German is a favorite language for many spellers, both due to its cool-looking words and the fact that it has simpler spelling rules than other languages like French. Vowel sounds are more straightforward, and while the letters might not make the same sounds they do in English, the patterns tend to be more consistent. However, there are some confusing patterns to unpack in German, with a key one being the sounds /s/, /z/, and /ts/. Here’s a quick guide to understanding the rules for spelling these sounds in German derived words.
When you hear the /s/ sound:
- At the beginning of the word, your best bet is ‘s’. Examples include sapsago (audio), sauerbraten (audio), and siemens (audio).
- In the middle of a word, a better guess is ‘ss’, as in Bewusstseinslage (audio), Neisseria (audio), massig (audio), and disselboom (audio).
- Same goes for the end of the word, like in edelweiss (audio), gneiss (audio), klaberjass (audio), and pfeffernuss (audio).
The /z/ sound is where it gets trickier.
- At the beginning of a German word, it can be spelled ‘s’ or ‘z’.
- Before the letter ‘i’, it is always spelled with a ‘z’, such as in zinc (audio) and zinnia (audio).
- Before an ‘e’, ‘z’ is the best spelling, as in zeunerite (audio) and zeppelin (audio), except in the word seidel (audio), though that has an alternate pronunciation beginning with the /s/ sound.
- When preceding the letter ‘a’, ‘z’ is used for zaftig (audio) and zander (audio), while everything else is spelled with an ‘s’.
- Before an ‘o’, a ‘z’ is the optimal choice in all words except for sorge (audio).
- And finally, before a ‘u’ – there’s just one word beginning with ‘z’ and followed by ‘u’ that starts with the /z/ sound, and it’s zuurveldt (audio).
- Meanwhile, in the middle of the word, ‘s’ is pretty much always a good guess, like in nachtmusik (audio), Klebsiella (audio), and schonfelsite (audio).
Finally, the /ts/ sound:
- When it shows up at the beginning, it’s generally spelled with a ‘z’ – similar to Italian. Examples include zugzwang (audio), Zauberflote (audio), zeitgeber (audio), and Zollverein (audio).
- In the middle, both ‘tz’ and ‘z’ show up, though ‘tz’ is much more common. Some words with ‘tz’ are blitzkrieg (audio), blintze (audio), katzenjammer (audio), and howitzer (audio). Other words, like Erzahler (audio) and kreuzer (audio), are examples of the use of ‘z’. An exception to be conscious of is Alzheimer’s disease (audio).
- At the end, the same rules apply as in the middle, with ‘tz’ once again being more common and appearing in words like klutz (audio), breitschwantz (audio), waltz (audio), ersatz (audio), and spritz (audio). Meanwhile, ‘z’ appears in Krummholz (audio), fahlerz (audio), existenz (audio), and fackeltanz (audio).
Happy studying!