Pronunciation Differences Between English and German

by Jan Jaksic

Although related, English and German differ in a number of aspects and German-speaking students of English should be aware of such distinctions. For example, English grammar can be tricky when it comes to verb tenses, word order or the use of articles. Also, there are words in the two languages that look similar but have totally different meanings.

The two languages are also different in terms of pronunciation. There are sounds that appear in English but not in German. The first sound in think, for instance, is often pronounced as ‘s’ by inexperienced English learners, which leads to potential confusion between words such as think and sink or thong and song. Similarly, ‘w’ is often pronounced as ‘v’ resulting in veil instead of whale or vet instead of wet. Finally, something we call devoicing of final consonants, which is typical for German, but not for English, may make bag and back sound the same in German-English.

Even though context often helps in these cases, acquiring an advanced level of pronunciation is more important than one would think. Studies have shown that apart from preventing misunderstandings, good pronunciation makes it easier for other people to focus on what you say rather than how you say it and improves the overall impression you make on others, for example when applying for jobs.

Regular access to spoken native English helps students perfect their pronunciation skills. One of the advantages of Engramo English exercises is that apart from teaching you grammar and vocabulary, the app gives you a chance to listen to the sentences recorded by a native English speaker. This feature not only improves your listening skills but also helps you get used to the specifics of English pronunciation.