As a rule, it is a good idea to start learning foreign languages from the very basics, i.e. from the alphabet and reading rules. The German language is no exception. German alphabet, like English, is based on the Latin alphabet, but it also has some differences that you need to know.
So, German alphabet contains 26 letters. A distinctive feature is considered to be umlauts (vowel letters with dots, for example: Ä-ä, Ü-ü, Ö-ö) and the ligature ß. Visually it looks like this:
German alphabet pronunciation
Just knowing the alphabet is not enough, since in some combinations not all letters are read as they are written. Here are some solid rules for reading German:
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Rules for reading individual letters: |
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| s= [z] | Before vowels. | S ofa, s o, S onne |
| s= [s] | At the end of a word/syllable. | W as d as H aus |
| ß = [s] short | Can't read like the double "s" in the word "cash"! | gro ß , Fu ß ball, blo ß |
| h= [exhale] | At the beginning of a word or syllable it is read as a slight exhalation. After the vowel is not read, but gives length to the vowel sound. | H anna, h aben, h elfen, wo h in S eh en, ih m, B ah n h of |
| y= ["soft"] | Something between “u” and “yu” as in the word m Yu if | t y Pisch, G y mnastik |
| r= [“burry” p] | At the beginning of a word or syllable. | R enate, R egel, R epublik, ge r adeaus |
| r= [a] | At the end of a word or syllable. | wi r,mi r,ve r Gessen, Zimme r |
| x= [ks] | Te x t, bo x en | |
| v= [f] | In most cases. | v iel, v erstehen, v or |
| v= [in] | In borrowings. | V erb V ase |
| w=[in] | W o, w ir, W ohnung, W inter | |
| c= [s] | In borrowed words. | C ity |
| c=[k] | In borrowed words. | C afe, C computer |
| ä = [e] | As in the word " uh ra" | H ä nde, kl ä ren |
| ö ["soft" about] | As in the word "m" e d." | K ö nnen, K ö ln, Ö sterreich |
| ü ["soft"] | As in the word "m" Yu sli." | m ü de, m ü ssen, f ü nf |
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Longitude and shortness of vowels: |
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| a, e, i, o, u, ä, ö, ü= , , , , , [ ɛː ], [ øː ] [ yː] [: ] = longitudesound | In an open or conditionally closed syllable (i.e., when the form of the word changes, the syllable can become open again). The length and shortness of a sound affects the meaning of a word! | m a len, l e sen, Masch i ne, r o t, d u, g u t, sp ä t, b ö se, m ü de |
| ah,eh,ih,oh,uh, äh, öh, üh = [a:], [e:], [i:], [o:], [u:], [ɛː], [ øː] [ yː] [: ] = longitudesound | W ah l, s eh en, ih n,w oh nen, K uh, Z ah ne, S Oh ne, fr uh | |
| aa, ee, oo= , , [: ] = longitudesound | S aal, S ee, B oo t | |
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We read the following combinations like this: |
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| ch= [hard "x"] | Bu ch,ma ch en, la ch en | |
| ch= [xx] | Before "i" and "e". | Ich, m ich, r ech ts |
| sch= [w] | Sch ule, Ti sch, sch reiben | |
| ck= [k] | le ck er, Sche ck, | |
| chs= [ks] | se chs,wa chs en | |
| ph= [f] | Ph oto, Ph ysik | |
| qu= [kv] | Qu adrat, Qu elle | |
| th= [t] | Th eater Th ema | |
| tsch= [h] | Tsch echien, deu tsch | |
| tion= [tsyon] | Funk tion, Produk tion | |
| pf= [pf] | Pf erd, Pf ennig | |
| sp= [shp] | At the beginning of a word and syllable. | Sp ort, sp rechen |
| st= [pcs] | At the beginning of a word and syllable. | St unde, ver st ehen |
| ng= [nasal n] | The letter “g” is not readable, but the sound “n” is pronounced through the nose. | Übu ng, bri ng en,si ng en |
| ig= [ugh] | richt ig, wicht ig | |
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Rules for reading diphthongs (double vowels) |
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| ei= [ouch] | m ei n, s ei n, Arb ei t, Ei | |
| ai= [ouch] | M ai, M ai n | |
| ie= [and] long | Br ie f, h ie r, | |
| eu= [ouch] | N eu, d eu tsch Eu ro | |
| äu= [ouch] | R äu me, H äu ser | |
| au= [ay] | H au s, br au n | |
Well, we’ve sorted out the reading rules a little. I would also like to give advice on pronunciation in German. But this is in other articles on our website.
