Genau
Topic test · A1

Alphabet and pronunciation test

13questions
8minutes
60%pass mark
Start the test Read the topic first

One question at a time, the clock runs. Answers stay closed like a real exam: you see every correct answer with its explanation at the end. Score 60% to finish the topic.

Topic test

13 questions, easy to hard

Pick an option and press «Next». You can go back and change it. Anything left blank counts as wrong.

How is Wasser pronounced?

VAH-sa. W gives the English v sound; the final -er becomes an open “a”.

How is vier (four) pronounced?

feer. V = f, ie = long ee.

Which one contains the ei sound?

Bein. ei = eye. The other two contain ie, which is read as a long ee.

How does Sport begin?

shport. sp- and st- at the start of a word are always read shp · sht.

Why is the ch in Buch different from the one in ich?

The vowel in front decides. After a · o · u · au it is the rough sound from the throat; after i · e · ä · ö · ü it is the soft, hissy sound.

How do you write Straße if your keyboard has no ß?

Strasse. Writing ß → ss is also valid in official letters; Switzerland always writes it that way anyway.

Which sound do you hear at the end of Kind?

kint. At the end of a word d → t, b → p, g → k harden.

How is the letter z read in German? — Zug

German z is always read ts: Zug → tsook, zehn → tsayn.

How is the letter pair eu read? — neun

eu and äu are both read oy: neun → noyn, Häuser → HOY-za.

How is the letter w read? — Wein

German w sounds like English v: Wein → vine. German v, on the other hand, is read f in most words: Vater → FAH-ta.

The letter V in “Vater” is read with the English v sound.

False. In German the letter V is read with the English f sound: FAH-ta. The letter that gives the v sound is W.

By the “read the second letter” rule, the word Bn is pronounced “bine”.

Leg (Bein)

ei. The pair ei is read “eye”. ie, by contrast, is a long “ee”.

In German, the ending “-er” at the end of a word is usually pronounced with a full English “r” sound.

False. The ending -er at the end of a word or syllable (for example Lehrer, Wasser) is pronounced like a short “a” (a vowel r).
Quick rules

The rules in three lines

The full topic lives on its own page. This is only the core you need for the test.

  1. The surprising consonants: w=v · v=f · z=ts

    Wasser → VAH-sa · Vater → FAH-ta · Zug → tsook. Three letters, three surprises.

    w → v · v → f · z → ts

  2. Letter pairs give one sound

    ei → eye (Bein → bine) · eu/äu → oy (neun → noyn) · ie → long ee (vier → feer) · sch → sh.

    ei → eye · eu → oy · ie → ee

  3. st/sp at the start are read sht/shp

    At the start of a word Sport → shport, Straße → shtrah-suh. In the middle of a word s-t stays as it is.

    Sport → shport

  4. At the end of a word b·d·g harden

    Kind → kint · Tag → tahk. Soft in writing, hard in sound.

    Kind → kint

Traps

Commonly mixed up

Where a direct translation breaks. The hard questions come from here.

  • Reading Wein with an English w, as “wine”

    vine

    German w is English v; the English w sound does not exist in German.

  • Reading Zug as “zug”

    tsook

    z = ts, and a final g = k.

  • Reading the ch in ich and Buch the same way

    Soft and hissy after a front vowel (ich), from the throat after a back vowel (Buch)

    The vowel in front picks the sound of ch.

  • Thinking ß is a B

    ß = the ss sound; write ss if your keyboard lacks it

    Straße = Strasse. It has nothing to do with B.