German Your Complete Guide To German Language Learning E-Book

Academy Der Sprachclub

• Herausgeber: Der Sprachclub
• Kategorie: Fremdsprachen
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2019

Beschreibung

Students as well as teachers need first-class learning material which can be implemented on a daily basis and is easy to learn. Also, most people want practical help that let’s them learn a language in the shortest time possible. Most people don’t have time to study 20 hours per week, or let alone have the opportunity to study in Germany. However, you can increase your odds of learning German in less time rather than brooding over exhausting reading material.

Most individuals who want to learn a new language commit similar errors, and this impedes their progress. The issue is that they only adhere to a sole method for learning the language. Studying German using traditional methods (classroom learning, studying textbooks) can be boring, time consuming and expensive. With this book, you can maximise your chance of success.
This book includes 4 learning parts:

• German: A Beginner's Guide to German Language Learning


• German: A Practical Learning Guide - Accelerated Learning Methods


• German Short Stories: 15 Entertaining Short Stories for Beginners Including Audio


• German Phrase Book: 700 Realistic German Phrases for Travelers, Students and Kids





 
•  

Leseprobe

German

Your Complete Guide

For German Language Learning

Including

German Grammar

German Phrasebook

German Short Stories For Beginners

+

Audio

© Copyright 2019 Academy Der Sprachclub

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All rights reserved: The information provided herein is stated to be truthful and consistent, in that any liability, in terms of inattention or otherwise, by any usage or abuse of any policies, processes, or directions contained within is the solitary and utter responsibility of the recipient reader. Under no circumstances will any legal responsibility or blame be held against the publisher for any reparation, damages, or monetary loss due to the information herein, either directly or indirectly. The information herein is offered for informational purposes solely, and is universal as so. The presentation of the information is without contract or any type of guarantee assurance

Contents

Introduction

What you can expect from this book

Part 1 Learning The German Language

German Words - Spelling and Pronunciation

The Alphabet - Consonants and Vowels

Our Tips for Pronouncing "Umlaute"ä, ö, and ü

Pronouncing Diphthongs

Appreciating the German Stress

Learning Nouns and Adjectives

Adjectives

Telling Time and Date

Cardinal and Ordinal Numbers

Ordinal Numbers

Capitalization and Punctuation

Articles and the Infamous Four German

Noun Cases

Nouns and Noun Cases

Expressions of Time and Distance

Article Genders, Definiteves and Indivinitives Articles

Compound Nouns and Their Gender

(Lovely) Pronouns

Verbs and Moods

German Tenses and Verb Tenses

Verb Tenses

Adjectives

Learn How to Decline the Easy Way

Word Order and Building Sentences

Get those Adverbs

German Idioms!