Transcription of German words is not as in demand as when learning English, since the equality “letter = sound” is observed more often. However, discrepancies are still possible, so it is necessary to know the designations of sounds.
The need to study transcription
Why transcription is needed at all and, in particular, German words in writing can be noted in different ways. The easiest way is to designate sounds with adequate Russian letters. This approach can be found in many sources, for example, the famous transcriptionist from Artemy Lebedev’s studio works precisely on this principle. This is convenient: you don’t need to learn additional symbols. But this method has a serious drawback - it is not accurate enough. Not all sounds of a foreign language are in Russian, so it is not always possible to choose the appropriate letter. Below we will look at all the sounds of the German language in the official transcription and the features of their pronunciation. As an example, German words with transcription and translation are given.
Vowel sounds
In German there is:
- Three diphthongs - their transcription is quite unclear; different symbols can be found in different sources. Perhaps this is due to the fact that, in essence, they represent one long sound with special dynamics and coloring.
- 16 mono sounds, varying in length and shortness.
Long and short sounds can be grouped in pairs.
The sounds are briefly read in the following cases:
- The syllable ends with consonants (it doesn’t matter how many there are, at least one, at least three).
- Before combinations of "ck" and "tz" in the next syllable.
Attention: there are exceptions, we do not consider them in this article.
The vowel sounds are shown in the table below; a transcription of German words illustrating the rule is attached in two versions - according to the IPA system (International Phonetic Alphabet) and in Russian letters (just remember the disadvantages of this method):
Sound transcription | Pronunciation Features | ||
Similar to the Russian “a”, the differences are minor. | Alter (alter) - age. |
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The sound is similar to the Russian “e”, but there is no complete identity. If you want to speak without an accent, you should practice it separately. | Kennen [‘kɛnən] (kennen) - to know. | ||
Also similar to "e", but much less expressive. Listen carefully to the word Ende. This sound is often found at the end of words, and in fast speech it may disappear altogether. | Ende [ˈɛndə] (ende) - end. |
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Slightly shorter than the Russian “and”. | Fisch [fɪʃ] (fish) - fish. |
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Similar to the Russian “o”, only pronounced more briefly. | Dorf (dorf) - village. | ||
There is no analogue in Russian. Beginners often pronounce it as “е”, which is a serious mistake. These sounds require completely different muscles; use the help of a phonetician if you cannot produce a sound based on audio materials. | Schön [ʃœn] (shön) - beautiful. |
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A short, “explosive” sound, similar to the Russian “u”. Pay attention to the lips - they do not stretch forward, they are only slightly rounded. | Mutter [ˈmʊtər] (mutter) - mother. | ||
The sound is very vaguely similar to the Russian “yu”; rather, it is intermediate between [ɪ] and [ʊ]. | Glück (glitch) - happiness. |
How to determine vowel length
- Vowel doubling.
- Unreadable “h” after a vowel.
- The combination “ie”, which is read as a long “i” - [i:]
Sounds are read for a long time in an open syllable, that is, ending in a vowel, and in a conditionally closed syllable, that is, this syllable can become open when the word is changed (Tag - Tage).
