Stress & Intonation | Pronunciation And Orthography | German

German stress and intonation shape meaning and guide listeners through speech. This short guide highlights key patterns and useful tips for learners.

Word Stress

Word stress in German typically falls on the root syllable, and stress can distinguish meaning between similar words. Learners should pay attention to stress in new vocabulary since it affects naturalness and comprehension.

Nouns

Nouns usually stress the first syllable, especially in simple forms, though compounds and loanwords may shift stress. Consistent first-syllable stress helps signal word boundaries in speech.

	German Word	English Word
	Garten	garden
	Schule	school
	Computer	computer

Where does stress typically fall in simple German nouns?

on the article

on the last syllable

on the first syllable

on the prefix

Verbs

Verbs usually stress the stem, with prefixes affecting stress depending on whether they are separable or inseparable. Separable prefixes take stress and appear at the end of the sentence, while inseparable prefixes keep stress on the stem.

	German Word	English Word
	ankommen	to arrive
	verstehen	to understand
	mitmachen	to participate

Adjectives and Adverbs

Adjectives and adverbs typically stress the first syllable, though some longer forms place stress on a later syllable. Consistent stress aids listeners in identifying descriptive words quickly.

	German Word	English Word
	schnell	fast
	glücklich	happy
	interessant	interesting

Sentence Stress

Sentence stress highlights the most important information and follows a pattern where new or contrastive elements receive stress while given information is de-emphasized. Intonation supports this by pitch changes and pauses.

Intonation

Intonation in German uses pitch to signal questions, statements, and speaker attitudes. Yes/no questions typically have a rising pitch at the end, while wh-questions end with a falling pitch. Listeners rely on these cues to interpret meaning and intent.

Summary

Mastering stress and intonation helps learners sound natural and makes speech easier to understand. Focus on word stress patterns for different word types, and use sentence stress and intonation to highlight key information and signal question types.

Last updated: Fri Oct 24, 2025