🔤 The German Alphabet (Das Deutsche Alphabet)¶
The German alphabet is similar to English but includes 4 extra letters: ä, ö, ü, ß.
📚 Basic Letters¶
| Letter | Name | Pronunciation | Example Word 🗣️ | Audio 🔊 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | a | like 'a' in "father" | Apfel (apple) | |
| B | be | like 'b' in "bat" | Buch (book) | |
| C | ce | like 'k' in "kite" | Café (Coffee shop) | |
| D | de | like 'd' in "dog" | Dank (thanks) | |
| E | e | like 'e' in "bed" | Eule (owl) | |
| F | ef | like 'f' in "fun" | Fisch (fish) | |
| G | ge | like 'g' in "go" | Garten (garden) | |
| H | ha | like 'h' in "hat" | Haus (house) | |
| I | i | like 'i' in "machine" | Igel (hedgehog) | |
| J | jot | like 'y' in "yes" | Jahr (year) | |
| K | ka | like 'k' in "kite" | Katze (cat) | |
| L | el | like 'l' in "love" | Lampe (lamp) | |
| M | em | like 'm' in "man" | Mond (moon) | |
| N | en | like 'n' in "note" | Nase (nose) | |
| O | o | like 'o' in "more" | Ohr (ear) | |
| P | pe | like 'p' in "pen" | Pferd (horse) | |
| Q | qu | like 'kv' in "quick" | Quelle (source) | |
| R | er | guttural (Northern) or rolled (Southern) | Rot (red) | |
| S | es | like 's' in "sun" or 'z' in "zebra" | Sonne (sun), Haus (house) | |
| T | te | like 't' in "top" | Tisch (table) | |
| U | u | like 'oo' in "moon" | Uhr (clock) | |
| V | vau | like 'f' in "fun" | Vater (father) | |
| W | we | like 'v' in "vine" | Wasser (water) | |
| X | ix | like 'x' in "box" | Hexe (witch) | |
| Y | ypsilon | like 'ü' in German words, 'i' in loanwords | Typ (type), Baby | |
| Z | zet | like 'ts' in "cats" | Zahl (number) |
✨ Special Letters¶
| Letter | Name | Pronunciation/Usage | Example Word 🗣️ | Audio 🔊 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ä | ä (Umlaut) | like 'e' in "bed" | Männer (men) | |
| Ö | ö (Umlaut) | like 'i' in "bird" | Löwe (lion) | |
| Ü | ü (Umlaut) | like 'ee' in "see" | Tür (door) | |
| ß | Eszett / Scharfes s | like 'ss' in "hiss" | Straße (street) |
💡 Tips¶
- ä = ae | ö = oe | ü = ue
- ß vs. ss: Use ß after long vowels (e.g., Fuß), and ss after short vowels (e.g., Kuss).
- Umlaute (ä, ö, ü) change word meanings (e.g., schon (already) → schön (beautiful)).