Transcription of German words with long sounds:
Sound transcription | What letters are displayed on the letter? | Pronunciation Features | The word [transcription] (approximate equivalent in Russian letters) - translation. |
The pronunciation technique is the same as when playing a similar short sound. Many people have difficulties with longitude. Imagine making two short sounds. | Jahr (yar) - year. |
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| Gären (geren) - wander, fermentation. | |||
Mistakes are common with this sound. | Lehm (lem) - clay. |
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A tense, long, distinct sound, similar to a short sound, only longer. | Hier (hie) - here. | ||
Similar to short, only longer. | Vogel [ ˈfoːɡəl] (vogel) - bird. |
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Difficult sound for Russian speakers. There is no analogue in Russian. You can achieve its pronunciation by reproducing the correct one, at the end by slightly rounding and elongating your lips (not too much!). | Lowe [ ˈløːvə] (lev) - lion. |
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Intense, long, distinct sound. | Huhn (hun) - chicken. | ||
Similar to the short one - you shouldn’t liken it to the Russian “yu”, such a pronunciation will not only make you look like a foreigner, but will sound very alien to the German ear. Try saying , rounding your lips, as for . | Tür (tur) - door. |
Diphthongs
Their transcription is quite unclear; different designations can be found in the sources. Perhaps this is due to the fact that, in essence, they represent one long sound with special dynamics and coloring. Also given as an example are the most common Russian-German words with transcription in the column on the right.
Transcription | Designation on the letter, as read | Word [transcription] (approximate equivalent in Russian letters) - translation |
Or | Ei, read as "ai" | Rammstein (ramstein) - the name of the group, arbeiten [‘arbaetən] (arbeiten) - to work, reisen (raizen) - to travel, weit (white) - far. |
Or | Frauchen (frauchen) - mistress, brauchen (brauchen) - to need, aus (aus) - from, auch (ouch) - also, too. |
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[ɔʏ̯] or [ᴐy] | eu/äu, separately “e” denotes the sound “e”, and “u” denotes the sound “u”, but together they are read as “oh”. | Laufer [‘lᴐøfǝɐ] (loifer) - runner. bedeuten (bedeuten) - mean, neu (noah) - new, heute (hoyte) - today, träumen (troyman) - to dream. |
Consonant sounds of the German language and features of their pronunciation
There are 23 consonant sounds in the German language, almost all of them are easy to read, a strict “sound-letter” correspondence is almost always observed, you can easily find an analogue in the Russian language, so the transcription of German words from this point will not cause any particular difficulties. The simplest consonant sounds are listed below. A transcription of German words is also given as an example:
- [b] - corresponds to the Russian “b”. The letter displays: b, bb. Examples: Besser [ˈbɛsɐ ] (besser) - better.
- [d] - corresponds to the Russian “d”. The letter displays: d, dd. Examples: Dame [daːmə] (to the lady) - lady.
- [f] - corresponds to the Russian “f”. The letter displays: f, ff, v, ph. Examples: Apfel [ ˈap͡fəl] (apfel) - apple.
- [g] - corresponds to the Russian “g”. The letter displays: g, gg. Examples: G ebraten (gebraten) - fried.
- [m] - corresponds to the Russian “m”. The letter displays: m, mm. Examples: Kahm (kam) - mold.
- [n] - corresponds to the Russian “n”. The letter displays: n, nn. Examples: Gären (heren) - fermentation.
- [p] - corresponds to the Russian “p”. The letter displays: p, pp, b. Examples: Mappe [ ˈmapə] (mape) - briefcase.
- [k] - corresponds to the Russian “k”. The letter displays: k, ck, ch, g. Examples: Kamm (kam) - comb.
- [s] - corresponds to the Russian “s”. The letter displays: s, ss, ß. Examples: Straße [ ˈʃtraːsə] (strasse) - street.
- [t] - corresponds to the Russian “t”. The letter displays: t, tt, th, d. Examples: Schritt [∫rit] (stritt) - step.
- [v] - corresponds to the Russian “v”. The letter displays: w, rarely - v. Examples: M ö we (möwe) - seagull.
- [z] - corresponds to the Russian “z”. The letter displays: s. Examples: Saat (zat) - sowing.
- [ʒ] - corresponds to the Russian “zh”. The letter displays: g, j. Characteristic of borrowed words. Examples: Genie [ʒeˈniː] (zheni) - genius.
- [ʃ] - corresponds to the Russian “sh”. The letter displays: sch, s, ch. Examples: Staat [ʃtat] (state) - state.