Part 2 Practical Learning Guide

New and accelerated learning methods

Getting Started: Implement the New Methods Step-By-Step

Part 3 15 Entertaining German Short Stories for Beginners and Audio

Learning German through entertaining stories

Advance with each story

Follow our tips and how to use the audio

Part 4 German Phrasebook

Formal and Informal Introductions

Polite Expressions

Phrases for Greeting Friends & Family

Common Everyday German Phrases

Phrases for Travelers

Restaurants & Eating Out Phrases

Shopping and Renting

Asking Directions

Driving & Parking Phrases

Transportation Phrases

Medical Issues & Emergencies

Banking Phrases & Terms

Cleaning

Christmas Phrases

Guests and Invitations

Insurance -‐ Phrases & Terms

Real Estate – Phrases & Terms

Illness & Wellness

Sports

University and Education

IT, Computer and Social Media

Talk About Yourself

At Work

Airport and Flights

Cars

Foods & Restaurants

Business & Negotiations

Arts & Hobbies

Entertainment and Recreation

Crime and Help Phrases

Taxi & Hiring a Car

General Repairs

Church & Religion

Seasons, Festivals and Public Holidays

Trivial Conversation Phrases for Travelers and Kids

Legal Terms & Situations

Oders

Introduction

Your professional outlook may require that you need to learn German, and let’s face it: with knowledge of the German language you have more possibilities, - this can be of a professional nature, or for travel and social reasons. In fact, German is especially geared toward professionals as a foreign language of choice with rising tendencies. German, for instance, is the second most important language for science and scientific research. In Europe, professional German teachers are not only highly respected but are paid above-average salaries in middle-class homes. In terms of communication and technology worldwide, - Germany is ranked sixth, and when it comes to trade, Germany has the fourth largest economy. Therefore, by learning to speak and understand the German language, you can definitely expand your career. German pensioners and travellers are spending more than any other European country on travel and accommodation. Furthermore, if you interact with Germans, (professionally or socially), your chances of forging a meaningful personal relationship is infinitely higher if you can communicate with them in German.

Moreover, German is a cultural language, that can give you access to German literature, art, music and philosophy. So, having knowledge of the German language makes absolute sense, and this material gives you the tools to advance your skills quickly and securely. Just follow the content step-by-step, starting with the basics. Our aim is to provide students with learning tools they can use to learn German in a reasonable short time and to speak German fluently and with confidence.

What you can expect from this book

This book will provide you with various summaries of the fundamentals of the language.

Part 1: Learning the German Language Guide

The first part is a working textbook where you learn the fundamentals of the language, the pronunciation., the foundation of the language and grammar. The book is structured in a practical way, so you can get familiar with the language step-by-step and at your own pace.You get to understand the German alphabet, and valuable lessons to acquaint yourself with the pronunciation.This book will show you new and holistic learning approaches, the way to implement and it will explain the synchronic linguistics in a practical way.

Part 2:Practical and Accelerated Learning Methods

The "accelerated learning methods" will guide you through a step-by-step process of new and proven methods used in accredited German language schools that will enable you to learn the pillars of the language as well as the practical applications.You will improve your German step-by-step using professional methods. This book also includes many practical exercises and important tips for learners that you just can use as you advance with the learning material.

Part 3: Short Stories for Students

In the third part of this book you can read 15 German short stories with English parallel text designed for language learners. Each short story is accompanied with a vocabulary section, learning question and audio. Each story comes with its own audio mp4 file to compare your understanding of the text and improve your pronunciation. This book can be considered as a toolkit for learners, especially if you happened to be in a German speaking environment. This guide also covers the basics of the grammatical structure, practical tips and exercises on which aim to advance your language skills considerably.

Part 4 Phrasebook

In this realistic phrasebook you’ll be able to learn the language through 700 realistic and common German phrases and expression sor travelers and students so you can aquire a practical grasp of the language and also developing skills to express yourself in a natural way just a German native speaker does.This book additionally provides essential text phrases to achieve, fluency, and competency in German. In a word, this book aims to be a compact learning guide which includes some new and unusual learning techniques but at the same time you can use this book as a resource that you can use in your everyday communication when speaking with Germans.

Part 1

Learning The German Language

German Words - Spelling and Pronunciation

German spelling and pronunciation isn't as troublesome as one might think,because most vowels and consonants are related to the English language. You basically spell exactly what you hear, and once you get used and understand the sounds of German letters, it becomes easy and fast to spell the language. However, it is important to learn how to pronounce the words clearly and correctly so you can understand at once what is said when someone speaks to you in German.

Learning the proper pronunciation starts by actively practicing the pronunciation of letters. Once you have learned how specific letters or combinations of letters are pronounced, you should be able to speak with confidence and say almost all words correctly. You will find many examples and short lessons to to practice on what you have learned.

The Alphabet - Consonants and Vowels

The German language uses the 26 - letter Latin alphabet which is also used in English, but in German each letter either has a different name ,is unique or is pronounced differently. German also has four additional distinct letter sounds which will be explained by practical examples. Some letters may be challenging to English speakers as there is no parallel sound in English.

Before we get into learning the consonants and vowels let's take a quick glance at this overview of the alphabet and pronunciation:

A (a) /ɑː/Long 'a' as 'a' in 'father' (ah).

