German Pronunciation

In German, an umlaut is used to modify the pronunciation and meaning of certain words. Here’s when and why umlauts are applied:

1. To Form Plurals

Many singular nouns add an umlaut when forming the plural:

• Mutter (mother) → Mütter (mothers).
• Stadt (city) → Städte (cities)
• Vogel (bird) → Vögel (birds)

2. To Create Comparatives of Adjectives

Some adjectives take an umlaut in the comparative and superlative forms:

• kalt (cold) → kälter (colder)
• jung (young) → jünger (younger)
• groß (big) → größer (bigger)

3. To Change Verb Forms

Certain verbs change with an umlaut in their stem when conjugated:

• fahren (to drive) → er fährt (he drives)
• laufen (to run) → er läuft (he runs)
• schlafen (to sleep) → er schläft (he sleeps)

4. To Differentiate Between Words with Different Meanings

An umlaut distinguishes between words that would otherwise be spelled the same but have different meanings:

• schon (already) vs. schön (beautiful)
• Ofen (oven) vs. Öfen (ovens)
• Fall (case) vs. Fälle (cases)

5. To Adjust Pronunciation

Adding an umlaut changes the sound of the vowel to make it softer or more fronted:

• a becomes ä: as in Mann (man) → Männer (men)
• o becomes ö: as in Sohn (son) → Söhne (sons)
• u becomes ü: as in Mutter (mother) → Mütter (mothers)

In Use

Ä sounds like "eh" (similar to the English "air").

• Mädchen (MEHD-chen) – "girl"
• Äpfel (EHP-fel) – "apples"
• spät (shpaet) – "late"
• zählen (TSAY-len) – "to count"
• bäcker (BEH-ker) – "baker"

Ö sounds like the "ur" in "turn," but with rounded lips.

• Schön (shurn) – "beautiful"
• Löffel (LUH-fel) – "spoon"
• können (KUH-nen) – "to be able to"
• mögen (MUR-gen) – "to like"
• König (KER-nig) – "king"

Ü has no direct English equivalent, but is pronounced by rounding the lips while saying "ee."

• Müde (MUE-duh) – "tired"
• früh (froo) – "early"
• grün (gruen) – "green"
• Tschüss (chuess) – "bye"
• Süden (ZUE-den) – "south"

ei sounds like "eye."

• Mein (mine) – "my"
• Mein (mine) – "my"
• Zeit (tsite) – "time"
• klein (klahyn) – "small"
• eins (ahyns) – "one"
• weit (vite) – "far"

ie sounds like "ee" as in "see."

• Liebe (LEE-buh) – "love"
• Liebe (LEE-buh) – "love"
• sieben (ZEE-ben) – "seven"
• Bier (beer) – "beer"
• nie (nee) – "never"
• viel (feel) – "much"

au sounds like "ow" as in "cow."

• Haus (house) – "house"
• Haus (house) – "house"
• Baum (bowm) – "tree"
• Maus (mouse) – "mouse"
• Kauf (kowf) – "purchase"
• braun (brown) – "brown"

S sounds like "z" at the start of a word, but "s" in other positions.
Example: Sonne (ZON-neh) – "sun" / Haus (house) – "house"

Z sounds like "ts" as in "cats."
Example: Zwei (tsvy) – "two"

V sounds like "f" in most words.
Example: Vater (FAH-ter) – "father"

W sounds like "v" as in "victory."
Example: Wasser (VAH-ser) – "water"

J sounds like "y" as in "yes."
Example: Jahr (yahr) – "year"

Ch can have a soft "h" sound after e, i, ä, ö, ü (like the sound in the German "ich"), or a harsher "k" sound after a, o, u.
Example: Ich (ikh) – "I" / Buch (book) – "book"

Double consonants indicate a shorter vowel before them.
Example: Mutter (MOO-ter) – "mother" (short "u" sound) vs. Mut (moot) – "courage"

In Use

Here are the examples with simpler pronunciation symbols:

"b" - as in "abbrechen" (to break off)

• Pronunciation: ap-breh-chen
• Meaning: break off

"ss" - as in "müssen" (must)

• Pronunciation: mu-ssen
• Meaning: must

"tt" - as in "bitter" (bitter)

• Pronunciation: bi-ter
• Meaning: bitter

"nn" - as in "essen" (to eat)

• Pronunciation: es-sen
• Meaning: eat

"ll" - as in "voll" (full)

• Pronunciation: fol
• Meaning: full

"mm" - as in "kommen" (to come)

• Pronunciation: kom-men
• Meaning: come

"rr" - as in "barren" (barren)

• Pronunciation: bar-ren
• Meaning: barren

ß represents a double "s" sound, pronounced as a soft "s."
Example: Straße (SHTRAH-suh) – "street"

Note: ß is not used in Switzerland; "ss" is used instead.

D at the end of a word is pronounced like "t."
Example: Hund (hoont) – "dog"

G at the end of a word is often pronounced like "k."
Example: Tag (tahk) – "day"

H is silent after a vowel, indicating that the vowel sound should be lengthened.
Example: Uhr (oor) – "clock"

E at the end of a word is often pronounced softly, almost like "uh."
Example: Bitte (BEE-tuh) – "please"

In loanwords, some letters retain their foreign pronunciations.
Example: Chef (shef) – "boss" (from French)