Alphabet & Pronunciation
Alphabet und Aussprache
Learn the German alphabet special characters and basic pronunciation rules
Rules & Explanations
Alphabet & Pronunciation Introduction
Einführung: Alphabet und Aussprache
Good news: German uses the same 26 letters as English! But some letters sound different, and German has 4 extra characters you need to learn.
German has 4 extra characters that English does not have: Ä, Ö, Ü (called umlauts) and ß (called Eszett or sharp S). These are not optional — they change the meaning of words. For example: schon (already) and schön (beautiful) are different words!
You already know A, B, C, D... German has the same letters. But some of them make different sounds. For example, the German W sounds like the English V. And the German V sounds like the English F.
Ich heiße Anna. Wie heißt du?
My name is Anna. What is your name?
The ß in heiße sounds like a long S (like the S in sun). It is NOT a B!
If you say the letters wrong, people will not understand you. Learning the sounds now will help you with every German word you learn later.
Letters That Sound Different
Buchstaben die anders klingen
These letters exist in English but make different sounds in German.
| German Letter | German Sound | English Example | German Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| W | sounds like English V | vine | Wasser (water) |
| V | sounds like English F | fun | Vater (father) |
| J | sounds like English Y | yes | ja (yes) |
| Z | sounds like English TS | cats | zehn (ten) |
| S (before vowel) | sounds like English Z | zoo | Sonne (sun) |
| R | rolled/throaty R | no English match | rot (red) |
| Ch | soft hissing sound | no English match | ich (I) |
The biggest surprise: German W = English V, and German V = English F. So Wasser sounds like Vasser.
W and V SWAP in German! W→V, V→F.
Common Mistakes
-
✗ Saying W like English W
✓ Say W like English V
German W always sounds like English V. Wasser = Vasser.
-
✗ Saying Z like English Z
✓ Say Z like English TS
German Z sounds like TS in cats. Zehn sounds like Tsehn.
The 4 Special German Characters
Die 4 besonderen deutschen Zeichen
These 4 characters do not exist in English. They are very important in German.
| Character | Name | Sound | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ä / ä | A-Umlaut | like E in bed | Mädchen (girl) |
| Ö / ö | O-Umlaut | like ER in her (without R) | schön (beautiful) |
| Ü / ü | U-Umlaut | like EW in few | über (over/about) |
| ß | Eszett / sharp S | like SS in miss | Straße (street) |
Umlauts are NOT decoration — they change the meaning! schon = already, schön = beautiful.
Ä = ay, Ö = err, Ü = ew. The dots change the mouth shape!
Common Mistakes
-
✗ Ignoring ß and writing ss
✓ Use ß after long vowels
ß comes after a long vowel: Straße (long A). ss comes after a short vowel: Wasser (short A).
Common Letter Combinations
Häufige Buchstabenkombinationen
Quick Reference
Kurzübersicht
Examples
Wie heißt du?
What is your name?
heißtThe ß sounds like SS. The W sounds like V. So: Vee hysst doo?
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| du | you |
| Wie | how/what (W = V sound) |
| heißt | are called (ß = SS) |
Ich bin zwanzig Jahre alt.
I am twenty years old.
zwanzigZ = TS. W = V. So zwanzig sounds like: TSvahn-tsig.
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| Ich | I |
| alt | old |
| bin | am |
| Jahre | years (J = Y) |
| zwanzig | twenty (Z = TS) |
Die Schule ist schön.
The school is beautiful.
schönsch = SH sound. ö = like ER in her without the R.
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| Die | the |
| ist | is |
| Schule | school (sch = SH) |
| schön | beautiful (ö = special sound) |
Mein Vater spricht Deutsch.
My father speaks German.
VaterV in Vater sounds like F. sp at start = SHP.
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| Mein | my (ei = EYE sound) |
| Vater | father (V = F) |
| Deutsch | German (eu = OY) |
| spricht | speaks (sp = SHP) |
Heute ist ein guter Tag.
Today is a good day.
Heuteeu sounds like OY. So Heute = HOY-tuh.
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| Tag | day |
| ein | a (ei = EYE) |
| ist | is |
| Heute | today (eu = OY) |
| guter | good |
Die Straße ist lang.
The street is long.
StraßeSt at start = SHT. ß = SS after long A. Straße = SHTRAH-suh.
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| Die | the |
| ist | is |
| lang | long |
| Straße | street (St = SHT, ß = SS) |
Ich möchte ein Brötchen, bitte.
I would like a bread roll, please.
Brötchenö = special sound. ch = soft hissing. Brötchen = BRURT-shen.
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| Ich | I |
| ein | a |
| bitte | please |
| möchte | would like |
| Brötchen | bread roll (ö + ch) |
Über dem Fluss ist eine Brücke.
Over the river is a bridge.
ÜberÜ sounds like EW in few. Über = EW-ber.
| Wort | Bedeutung |
|---|---|
| dem | the |
| ist | is |
| eine | a |
| Fluss | river |
| Über | over (Ü = EW) |
| Brücke | bridge (ü = EW) |
Practice Exercises
7 interactive exercises
How does the German W sound?
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