Der Artikel = definite article, in German it shows the gender of the
word
Der- masculine der Apfel
Die – feminine die Frau
Das – neutral das Buch
Indefinite article
Das ist eine Frau – this is indefinite article for words feminine gender
– This is a woman.
Das ist ein Mann – indefinite article for masculine gender This is a
man
Das ist ein Buch. – indefinite article for neutral This is a book
sch – pronounced as “sh” (e.g., in the word die Schule – "school").
ch – has two different pronunciations:
After e, i, ö, ü, ä and some consonants, ch is pronounced like a soft “h” (e.g., ich – "I").
After a, o, u and au, it is pronounced like a harder “h” (e.g., das Buch – "book").
ei – pronounced as “ai” (e.g., klein – "small").
ie – pronounced as a long “ee” (e.g.,die Liebe – "love").
eu and äu – pronounced as “oy” (e.g., Freund – "friend" and Häuser – "houses").
1. Vowel Sounds
Short vowels: When a vowel is followed by a double consonant, it's typically short.
For example:
o Mann (man) – short "a".
o Wenn – when short ‘e’’".
Long vowels: When a vowel is followed by a single consonant or doubled (like ie),
it's long. For example:
o Name (name) – long "a".
o viel (much) – long "i".
2. Umlauts (ä, ö, ü)
Umlauts are important for proper pronunciation and meaning:
ä is pronounced somewhat like the "e" in "bed" (e.g., Mädchen – "girl").
ö is similar to the French "eu" in peur (e.g., schön – "beautiful").
ü sounds like the French "u" in lune (e.g., müde – "tired").
3. The Eszett (ß)
The letter ß (called Eszett or sharp s) is pronounced like a double "s." It appears after long
vowels or diphthongs:
Straße (street). In Switzerland, it is often replaced with "ss."
4. Consonants
v: In most cases, the letter v is pronounced like an "f" (e.g., Vater – "father").
w: Pronounced like an English "v" (e.g., Wasser – "water").
s: When s is at the beginning of a word before a vowel or consonant, it’s pronounced
like "z" in "zebra" (e.g., Sonne – "sun"), but elsewhere, it’s usually like "s" in "sand"
(e.g., Haus – "house").
z: Pronounced like "ts" in "cats" (e.g., Zeit – "time").
5. Diphthongs
German has several common diphthongs (two vowels pronounced together):
au: pronounced like "ow" in "cow" (e.g., Haus – "house").
eu and äu: both pronounced "oy" (e.g., Freund – "friend," Häuser – "houses").
ei: pronounced like "ai" (e.g., klein – "small").
6. Silent Letters
h: Often silent when it comes after a vowel, just lengthening the vowel sound (e.g.,
gehen – "to go").
e: At the end of many words, the e is often pronounced very softly, or even omitted in
casual speech (e.g., Liebe – "love").
7. Capitalization of Nouns
In German, all nouns are capitalized, which helps identify them easily while reading. For
example:
Der Hund spielt – "The dog is playing."
8. Word Compounding
German frequently uses compound words, which can make words long, but they’re often
easy to break down:
Fußballplatz = Fuß (foot) + Ball (ball) + Platz (place) = football field.
Personal Pronouns
ich – I
du – you (informal)
er/sie/es – he/she/it
wir – we
ihr – you (plural)
sie/Sie – they/you (formal)
The verb be in German is sein
Ich bin – I am
Du bist – You are
Er/Sie/Es ist – He/She/It is
Wir sind – We are
Ihr seid – You (plural) are
Sie sind – They are / You (formal) are
Ich bin Anna. – I am Anna.
Du bist Lehrer. – You are a teacher.
Kommen aus – come from, I come from Armenia – Ich
komme aus Armenia
wohnen - live
gehen - walk
kommen - come
hören - hear
studieren - study
kaufen – buy, go shopping
trinken - drink
machen - make
kennen – to know smth or smb Ich kenne dich
lernen - study
leben – live
eine Pause machen – to have a rest
ich heiße – my name is
Wie heißt du? – What’s your name? Ich heiße …..
Woher kommst du? – Where are you from? Ich komme aus ….
Wo wohnst du? – Where do you live? – Ich wohne in …