- [l] - corresponds to the Russian “l”. The letter displays: l, ll. Examples: Holle [‘hœlə] (hele) - hell.
- [j] - corresponds to the Russian “th”. The letter displays: j, y. Examples: Jacke [‘jakə] (yakke) - jacket.
- [h] - vaguely corresponds to the Russian “x”, rather, it is similar to the sound of breathing when exhaling. The letter displays: h. Examples: H usten [‘hu:stən] (husten) - cough.
Of course, there are peculiarities in their pronunciation, for example, the sound [b] is not as sonorous as in Russian, the sound [p] is more expressive and is pronounced with aspiration, and [l] is an intermediate sound between the soft and hard Russian “l” . A few more examples in the figure:
Complex consonants
Separately, in the table we will consider more complex consonant sounds; a transcription of German words suitable for the example is attached:
Sound transcription | What letters are displayed on the letter? | Pronunciation Features | The word [transcription] (approximate equivalent in Russian letters) - translation. |
[r] [ʀ] [ʁ] [ɐ] | In some sources you can find a comparison of this sound to the Russian “r”. But this is a very strong simplification. In fact, the sound is very complex and causes difficulties for most students. The last sound - [ɐ] can often be found at the end of words. This reduced [r] is an indefinite vowel sound vaguely similar to the sound between the Russian “a” and “e”. | Rabe [‘ra:bə] (rabe) - raven. | |
The letter combination ch after the vowels a, o, u and the diphthong au. | These are two different sound techniques, although they are heard the same. Similar to the Russian "x". | Lachen [ˈlaxən] (lachen) - laughter. | |
This sound is also similar to the Russian "kh". Attention: both sounds are not the same as in the Russian “x” and differ from each other. | Furcht (furcht) - fear. |
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Beginners often confuse it with the sound [n], which is similar to the Russian “ng,” but these are different sounds. To get [ŋ], try sending a stream of air into your nose when pronouncing “n”. | Singen [ˈzɪŋən] (zingen) - sing. |
Below we look at the most important general differences in pronunciation:
- Consonants sound more intense and expressive.
- They don't soften.
- Voiced consonants are not as voiced as in Russian.
- At the end of words, voiced sounds may be deafened: Hund, Dieb - thief.
- Aspiration - this common medical term in phonetics refers to aspiration when pronouncing sounds.
- pronounced as one: Kasse, Lassen.
German affricates
Combinations of sounds (affricates - that is, combinations of sounds that have a certain similarity in pronunciation):
- - similar to the Russian “pf”. In writing it is designated as pf. Examples: P flücken (pfluken) - choice.
- - similar to the Russian “ts”, often read and pronounced as “ts”, however this is incorrect, although the “ts” sound does dominate. In writing it is denoted as z, tz, c, t. Examples: T rotz (trots) - despite.
- - similar to the Russian “ch”. However, it sounds firmer. The letter is displayed with the combinations tsch, tch. Examples: Kutsche [ ˈkʊt͡ʃə] (kuche) - coach.
Once again, a brief overview of all sounds is in the table below.
Using this material as a reference, you can easily master reading in German. From practice - it takes 1-2 lessons to explain the theory. Most students can read German well within a week.
Vowels
"A Umlaut" is read as "e": Märchen [märchen] - a fairy tale.
Consonants
Z [tset] is read as "ts": Ziel [tsil] - goal
S [es] is read as “s”: Haus [house] - house, but if S is before or between vowels, it is read as “z”: Sofa [zofa] - sofa, lesen - read.
ß [esset] is read as a long “s”: Straße [strasse] - street.
Sometimes it is very difficult to determine whether a word should be written “ss” or “ß”. In accordance with the new rules of the German language, ß is written after a long vowel or double vowel, and ss after a short vowel: wissen - weiß, dass, groß.
F [ef], V [fau] are read as “f”: Fox [fox] - fox, Volk [folk] - people. In borrowed words, V is read as “in”: Vase - vase.
J [yot] is read as “th”: Joghurt [yogurt] - actually, yogurt :).
L [el] - reads like "l", average between soft and hard "l", but closer to soft: Lampe [lampe] - lamp.
