🔤 The German Alphabet and Pronunciation Guide
The German alphabet has 26 letters — the same as English — plus four special characters: ä, ö, ü and ß. German spelling is very regular: once you know how each letter sounds, you can pronounce almost any German word correctly.
📋 The German Alphabet
| Letter | Name (German) | Sounds like | Example word |
|---|---|---|---|
| A a | ah | "a" in "father" | Apfel |
| E e | eh | "e" in "bed" | Ende |
| I i | ee | "ee" in "see" | Igel |
| O o | oh | "o" in "more" | Oma |
| U u | oo | "oo" in "moon" | Uhr |
| Ä ä | äh | "e" in "bed" (longer) | Ärger |
| Ö ö | öh | like "e" with rounded lips | öffnen |
| Ü ü | üh | like "ee" with rounded lips | über |
| ß | Eszett / scharfes S | like "ss" | Straße |
🔊 Key Pronunciation Rules
| Letter/Combo | Sounds like | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ch (after a, o, u) | like "ch" in Scottish "loch" | Bach, doch |
| ch (after e, i) | soft "sh" sound (like "hue") | ich, nicht |
| sch | "sh" | Schule, schön |
| sp / st (at start) | "shp" / "sht" | Sprache, Stadt |
| w | "v" sound | Wasser, wer |
| v | "f" sound | Vater, vier |
| ei | "eye" | mein, drei |
| ie | "ee" | lieben, Sie |
| eu / äu | "oy" | neu, Bäume |
The ß vs. ss Rule
Use ß after a long vowel or diphthong: Straße, Fuß, heißen. Use ss after a short vowel: Wasser, essen, müssen. In Switzerland, ß is not used at all — they always write ss.
✏️ Übungen
1. How is the "w" pronounced in German? Like "v" in English
2. What sound does "ei" make? Like "eye"
3. How do you say "Schule"? "SHOO-luh"
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