B (be) /beː/ Pronounced like 'p' when at the end of a word

C (ce) /tseː/ See combination letter forms; without a following 'h': before 'e', 'i', 'y', 'ä', 'ö' like the German letter 'z' else like 'k'

D (de) /deː/ Pronounced like 't' when at the end of a word; slightly more "dental"

E (e) /eː/ Long 'e' as 'a' in 'late' (ay) without (!) the (y). Short 'e' as 'e' in 'pet'. In "unstressed" syllables like 'a' in 'about' or 'e' in 'garden'

F (ef) /ɛf/

G (ge) /geː/ Pronounced like 'g' in 'get'; pronounced like 'k' when at the end of a word; pronounced like 'ich'-sound (see below) in the suffix '-ig' at the end of words

H (ha) /hɑː/ like 'h' in house, only at the beginning of words or a syllable before 'a', 'i', 'o', 'u', 'y', 'ä', 'ö', 'ü' (only if these vowels don't belong to a suffix), else silent

I (i) /iː/ Long 'i' as 'e' in 'seen' (ee); short 'i' as 'i' in 'pit'

J (jot) /jot/ Pronounced like 'y' in 'yard'

K (ka) /kɑː/

L (el) /ɛl/ Slightly more "dental"

M (em) /ɛm/

N (en) /ɛn/ Slightly more "dental"; before 'a', 'i', 'o', 'u', 'y', 'ä', 'ö', 'ü' (only if these vowels don't belong to a suffix)

O (o) /oː/ Long 'o' as 'o' in 'open' (oh), there is no movement in the sound as in the English equivalent. Short 'o' as 'o' in 'pot'

P (pe) /peː/

Q (ku) /kuː/ Pronounced like 'k'; only occurs in the combination 'qu', which is pronounced like 'kv' not like 'kw'

R (er) /ɛʀ/ trilled with the front or back of the tongue, depending on area (see below)

S (es) /ɛs/ In Germany, pronounced like the English 'z'; pronounced like 's' in 'sound' when at the end of a word, after consonants (except 'l', 'm', 'n', ng') and before consonants; in Austria, pronounced like 'z' only when it appears between two vowels, pronounced like 's' otherwise. Pronounced like 'sh' in the beginning of a word before 'p' or 't'

T (te) /teː/ Slightly more "dental"

U (u) /uː/ Long 'u' as 'oo' in 'moon' (oo); short 'u' as 'u' in 'put'

V (vau) /fɑʊ/ Pronounced like 'f' when at the end of a word, in the prefixes 'ver-' and 'vor-' and in a few, but often used words -in most cases of Germanic origin-, in general at the beginning of German family and geographical names. In all other cases like 'v'

W (ve) /veː/ Pronounced like 'v'

X (iks) /ɪks/ Pronounced like 'ks'

Y (üpsilon) /ʏpsɪlon/ Pronounced like 'ü' (see below), except in words of English origin, where it is pronounced like in English

Z (zet) /tsɛt/ Pronounced like 'ts'

Our Tips for Pronouncing "Umlaute"ä, ö, and ü

To pronounce the "ä"sound, say “ay” as in May or as in the German word crow : die Krähe.

While continuing to spell this sound just tightly round your lips. Look in a mirror and make sure your lips are actually rounded. Bitte sehr! The resulting sound is the : ä sound. (sounds like to bed)

A similar method can be used with the ü-sound. The ü sound doesn't have a equal in English. Again, while saying the sound, try to round your lips. Then the resulting sound is the ü-sound. In case you know how to pronounce u in French, it sounds just like the Germanü

Like any unfamiliar sounds, being able to pronounce the German ö and ü correctly, can only come with repeated practice!

More About Vowels

Now let's take a look at German vowels. To a non-German speaker German vowels probably sound strange and very different, so it is worth studying and practicing them, especially if your native tongue is other than English.

In German there are eight vowels: a, e, i, o, u, plus the "mutated vowels", the so-called Umlaute: ä, ö, and ü.

German vowels and Umlaute are all pronounced in a pure and strong way, and unlike in English and most other Germanic languages where vowels tend to be pronounced softer and often as diphthongs.