R [er] is read as a graded “r” (that is, burry), at the end of a word or syllable it is read as a short “a”: Russland [Russland] - Russia, Mutter [mutta] - mother.
H [ha] at the beginning of a word or root is read as an exhalation: Haus [house] – house, and in the middle or at the end of the root (after a vowel) it is not read at all: gehen - to go, Kuh - cow.
Letter combinations of consonants
ch is read as "x": Loch [loch] - hole,
chs is read as "ks": Fuchs [fuchs] - fox,
sch is read as "sh": Schrank [shrank] - closet,
sp/st at the beginning of a word or at the beginning of a root is read as "shp/sht": spontan [spontan] - spontaneous / Stuhl (shtul) - chair,
tsch is read as a hard “ch”: Deutsch [deutsch] - German language, Quatsch [kvach] - nonsense,
ck is read as a hard “k”: drücken [dryuken] - to press,
qu is read as "kv": Quatsch [kvach] - nonsense,
The suffix -tion (always stressed) is read as something between “tsion” and “tsion”: Station [stations] - station.
Vowel letter combinations
ei is read as "ai": Weimar [Weimar] (name of a city in Germany),
ie is read as a long “and”: Liebe [libe] - love,
eu is read as "oh": heute [hoyte] - today,
äu is also read as “oh”: Häuser [hoyzer] - at home.
The stress in German words almost always falls on the first syllable, except:
1) words with unstressed prefixes (be-, ge-, er-, ver-, zer-, ent-, emp-, miss-);
2) borrowed words (Computer);
3) some other exceptions (for example, warum).
If a syllable ends with a consonant, then the vowel in it will be short, if it ends with a vowel, then it will be long:
da (long "a") - das (short "a").
However, the syllable has a consonant sound at the end (and according to the rule above must be short), but in the plural form of this word the syllable opens, then it will be long:
Tag (day) - Ta-ge (days), gut (good) - gu-te (good), kam (came) - ka-men (came).
In this case, the letter combination of consonants also leads to a short syllable:
kochen (cook), backen (oven), waschen (wash).
In a number of uninflected monosyllabic words ending in "r" the syllable is long:
wer (who), er (he), der (definitive article), nur (only), mir (to me), dir (to you) ...
Longitude can be expressed by doubling a vowel, for example:
Tee (tea).
Quite often, longitude is indicated by the letter “h” (which itself is not pronounced), compare: in - ihn. Sometimes this “h” is redundant, since even without it it would take a long time to pronounce, but it is preserved due to historical tradition: gehen (to go), nahm (took).
If a word or the root of a word begins with a vowel, then it is pronounced with a strained, abrupt sound (“hard attack”):
"alles (everything), "und (and), "ich (I), "Esel (donkey), ver"arbeiten (recycle).
There is no need to pronounce e at the ending -en:
machen (to do) - read: "mahn".
The sound x, as you already know, is conveyed by the letter combination ch. If before ch there is any “narrow” (pronounced with a narrow mouth) vowel (i, e, ö, ü), double vowel eu (oh) or consonant l, n, r, then this letter combination is pronounced softly - x.”
ich (I) - ich, richtig (correct) - richtikh, sprechen (speak) - sprech "en, euch (you, to you) - oh"), solche (such) - solch "e.
Note that -ig (at the end of a word) is pronounced iх.
The consonants p, t, k are pronounced aspirated:
Peter, Tee, Kaffee.
Voiced consonants at the end of a word are deafened (as in Russian: oak is read dup, but not as in English: dog):
Tag, gab (gave), Hund (dog).
Voiced consonants are generally not as voiced as in Russian, but seem to be a little muffled. They need to be pronounced weakly, without pressure:
sehen (to see), Gott (God), Beeren (berries).
A [a], O [o], E [e], U [y], I [i] are read that way, everything is simple here.
Vowels are pronounced short or long (more on this below).
The vowels Ö and Ü with an umlaut (Umlaut - two dots above the letter at the top) are pronounced with a narrower mouth (with less lip opening) than their corresponding vowels without an umlaut:
schon [schon] (already) - schön [schön] (wonderful), Zug [zug] (train) - Züge [quge] (trains).
