Turn German spelling into sound

German spelling is regular once you know ten rules. Learn what w, v, s and z really say, why a final d sounds like t, and the free gift of a capital letter on every naming word.

≈ 3 min of reading · Practise at your own pace

What’s in this chapter

Every naming word is written with a capital letter, so the things in a sentence are visible before you know a word.
w says v and v says f — English has the two letters the other way round.
A single s in front of a vowel says z; a double ss is the plain English s.
A final d, b or g hardens to t, p, k; the spelling never shows it.
German leans on the first syllable of a word.

Start with a free gift no other language on this site gives you: every naming word is written with a capital letter, wherever it stands. English gave this up two centuries ago; German kept it.

Spot the things without knowing the words

Read the German sentence first, then look at the two words picked out beside it. The capital letters are what gave them away.

Der Hund ist im Wald.dair hoont ist im valt

Hundhoont“dog” · Waldvalt“forest”

Two capitals inside the sentence, two things. The rest is glue.

The ten rules the next nine words need

Each row pairs something you see on the page with the sound it makes. Say the German word in the last column aloud.

What you see	What it says	In a word
a capital letter mid-sentence	this word is a thing	im Waldim valt“in the forest”
w	v, as in “very”	Waldvalt“forest”
v	f, as in “father”	VogelFOH-gul“bird”
a single s before a vowel	z, as in “zoo”	SonneZON-uh“sun”
z, tz	“ts”, even at the start of a word	KatzeKAT-suh“cat”
au	“ow”, as in “cow”	Haushowss“house”
chs	a plain “ks”	Fuchsfooks“fox”
d, b, g at the end of a word	t, p, k	Hundhoont“dog”
a final -e or -er	a weak “uh”	WasserVAS-uh“water”
stress	on the first syllable, unless the respelling says otherwise	VogelFOH-gul“bird”

A double ss — WasserVAS-uh — is always the plain English s, never z. Stress is a strong habit rather than a law, so the respellings mark it for you.

Try the rules once before the real words

How many things are named in Der Hund ist im Wald.?
Count the capitals that are not the first word.
Show answer +Hide answer −
Two: Hundhoont“dog” and Waldvalt“forest”.
Wasser
w says v; a final -er is a weak “uh”.
Show answer +Hide answer −
WasserVAS-uh“water”

Come back to these chapters whenever you need them.All German chapters ↗