Also, there is a difference in length:

Vowels can be long or short. When a vowel is followed by a double consonant, for example like double "l" or double "m" they are short, but when a vowel is followed by only one consonant they are long:

schnell (short) - quick

haben (long) – to have

der Schnee (long) - snow

hell (short) – bright

der Regen (long) – rain

/i/ like in "with" (short) or "feet" (long)

Ich (short) – I

/o/ like in "hot" (short) or "door" (long) offen (short) – open

der Ofen (long) – oven/stove

/u/ like in "bush" (short) or "boot" (long)

(ich) muss (short) – I must

der Kuchen (long) – cake

• The German Umlaute are vowels and can be transcribed as follows:

ä (a-Umlaut) – ae

ö (b-Umlaut) – oe

ü (u.Umlaut) – ue

Pronunciation: ä like in "head," but with a wide opened mouth

die Hände – hands

dier Äpfel - apples

Pronunciation: ö like in "burn, heard, sir" öffnen – to open

die Köpfe – heads

Pronunciation: ü like in "Tyrell, new, few" die Tür – door

über – over/above

You should know that there's a slight difference in open and closed pronunciation of the Umauteä, ö, ü.

You might also notice that when trying to imitate the Umlaute there is a slight difference in the mouth position of your lips. German pronunciations are more harsh, from round closed to wide open.

However,this is something you can improve on and is relatively easy to do by carefully listening to the pronunciations and by imitating those sounds.

• The German Umlaute are vowels and can be transcribed as follows:

ä – ae

ö – oe

ü – ue

/ä/ like in "head," but with a wide opened mouth

die Hände – hands

dier Äpfel - apples

/ö/ like in "burn, heard, sir" öffnen – to open

die Köpfe – heads

/ü/ like in "Tyrell, new, few" die Tür – door

über – over/above

• You also have to know that there is a slight difference in open and closed pronunciation of the "Umaute" sounds ä, ö, ü. However,this is something you can improve on, once you know the basic sounds and pronunciations of the vowels and by listening carefully to the German pronunciation and by imitating those sounds. You will probably notice that there is a slight difference in the mouth position of your lips. German pronunciations are more harsh, from round closed to wide open.

Pronouncing Diphthongs

Diphthongs are combinations that consist of at least two vowels in one syllable.

But instead of being pronounced separately, (or in two separate words) the two letters have actually one sound or pronunciation. A typical example would be the au combination.

Our tip:

The diphthong au in German sounds like OW as in English “couch” , the "ou" being an English diphthong; the au is also part of some German words such as lauschen, or autsch, which is pronounced almost the same as “couch” in English!)

ai

Pronunciation: Like the vowel sound in English "mine", but more tense and clipped.

oi

Pronunciation: Like the vowel sound in English "coin", but more short, tense, and clipped.

au

Pronunciation: Like the vowel sound in English "house", but slightly more tense and clipped.

Near Cognates

There are words in German which bear almost the same spelling as their English counterpart.

Here are some of the usual spelling conventions used in German: In most German words, the “c” in English becomes “k".

The “ou” in words like “trout” or “mouth” becomes “au” in German.

Only a few words in German end in "-ig“. However "y” ending in adjectives like “watery” becomes “- ig” in German. The “y” ending in nouns like “story”becomes “-ie”in German.

-lich is fairly common in German which means “ly” ending in nouns like “family” becomes “-lich”in German.

The infamous and hard to pronounce"ch" is not as difficult as its reputation. It is pronounced like a soft c or soft k. For example, In the word "sechs" (six), the pronunciation is easy for English natives: "zeks". Every time you see "chs", it is pronounced like "ks" -it's one sound for us, but there are some exceptions like ". Buchregal" (because it's a compound of the words Buch and Regal)

Appreciating the German Stress

When learning how to pronounce a word correctly it is important to learn the stress in specific letters.

If you are wondering why there are syllables that are italicized, those are "stressed syllables". The German language does indicated a stress position in German words. Although there are actually a few general rules to determine the position of the stressed syllable, there are a many exceptions. That means you will have to memorize the pronunciation of such words by heart.