" a="" umlaut="" m="">Y (upsilon) is read as “yu”: Lyrik [liurik] - lyrics.
Consonants
W [ve] is read as “in”: was? [you] - what?
Z...">
Basic letter combinations in German:
| ei – [ay] – mein (mine), dein (yours), nein (no), kein (none) |
| ie – [and:] – liegen (lie), biegen (turn) |
| s is read as z if it is followed by a vowel – sieben (seven) |
| ch – [x] – ich (I), machen (to do), nicht (not) |
| sch – [w] – schon (already), schreiben (to write) |
| tsch – [h] – Deutschland (Germany), deutsch (German) |
| eu – [oh] – neu (new), neun (nine) |
| tz – [ts] – sitzen (sit) |
| eh – [e:] – nehmen (take), lehren (teach) |
| je – [e] – jetzt (now) |
| ju – [yu] – jubeln (rejoice, have fun), jucken (itch, itch) |
| ja – [ya] – ja (yes), Jacke (jacket, jacket) |
| qu – [kv] – Quatsch (nonsense) |
| sp – [shp] – spielen (play), sprechen (speak) |
| st – [piece] – stehen (stand), Stunde (hour) |
| ck – [kk] – Ecke (angle) |
| chs – [ks] – wachsen (to grow) |
| v – [f] – vorstellen, vorbeikommen |
| z – [ts] – zusammen, Zukunft |
| 4 letters you need to remember: |
| Öö – position of the tongue as with e, and lips - as with o |
| Ää - like e at the beginning of a word and after vowels, e - after consonants |
| Üü – position of the tongue as with and, and lips - as with y |
| ß – [ss] |
read the text along with the speaker:
Die Beste
Guten Tag, wir sind "die Beste", wir sind Künstler aus Deutschland. Dürfen wir uns vorstellen?
Mein Name ist Christoph Besemer. Ich komme aus Hamburg, und ich wohne da auch. Mein Hobby ist vor allem Musik. Ich spiele Klavier; aber mein Beruf ist Lehrer.
Hallo, mein Name ist Petra Obergfell. Ich komme aus einer sehr musikalischen Familie. Ich spiele und unterrichte Gitarre. Ich habe viele Schüler. Sie kommen zu mir in Bleibach, wo Gerd auch wohnt. Wir sind fast Nachbarn. Ich habe eine Tochter. Sie ist acht und heißt Jana. Ihr Vater wohnt nicht mehr bei uns. Er lebt jetzt in Berlin, das ist aber weit von Bleibach.
Und ich bin der Guido. Ich bin Deutscher. Meine Eltern wohnen schon immer in Deutschland, und wir heißen Chudoba. Auch mein Bruder und meine Schwester heißen so. Ich bin drei Jahre älter als Gerd. Meine Frau heißt Anita, und wir haben drei Kinder. Martin (8) und Julia und Diana (5). Die Mädchen sind Zwillinge. Sie gehen zusammen in den Kindergarten. Martin ist schon an der Grundschule. Von Beruf bin ich jetzt Computerprogrammerer. Ich bin auch sehr sportlich. Ich wohne im Norden. Die Stadt heißt Rostok. Es liegt nicht weit von Kiel. Ich arbeite in Kiel, aber das ist nicht so weit von hier.
German alphabet watch video:
Practicing pronunciation takes as much time as practicing grammar and vocabulary. But most often there is no time for pronunciation, because you want to quickly gain basic vocabulary, go through the basics of grammar and communicate further. In reality, accent does not matter in international German exams or course tests. It seems that there is no reason to waste time on this. Until we start running into some problems:
1) It is difficult to pronounce words, especially long ones. It is even more difficult to pronounce sentences; it feels like the tongue is stumbling. I had students whose entire speech apparatus ached after each lesson.
