Tag / german speakers

by speakspokehavespoken

Words that look the same but sound different in English and German

English and German share lots of similarities and there are a number of words that are identical or nearly the same in both languages. This can make it easy for speakers of these languages to learn the other, especially as they can often understand many words they hear and read before they learn them.

However, even when a word looks the same in both languages, it is sometimes pronounced differently. Here we look at some ways in which the pronunciation of words can be different in English and German.

Word Stress

Many times the word stress (the strong sound in the word) is in a different place in English and German.

Here are some examples of this:

EnglishGerman
PROB-lemProb-LEM
TAL-entTal-ENT
MO-mentMo-MENT
PER-ma-nentper-ma-NENT
dis-PLAYDIS-play
ex-CELEX-cel
ki-LOM-e-ter
or KIL-o-me-ter 		kil-o-ME-ter

Different Sounds

But not all of these differences come from word stress. There are some words in which a sound is pronounced differently:

WordEnglishGerman
virusThe I is pronounced like “eye”.The I is pronounced like “eeeee”.
palmIt’s pronounced like “parm”, without an L.It’s worth a short vowel sound and an L.
agendaThe G is pronounced like “dj”, like in “judge” and “jumper.”The G sound is hard, like in “gold” and “get”.
gelAs above.As above.
organisationThe first A is very short and weak, like you are not saying it.
The first I is like “eye”.
The second A is long, like in “say” and “play”.
-tion is pronounced “shun” (one syllable).		The first A is short, like “plan” or “cap”.
The first I is like “eeee”.
The second A is short, like “plan” or “cap”.
-tion is pronounced “zi-orn” (two syallables).

Different Stress and Sounds

In addition to these, there are also words in which both a sound and the word stress are different:

WordEnglishGerman
symptomS is pronounced “ssss” like in “snake”.
Y is short, like in “it” or “pin”.
O is very short and weak, like you are not saying it.
SYMP-tom		S is pronounced “z” like in “zoo” or “zebra”.
Y is pronounced a bit like a U, like in “zumba”.
O is stressed and long, like in “torn”.
Symp-TOM
digitalG is pronounced like “dj” like in “judge” and “jumper”.
A is short and weak, like you are not saying it.
DIG-i-tal		G is hard, like in “gold” and “get”.
A is stressed and long, like in …
dig-i-TAL
studentST is pronounced like in “stop” or “still”.
There is a “y” sound before the U, like the word “you”.
The E is weak, like you’re not saying it.
STU-dent		ST is pronounced “scht”.
There is no “y” sound before the U.
The E is short, like in “tent” or “went”.
stu-DENT
thermometerTH is pronounced like in “three”.
All the E sounds are very weak, like you’re not saying them.
ther-MOM-e-ter		TH is pronounced as a T.
The first E is like “where” or “pair”.
The second E is long; it sounds a bit like “way”.
ther-mom-E-ter
conferenceThe second and third syllables merge.
CON-frence		The second syllable has a short E sound, and the stress is on the third syllable.
Kon-fe-RENZ
comfortableThe first and second syllables merge.
The O sound is very short and weak, like you’re not saying it.
The T sounds like a D.
The A is also very short and weak.
The final L sounds is very weak.
COMF-de-bel		The first O is short, like in “pond”.
The second O is long, like in “torn”.
The third syllable is stressed and the A is long, like in “car”.
The last vowel sound is also weak, but the final L is clearly pronounced.
kom-for-TA-bel

These are just a few examples of how German and English speakers pronounce words that look the same on paper.

Can you think of any more examples from your own experiences? Please share them below!

by speakspokehavespoken

10 common mistakes made by German speakers learning English

When we learn a language, the way we speak the new language is influenced by our native language. One way to reduce this problem is to learn to think in the new language, so we no longer translate from our mother tongue. Despite this, we may still make some mistakes because we have structures and vocabulary from our first language in our mind. Here are some of the most common errors made by German-speaking learners of English.

10. to remind/to remember

These two similar verbs are very often mixed up by learners of English. To remember means to think about something from the past; to remind, on the other hand, means to make someone remember something. It is a transitive verb, which means it is always used with an object. Here are some examples:

I remember my first day at school. 

I will remember to buy bread.

I reminded to buy bread. –> I reminded him to buy bread. 

