Pronouncing German vowels typically does not come easy to people who are used to speaking English. A few simple rules and some practice will make it easier.

Umlaut Vowels

Only three vowels can add an umlaut: a, o, and u. The umlaut is a signal that the sound of the vowel has been altered. In the case of a (“a” in father), the vowel ä is pronounced similar to the German letter e (“ai” in pain). When o adds an umlaut, it signals a new sound that does not exist entirely in English. The vowel ö is much like the e in the English word her. In making this sound, omit the h and the r and retain the sound of the vowel e. When you add an umlaut to u, you have a sound that does not occur in English. The vowel sound ü can be produced by pursing the lips to say the English sound oo (as in moon) but simultaneously pronouncing the English sound ee (as in seen).

Practice saying the following pairs of words.

Note: Because there is no English equivalent of the sounds ö and ü, they will be represented in the chapters that follow by “er” and “ue” when the phonetic pronunciation is shown. In addition, the stressed syllable in a word will appear in capital letters: Vater (FAH tuh).