2) Your own speech sounds rude or impolite to Germans (although many have already learned not to show this, as they understand that it is an accent, not a character). Yes, alas, a strong accent in German sounds unpleasant to the German ear. Although this is a matter of taste, of course 😉
3) Difficulties in understanding speech. Those sounds or combinations of sounds that we cannot pronounce ourselves are difficult for us to perceive by ear. And vice versa - if you pronounce some German words (especially with a long vowel) with incorrect pronunciation, the German may not understand or may hear some other word. A common example: if you pronounce the “a” in the word Staat (state) too short, you get another word - Stadt (city).
4) Uncertainty and embarrassment. If we don't know for sure whether we are pronouncing words or entire sentences correctly, some students develop a feeling of awkwardness in conversations with German speakers.
I know a lot of people who feel great speaking with a strong accent. Pronunciation is especially difficult for men, but it doesn’t seem to bother them at all. However, denying the fact of a problem does not mean not having it: even if a person feels comfortable with an accent, this does not mean that he does not have problem No. 3.
How to train German pronunciation?
First we need to understand what our goal is here.
If you are learning German and you are 13 years old or younger, then most likely you will master German pronunciation without any difficulties. Subject to methodical studies, of course (in regular classes in schools, accents are usually not taught) or living in a German-speaking country. It is enough to live at least six months.
If you start learning German and you are over 13 years old, then difficulties with the accent begin. Scientists have proven that 13 years is the so-called critical age, after which the brain changes and languages become more difficult. Especially the pronunciation. Before the age of 13, you can learn a language as your native language and speak without an accent with constant practice (even without methodical lessons), but after the age of 13, structured lessons and a methodical approach are the best strategy for learning.
Getting rid of an accent as an adult (after 13 years) is very difficult. As a matter of fact, the chances of the Germans accepting you as one of their own are very small. However, I have repeatedly met Russians who could. It's difficult, but it's possible.
What if you don’t have that much time or don’t have the opportunity to live in a language environment?
My proposal is to set yourself a goal not to completely get rid of the accent, but to make the Russian accent neutral. I consider it an entirely achievable goal for everyone to speak in such a way that a German, on the one hand, recognizes you as a foreigner, but on the other hand, cannot immediately identify your native language. This is a neutral accent.
Why neutral? There are some snags in German pronunciation that are difficult to master and not immediately, but over the course of several years with constant training. An adult speech apparatus can take a long time to get used to certain sound combinations and intonations in a foreign language. But a neutral accent can be achieved in a short time. And this is quite enough to get rid of the above problems.
What is the Russian accent?
Typical signs:
1) The sound “r”/”r”. In Russian, we raise the tip of the tongue onto the alveoli (upper teeth) and vibrate. In German we pronounce "r" with the back of our tongue. In addition, the German language has several varieties of this sound, but Russians often use the Russian “r” in all cases. In principle, speaking with the Russian “r” is not so scary, since many German dialects also speak with the alveolar “r”. But practicing German sounds can make pronouncing words much easier (especially where the “r” is pronounced like an “a”).
2) Short and long vowels. In Russian, vowel length does not matter. The meaning of the word will not change if we say “ Thank you" or " Thank you". In German, longitude plays a big role. And if the word " Buch” is pronounced with a long “u”, which means it should be pronounced that way. Germans are very sensitive to vowels and can immediately detect a foreign accent.
3) Combination of consonants. A typical Russian accent is to pronounce the combination “ das Buch" How " dazb uh". We like to pronounce vowels loudly. The Germans, on the contrary, like to drown out sonority. Therefore they will say " yeahsp uh". The "B" doesn't quite turn into a "p", of course, but it is significantly stunned. Another example - " es geht". Russian accent - “ezg eit.” German version - " esc ate".
4) Sound "x". In Russian there is only one sound “x”, in German there are two options. The pronunciation of the Russian “x” at the beginning of a German word, for example in the word “ Hamburg“, leads to a pronounced accent.
5) Vowel e. In Russian there is only one option, in German there are again several. Long, short, open, closed - you need to figure it out. Otherwise from Genen(genes, plural, d.p) may turn out gähnen(to yawn).
6) Consonant “l”. In Russian there are two variants of the sound “l” - hard (lamp) and soft (mel). In German there is only a soft "l". And it is soft even in the word “lamp” - Lampe.