9. to make/to do

German uses the verb machen a lot, so German-speakers often use the verb to make in English. As a general rule, we use to make  when we are talking about creating or forming something, e.g. to make a plan, to make dinner, to make a confession, to make a cake. However, if we are focussing on a process itself, we use to do, e.g. to do a course, to do homework, to do the cleaning, to do someone a favour. This rule doesn’t work in all cases, but it’s a good start.

8. I drive with the bus.

English has several verbs to describe travelling, depending on the distance, the means of transport and whether we are the driver or passenger. Whilst German uses the verb fahren in lots of situations, in English we only use the verb to drive when we are the driver of a car, bus, train or boat. If we use a bike, we say we ride our bikes or we cycle. If we are a passenger, we have several options:

  • I took the bus/the train/a taxi.
  • I got the bus/the train/a taxi.
  • I went by car/boat/bus.
  • My friend gave me a lift. / My friend drove me. (as a passenger in a car)
  • I flew. (also as a passenger on a plane)

7. Is there the possibility to …?

This is another example of English having lots of translations for one word in German. The German Möglichkeit is most often translated as possibility, but in many cases there may be a better English word to use:

  • possibility: something that may happen, e.g. There is the possibility that we may lose the game.
  • option: something that can be chosen, e.g. Consider all your options before you make a decision.
  • opportunity/chance: a situation that makes something possible, e.g. I have the opportunity/chance to learn a new language.
  • way: a method, e.g. There must be another way to solve this problem.
  • can: to be able or possible, e.g. Can I book a table for this evening?

6. I didn’t went.

When using the simple past, we need a helping verb (did) when we form questions and negative sentences. However, only the helping verb needs to be in past form to show the time we’re talking about, so we use did/didn’t followed by the base form of the main verb.

I went. / I didn’t go. / Did you go? I didn’t went. / Did you went?

I saw it. / I didn’t see it. / Did you see it? I didn’t saw it. / Did you saw it?

In the same way, in the simple present, only the helping verb needs an s  added with the third person.

He goes. / He doesn’t go. / Does he go? He doesn’t goes. Does he goes?

She tries. She doesn’t try. / Does she try? She doesn’t tries. / Does she tries?

Here are more tips about using negative sentences.

5. Have you time?

The verb to have has two main functions. It can be used as the main verb of a sentence to mean to own/possess; it can also be a helping verb, often in the present perfect.

The general rule is that if we use to have as the main verb, the negative form is usually don’t/doesn’t have and the question form is ‘Do you have …?’

I have enough time. –> I don’t have enough time. –> Do you have enough time? (main verb)

When it is used as the helping verb, the negative form is haven’t/hasn’t and we can make questions such as ‘Have you seen …?’

I have seen the film. –> I haven’t seen the film. –> Have you seen the film? (helping verb)

4. Yesterday I have been …

One of the hardest things about learning English is mastering the tenses. It can be confusing to decide which tense to use, and the structure of present perfect looks like the most commonly used past tense in German. However, signal words like yesterday, last week, last year and on Wednesday that show that an action is completed and not relevant for now are clues that we need to use the simple past.

Yesterday I have been to work. –> Yesterday I went to work.

Follow this link for more tips on the present perfect and past simple.

3. Two persons

There are a few special cases when English speakers use persons instead of people, but these are only in legal or very formal texts, or signs in lifts or buses (e.g. ‘maximum 10 persons’). In all other cases, we use people as the plural form of person.

There are five persons in my office. –> There are five people in my office.

2. If I would have …

In if sentences in English, would and will do not normally belong in the same half of the sentence as if. Instead, we use the present simple, past simple or past perfect forms to show a condition:

If I see her, I’ll tell her. (First conditional: If + present simple , will + base form. These situations are possible and likely.)

If I saw her, I would tell her. (Second conditional: If + past simple , would + base form. These situations are possible but unlikely.)

If I had seen her, I would have told her. (Third conditional: If + past perfect , would have + past participle. These situations are not possible because they’re in the past.)

  1. Informations

Unlike in many other languages, information in English is uncountable and therefore it is not possible to talk about ‘one information’ or ‘informations’. It’s always simply ‘information’. The same goes for advice.

Can you think of any other typical mistakes? Which tips do you find most useful?