Auslautverhärtung
Final Devoicing (Auslautverhärtung)
In German, voiced consonants (b, d, g) become voiceless (p, t, k) at the end of a word or syllable. 'Hund' sounds like 'Hunt', 'Tag' like 'Tak', 'lieb' like 'liep'. But when a vowel follows (plural, conjugation), the voiced sound returns: Hunde, Tage, liebe.
Sounds
| IPA | Beispiel | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| d→t | Hund /hʊnt/ | dog |
| b→p | lieb /liːp/ | dear |
| g→k | Tag /taːk/ | day |
Minimal Pairs
Rad /raːt/
wheel
Rat /raːt/
advice (sound the same!)
bunt
colorful
Bund
federation
Tips
Compare singular and plural: Hund /t/ → Hunde /d/. The consonant changes!
Don't fight the devoicing — it's correct German! Always devoice at word/syllable end.
Common Mistakes
Keeping voiced consonants at word end
Related Sounds
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