7) Aspiration. The German consonants “b/p, d/t, g/k” are pronounced aspirated. The lack of aspiration does not in any way affect the understanding of speech, but creates a pronounced accent.
8) Glottal stop (Knacklaut). German vowels are pronounced at the beginning of a word with a glottal stop, that is, very clearly. Therefore, in the flow of speech, words do not flow into one another, but are separated by a stop. If you learn to speak with a bow, your own speech in German will become clearer and more natural (for Germans).
9) Intonation. Russians speak with a wide variety of intonations, which is why Russian is considered an emotional language. Germans like to speak monotonously. Any rise in tone misleads them. In addition, Germans like to raise their tone at the end of sentences. For example, in German - “Was ↗ hast du heute → gemacht↗?” In Russian - What ↗did you → do ↘ today?
10) vowels ö, ü. Oh those words - ursrprünglich, junger,Jörg, Jürgen... Exercise and exercise, what can I say. It gives off a strong Russian accent and takes a long time to master.
What are the pronunciation techniques?
1. Practice every sound of the German language o-t-d-e-l-n-o
Yes, both Russian and German have a “t” sound. But in German it is still different: the German “t” sound is aspirated. First you need to practice inhalation separately. You can make a list of words that start with “t” and pronounce them aspirated. In order to understand whether it works or not, you can hang a piece of paper in front of your face or light a candle. When pronouncing a word, the leaf or candle flame should fluctuate. Then you can take any text, underline all the letters “t” in it and read it out loud many times, paying special attention only to this sound.
2. Listen to podcasts and repeat
To learn to speak without an accent, you need to listen and repeat a lot. However, repeating once or twice is not enough. The same phrase or words must be repeated 10-20 times. This is necessary for the speech apparatus to readjust and get used to it. To find out if you're good at speaking behind the narrator on a podcast, you can record yourself speaking on your phone. Listen to yourself, then to the announcer, find weak points in your speech and train them until your own pronunciation becomes similar to the announcer in the podcast.
3. Read aloud a lot
You can take the text in the textbook and read it out loud 10-20 times. To begin with, you can concentrate on one or two problems (aspiration, knaklaut) and highlight these places in the text. Read the text many times, paying attention to these places, write yourself down. It is best if this text is voiced. Then you can compare your speech with the speaker’s pronunciation.
4. After studying individual sounds, you need to work on combinations
Understand what progressive assimilation is in German and regressive assimilation in Russian (see sign No. 3). Realize the difference, find examples and practice.
5. Train intonation
Ideally, you need to get rid of Russian intonation changes and try to speak calmly and monotonously.
6. Talk in front of a mirror
An interesting exercise to see how your lips move and what facial expressions you have when you speak German. If it seems to you that your lips do not move naturally when pronouncing some sounds, then you need to work on these places. Speech should not only sound, but also look natural.
7. Listen and sing songs in German
Each language has its own rhythm. Russian is more likely to have an iambic syllable (stress is often in the middle or at the end of a word), while German has a trochaic syllable (stress is often on the first syllable). Songs perfectly develop a sense of the rhythm of the language and exercise intonation. It is very important to learn how to merge words into phrases, and phrases into sentences, so that speech sounds natural and not choppy.
8. Find a partner
If you have a friend who is also learning German, you can practice pronunciation together. After all, it’s easier to find a speck in someone else’s eye. 😉 And it’s more interesting to train in company.
9. Practice sounds at any time
Are you going for a run? Practice pronouncing the German "r" while running. Only with the help of constant training can you finally pronounce this sound. For starters, you can try to burr in Russian. Say whatever comes to mind and burr. When you succeed in Russian, you can switch to German :)
10. Speak slowly
The main task is to speak clearly. It is better to speak slowly and clearly than quickly and incomprehensibly. Read texts slowly, clearly pronouncing words and phrases and feel every sound. You can imagine that you are talking to a small child who cannot yet speak, and you are trying to teach him new words. And speed will come with experience.
Good luck to everyone!
How to train German pronunciation and get rid of the accent was last modified: July 27th, 2018 by Catherine
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