w, v, z and j
Four consonants where German and English spelling disagree: w sounds like v, v sounds like f, z is ts, and j is the English y. Learn the swaps once and read German aloud with confidence.
w — the English v
German w is always pronounced like the English v in "very" (IPA v). The English w-sound of "water" simply does not exist in German. So wo (where) is "vo", wohnen (to live) is "VOH-nen", and wie (how) is "vee".
This single swap fixes some of the most frequent words in the language — wie, wo, was, wer all start question sentences you will hear every day. Touch your top teeth to your bottom lip and buzz.
wo
where
wohnen
to live
wie
how
v — usually an f
In native German words, v is pronounced f: der Vater (the father) is "FAH-ta", viel (much) is "feel", vier (four) is "feer".
In words borrowed from Latin or other languages, v keeps the English v-sound: das Video, die Vase. At A1 the rule of thumb is simple — everyday German words with v say f; obviously international words say v. Note the neat chain this creates: German w takes over the v-sound, and German v moves on to f. Once you accept the chain, misreadings disappear.
der Vater
the father
viel
much, a lot
vier
four
das Video
the video
loanword — v keeps the English v-sound
z — always ts
German z is always the crisp ts of English "cats" (IPA ts), even at the start of a word — a position where English never puts this sound. Zehn (ten) is "tsayn", zwanzig (twenty) is "TSVAN-tsich", der Zug (the train) is "tsook".
To practise, say "cats" slowly, isolate the final ts, then move it to the front: ts...ehn, ts...ug. Never say a lazy English z here — "zoo-g" for Zug will confuse listeners, because German ears expect the ts.
zehn
ten
zwanzig
twenty
der Zug
the train
zusammen
together
j — the English y
German j is pronounced like the English y in "yes" (IPA j), never like the English j in "jam". So ja (yes) is "yah", das Jahr (the year) is "yar", and jetzt (now) is "yetst".
Notice jetzt combines two of today's rules: j says y at the front, and tz says ts in the middle. Reading German aloud is mostly a matter of applying these fixed swaps — the spelling is far more regular than English.
ja
yes
das Jahr
the year
jetzt
now
Check yourself
Quick checks on this lesson. Get at least three quarters right to mark it as completed.
In "der Vater", the v sounds like:
Practise what you learned
Sound and word recordings on this page come from Wikimedia Commons contributors and are used under Creative Commons licences. See the audio credits for authors and sources.