Is there any audible difference between "ä" and "e" in Standard German? I mean, the word "gefällt" sounds as if it were "gefellt" (with a short "e" sound) to my ears. Similarly, the word "spät" sounds as if it were "speet" (with a long "e" sound).
True.I think you will be understood pronouncing the "ä" as "e" and be within the bounds of German dialects. I know that the habitants of Hamburg don´t pronounce "ä" as "ä" but as "ee".
I thought the same, Toadie.I always thought that "ä" was supposed to be pronounced like the "a" in the English word "cat".
As a rule of thumb you can continue to think so.I always thought that "ä" was supposed to be pronounced like the "a" in the English word "cat".
The problem (or one problem) is that when vowels are isolated, they don't necessarily reflect what happens when they are part of words.You can also listen to the raw vowel sounds here. "E" is represented as [e] in the chart; "ä" is represented by the Greek letter epsilon.
I think you may be mishearing Toadie. When there's no equivalent sound in your language, it's only natural to look for (what sounds to you) the most similar sound, and after a while you train your brain to hear that sound in foreign words. Of course the whole process is taking place at unconscious level, and you're not aware of the substitutions you make. There have been studies about this occurrence. The same happens when English natives equate the short "i" (as in fish) with the German short "i" (as in Fisch) - I opened a thread about how these two sounds relate here.I have heard spät pronounced like that before by native speakers. Also, words like "hässlich" seem like they would be pronounced this way.
I agree. When I attempt to speak German, I inevitably use sounds that are English. I am aware of it, and it annoys me.I think you may be mishearing Toadie. When there's no equivalent sound in your language, it's only natural to look for (what sounds to you) the most similar sound, and after a while you train your brain to hear that sound in foreign words. Of course the whole process is taking place at unconscious level, and you're not aware of the substitutions you make. There have been studies about this occurrence. The same happens when English natives equate the short "i" (as in fish) with the German short "i" (as in Fisch) - I opened a thread about how these two sounds relate here.
This is true, although if the vowel sounds you pick from your own language are close, you will be understood. You will have an "accent".Since I don't have either of the two sounds we are talking about here in my native language, I am able to hear the difference much better. You know, equating foreign sounds with similar ones in your native language may be the easiest thing to do, the path of least resistance, but ultimately it leads to bad German pronunciation.
However, if your sentence structure, grammar, etc. is very good, your accent may be rather "strong" (obviously non-German) and yet you may be understood very well. I think it is much more important to learn to HEAR subtle differences, because that is crucial in listening to conversations. Without that "fine-tuning" in listening, you will misunderstand what you hear.Studying the position of the lips and tongue, practicing patiently with an instructor or on your own (with the help of a commercial software maybe), examining minimal pairs etc. is the right way to get the sounds right.
MrMagoo said:Du kannst ein "ä" immer wie ein "e" aussprechen, ein "e" jedoch nicht wie ein "ä"
KajjoKajjo said:daß standardsprachliche Muttersprachler überwiegend "eh" verwenden, aber automatisch häufig "ä" sagen, wenn Sie das Wort extra-deutlich aussprechen wollen oder gar silbisch sprechen.