LinguaThirty letters you can now write and name
You now know the whole German alphabet: 26 letters plus ä, ö, ü and ß. You know their names, which you need to spell a word aloud, and the rules that make German readable. J is the y of “yes”. V is usually f, W is v, Z is “ts”. S before a vowel buzzes. B, D and G at the end of a word harden to p, t and k. The dots of ä, ö, ü change the word, and ß follows a long vowel while ss follows a short one.
| Letter | German name | In a word |
|---|---|---|
| A a | a | Arm |
| B b | be | Ball |
| C c | ce | Café |
| D d | de | Dach |
| E e | e | Esel |
| F f | ef | Fenster |
| G g | ge | Glas |
| H h | ha | Hand |
| I i | i | Igel |
| J j | jot | Jahr |
| K k | ka | Kind |
| L l | el | Lampe |
| M m | em | Mama |
| N n | en | Name |
| O o | o | Oma |
| Letter | German name | In a word |
|---|---|---|
| P p | pe | Papa |
| Q q | ku | Quelle |
| R r | er | Rose |
| S s | es | Sonne |
| T t | te | Tee |
| U u | u | Uhr |
| V v | fau | Vater |
| W w | we | Wasser |
| X x | ix | Taxi |
| Y y | üpsilon | Typ |
| Z z | zet | Zoo |
| Ä ä | ä | Bär |
| Ö ö | ö | Öl |
| Ü ü | ü | Tür |
| ß | eszett | Straße |
The four letters that give an accent away. J: the y of “yes”. V: usually f. W: English v. Z: “ts”. Say Jahr, Vater, Wasser, Zoo as you watch them being written.
The three capitals with dots. Write the letter first, then the two dots, left before right. Nouns can start with them: Öl, and in the plural Äpfel.
| Spelling | Sound | Words |
|---|---|---|
| j | the y of “yes” | Jahr, ja |
| v | f | Vater |
| w | v | Wasser |
| z | ts | Zoo |
| s + a, e, i, o, u | a buzzing z | Sonne, Rose |
| b, d, g | p, t, k at the end of a word | gelb, Hand, Tag |
| ß / ss | sharp s: ß after a long vowel, ss after a short one | Straße, Wasser |
Der Igel trinkt Wasser.The hedgehog is drinking water.
Die Sonne ist heiß.The sun is hot.
Words in this lesson
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| das Kind | child | Das Kind spielt im Zoo. The child is playing at the zoo. |
| die Hand | hand | Die Hand ist kalt. The hand is cold. |
| das Jahr | year | Frohes neues Jahr! Happy New Year! |
| der Vater | father | Der Vater trinkt Tee. The father is drinking tea. |
| das Wasser | water | Wasser, bitte! Water, please! |
| der Zoo | zoo | Der Zoo ist schön. The zoo is lovely. |
| die Sonne | sun | Wo ist die Sonne? Where is the sun? |
| der Käse | cheese | Käse und Brot. Cheese and bread. |
| schön | beautiful, nice | Schön, dich zu sehen! Nice to see you! |
| die Straße | street, road | In der Straße ist ein Café. There’s a café in the street. |
Exercises
This lesson has 10 exercises in the app:
- multiple choice: 3
- trace the letter: 3
- fill the gap: 2
- match the pairs: 1
- listen and type: 1
Try the first one
Someone spells a word aloud: “ka, i, en, de”. Which word is it?
The answer, the other exercises, the audio and your progress are in the app – free at A0 and A1.