Listen To German Words Before You Speak
This post will teach you German words by encouraging you to listen to the German words before speaking. This way, in addition to hearing and learning the word's pronunciation, you'll also hear its meaning in context.
The post will walk you through how listening and repeating a word before speaking it can help you with your German pronunciation. You'll learn how to practice German pronunciation by starting with short, easy words before moving on to longer, more complex sentences.
Learn German And Improve Your Pronunciation Step-By-Step
This post is part of a series on how to improve your German. It goes along with the book, "German Step By Step: Learn To Speak German With Confidence." The book is published by Berlitz and is a course for beginners that aims to boost your vocabulary and get you speaking German as quickly as possible.
For a summary of the book's contents and sample exercises, see the "Table Of Contents" below. To find out more about the book, click the "Learn German First Step-By-Step" link below to go to its Amazon page.
Table Of Contents
How To Listen To German Words Before You Speak
Step 1: Select A Word From A Sentence And Put It On Its Own Line
Start off with a simple sentence. Select one word from that sentence and put it on its own line. Do this with a simple sentence, such as the one below:
Ich bin Ingenieur.
Here's a short video showing you how to do this:
Step 2: Listen To The German Word You Put On Its Own Line Before Speaking It (1)
In the video I use an app called Text-to-Speech (TTS) to listen to and repeat the word. Find out what your computer or phone uses to read or speak text. Some computers and phones read text out loud automatically. In other languages, it's called voice search.
On my computer, I then preview and download a TTS app called "Voxer". You can get it free here:
There are a lot of other TTS apps that you can try out too. If you find one that works well for your device and language, please let me know and I'll mention that here.
How To Listen To German Words You Put On Their Own Line And Repeat Before Speaking
Step 3: Listen To The German Word You Put On Its Own Line Before Speaking It (2)
Below, I'm listening to the German word "Ingenieur" and repeating it. I'm also making sure to say it correctly. In this case, I'm working on my pronunciation. An important part of how to listen to a word in German before speaking it is to make sure you're saying the word, and not just repeating it or saying it by rote.
Step 3: Listen To The German Word You Put On Its Own Line Before Speaking It (3)
In this video, I listen to and repeat the German word "Ingenieur." I'm also making sure that I'm pronouncing it correctly. This way, I get the word's sounds and meaning in my head by listening to the word and repeating it. Using this method, I'm also practicing German pronunciation.
Step 4: Listen To The Whole Sentence Before Speaking It
Here's the full sentence where I put "Ingenieur" on its own line:
Ich bin Ingenieur.
This is how it sounds when you listen to it in German:
Listen to the whole sentence before speaking. When you do, your pronunciation will sound more natural.
This is how I listen to the whole sentence and repeat it before speaking:
Step 5: Listen To The Whole Sentence Before Speaking It (2)
Here's the full sentence where I put "Ingenieur" on its own line: Ich bin Ingenieur.
Conclusion
Here's how to listen and repeat a German word before you speak it. By listening to the word and repeating it, first in German, then in English, you get the word's pronunciation in your head. Then by repeating it again before speaking it, you'll be more confident with your pronunciation. Use this method and I believe you'll develop more confidence in your German pronunciation.
I hope this practice is helpful for you.