The German alphabet looks a lot like the English one, which gives you a head start. It has the same 26 standard letters. The main difference is how some of them are pronounced. Plus, there are four special characters you won't find in English.

Let's look at the letters and their German names. Knowing the names is helpful, especially when you need to spell something out.

The four special characters are the umlauts Ä/ä, Ö/ö, Ü/ü, and the ß, which is called an Eszett or "scharfes S" (sharp S).

German vowels can be short or long, which changes a word's meaning. For now, let's focus on their basic sounds. The standard vowels A, E, I, O, U are generally pronounced more crisply than in English.

Then we have the umlauts. An umlaut isn't just a vowel with two dots on top; it's a completely different sound.

Let's break them down.

Ä / ä often sounds like the "e" in "bed."

Ö / ö has no direct English equivalent. To make this sound, say the English letter "E" but round your lips as if you're about to whistle.

Ü / ü is also unique. Try saying the English word "see," but again, round your lips tightly.

Most German consonants sound similar to their English counterparts, but a few key players behave differently. Getting these right will make your pronunciation much clearer.

Another special character is the Eszett (ß). It represents a sharp "s" sound, like the 'ss' in "hiss." You'll only ever see it in the middle or at the end of a word, never at the beginning. It typically follows a long vowel or a diphthong (a combination of two vowel sounds).

For example, the word Straße (street) uses 'ß' because the 'a' is a long vowel. In Switzerland and Liechtenstein, they don't use the 'ß' at all; they just write 'ss' instead.

German often combines letters to create specific sounds. Learning these combinations is a shortcut to reading words you've never seen before. Here are some of the most important ones.

The two sounds for "ch" can be tricky. The soft sound is made in the front of your mouth, almost like a hiss. The hard sound comes from the back of your throat, like the sound in the Scottish word "loch."

Let's review these new sounds and letters.

Ready to test your knowledge?

Mastering these sounds is your first big step. With practice, they'll become second nature.