Most of the consonants in the German alphabet are very much like their English counterparts. It is NOT an English “r,” and it is NOT a Russian or Spanish rolled “r”! To imagine the sound, think of a growling dog. Try saying a short “e” sound right after the “k,” as in “kindergarten,” and raise your tongue until the middle of it touches your upper palate while its tip pushes against your lower teeth. Pronouncing r, gargle slightly with uvula at back of mouth when r stands before a vowel like in German words “Rolle”, “beraten”, “Frau”, “Rad”, etc. The German “k” is pronounced in the front of the mouth and sounds a little brighter. [CDATA[ (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); // ]]> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); 15 false friends in German for English Learners, Simple Reasons Why Learning German Is Worth Your While, How to Use "aber", "doch", "denn", "ja" - German…, Prinzregententorte – Bavarian Layered Chocolate Cake. An example of a German word with “sp” is “spaß” [fun]. (2) “c” – before “i”, “e”, “ö”, “ä”, and “ü”: Sounds like a “ts:” a short “t” followed by a hard “s” (as in “snow”). Others have only very subtle differences, and these are the ones you will want to pay the closest attention to, since the proper pronunciation of these consonants will determine whether or not you have a strong accent. The German “r” is pronounced only at the beginning of words or after a consonant. For example, in some southern areas such as the Stuttgart region, Germans are more likely to roll their “R”s using their tongues than those who were raised in northern regions such as Hamburg and Berlin. Don't make the same language learning mistakes that we have. 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 German, a “k” and a hard “c” are pronounced in the front, so they sound a little brighter. (Say “call” and pay close attention to where you form the “k”!). However, there are slight variations when used in the following combinations: “ng” – Pronounced as “ŋ” in the back of your mouth, with the back of the tongue touching the upper palate, just like in English (e.g., in the word “spring”). doesn’t exist in the English alphabet. An example of a German word with a hard “ch” is “machen” [to make]. It is a glide (voiced sound). Sounds the same or similar to the Greek “γ”. The German consonant “w” is pronounced like an English “v” (voiced sound). The German consonant “r” is entirely different from the English “r.” This is REALLY IMPORTANT!! An example of a German word with a hard “s” is “haus” [house]. An example of a German word with “sch” is “dusche” [shower]. The German “r” is formed in the back of the throat, almost like the hard “ch,” just with less air, and voiced. If a vowel is followed by a single consonant — as in h a ben (have), d i r (you, dat. An example of a German word with an “r” following a vowel is “schwester” [sister]. Compare this to the way an “l” is formed in English: the tongue curves back, it is lowered with only its tip touching the upper palate, the mouth is open, and the sound is made in the back of the mouth (voiced sound). View the most active students on Language101.com for the past week. Form it in the back of your throat with your uvula. An example for a German word with an “r” following a consonant is “groß” [big]. An example of a German word with an “h” after a vowel is “mehl” [flour]. An example of a German word with “st” is “stehen” [to stand]. The German consonant “s,” in front of a vowel, is pronounced like an English “z” (as in “zipper”). Pronouncing r, gargle slightly with uvula at back of mouth when r stands before a vowel like in German words “Rolle”, “beraten”, “Frau”, “Rad”, etc. Regen, albre r after open vowels hart r In our IPA transcriptions we have been using 22 different consonant symbols, so two of these must not represent phonemes in their own right. For pronunciation of “h” in combination with “c” (ch) or with “sc” (sch), see the entry for the consonant “c.”. An example of a German word beginning with “r” is “ruhe” [silence]. An example of a German word with “z” is “zirkus” [circus]. A, E, I, O and U are called vowels. Think of the sound a drop of water makes when it hits a hot surface. The German consonant “z” is pronounced like a “ts:” a short “t” followed by a hard “s” (as in “snow”). excellent note to pronounciation german r follow a vowel. I’ve taken a few tips from your guide that I’ll be using with my students, hope you don’t mind :). You may not be able to tell the difference, but native speakers of English usually pronounce the “k” sound in the back of the mouth, closer to the throat. Form it in the back of your throat with your uvula. The German consonant ß (that’s not a “b”!!) Form it in the back of your throat with your uvula. The German consonant “r” is entirely different from the English “r.” This is REALLY IMPORTANT!! A few, though, have striking differences. Rs beginning a word or syllable are pronounced from the back of the throat, almost as in French. For the sake of your time, only the German consonants that are pronounced in a different way than in English are listed here. You should exaggerate certain lip and mouth configurations in order to pronounce German words correctly. The lips are open and the tongue again blocks the air that is released, its tip resting at the lower teeth. Try saying a short “e” sound right after the “k,” as in “kindergarten,” and raising your tongue until the middle of it touches your upper palate while its tip pushes against your lower teeth. You may not be able to tell the difference, but native speakers of English usually pronounce “k” in the back of the mouth, closer to the throat (say “call” and pay close attention to where you form the “k”). An example of a German word with “k” is “koch” [cook]. The Phonemes of German THE CONSONANTS At the end of Chapter Eleven it was stated that German has 20 consonant phonemes. Great guide! If it follows a vowel, it is pronounced like a very short “u” as in “but” and it is not stressed. As a German learner, you may have a strong tendency as an English speaker to replace the German /ɾ/ with the English /ɹ/ sound. An example of a German word with “ck” is “Glück” [Luck]. Exercise pronouncing the r sound in pre-consonant position in German words “vier”, “mir”, “studiert”, “Karte”, etc. An example of a German word with a soft “c” is “Celsius.”. At the beginner’s level exaggerate the articulation until it becomes a habit. Sometimes referred to as a 'dark schwa', 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'. 2) the consonantal 'r' which is used in all other positions. Following a vowel, the “s” is pronounced like an English “s” (as in “snow”), unvoiced and hard. (3) “sch” – Pronounced just like the English sound “sh,” as in “shower” (unvoiced sound). The German “s” also occurs in three combinations: “sch” – Pronounced just like the English sound “sh” as in “shower.”. The German consonant “j” is the equivalent of the English “y” as in “yes.” Be careful! The German consonant “g” is usually pronounced just as in English. s. like 'z' in "haze". Compare the position of your tongue to the position it is in when you say “call” (unvoiced sound). Compare the position of your tongue to the position it is in when you say “call” (unvoiced sound). The mouth is closed, as when saying a German “e” or “i,” and the sound is made in the front of the mouth. An example of a German word with “ß” is “spaß” [fun]. “sp” – Pronounced “sh-p” (“sh” as in “shower,” followed by “p” as in “pot”). A vowel is short when it's followed by a consonant cluster, otherwise it's long. Unfortunately, there’s no rule as to when it is pronounced in which way; just listen to the lessons, and it shouldn’t be a problem! Once you've mastered diphthongs and grouped consonants, the next item to concentrate on is how to pronounce other letters and letter combinations found within German words.