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Mastering German Pronunciation: A Beginner's Guide visualisation

Mastering German Pronunciation: A Beginner's Guide

Begin your journey to clear German pronunciation today!
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Here is a concise beginner’s guide to German pronunciation covering essential points:

  • The German alphabet is similar to English but has 30 letters, including ß and three umlaut vowels (ä, ö, ü). 1, 2

  • Vowels are pronounced clearly and distinctly, either short or long:

    • Short vowels are found in words with a vowel followed by two consonants (e.g., Bett, kann).
    • Long vowels occur with silent ‘h’, doubled vowels or open syllables (e.g. fahren, Abend). Examples:
    • a: short as in English “hut” (alle), long as in “father” (Abend)
    • e: short as in “get” (echt), long as in “laid” (Lehrer)
    • i: short as in “mitten” (Bild), long as in “seed” (ihnen)
    • o: short as in British “hot” (Sonne), long as in “so” (rot)
    • u: short as in “cook” (Hund), long as in “glue” (Stuhl) 2

  • Umlauts change vowel sounds:

    • ä sounds like ‘e’ in “bed”
    • ö sounds like ‘i’ in “bird” or ‘u’ in “fur”
    • ü sounds somewhat like French ‘u’ or English ‘ee’ with rounded lips. 1, 2

  • Important consonant pronunciation tips:

    • ch has two pronunciations: a soft breathy sound like ‘h’ in “huge” or a harder ‘k’ sound depending on position.
    • sch sounds like English ‘sh’ in “shop”.
    • sp and st at word beginnings sound like ‘shp’ and ‘sht’.
    • v is pronounced like English ‘f’
    • w is pronounced like English ‘v’
    • j is pronounced like English ‘y’ in “yes”.
    • ß is pronounced like English ‘s’. 4, 2, 1

  • German words are generally pronounced as they are written, making pronunciation more regular than in English. 2

This guide gives a solid foundation on the basic German pronunciation rules and sounds for beginners to start practicing effectively.

References

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