai, M ai n | |
| ie= [and] long | Br ie f, h ie r, | |
| eu= [ouch] | N eu, d eu tsch Eu ro | |
| äu= [ouch] | R äu me, H äu ser | |
| au= [ay] | H au s, br au n | |
Well, we’ve sorted out the reading rules a little. I would also like to give advice on pronunciation in German. But this is in other articles on our website.
