S
/ɛs/
The nineteenth letter of the English alphabet is written as S in German.
How do you pronounce it?
/ɛs/
Did you know?
- Modern loanwords from English, such as 'Sex', often keep the sharp 's' sound even when they appear at the start of a word.
- In native German words, the combination st at the beginning of a word is not pronounced with an 's' sound, but with a 'sh' sound, like in 'ship'.
Examples in context
- Das ist seine Verlobte.That’s his fiancée.This sentence is useful for seeing the letter S in a sentence.Tatoeba #1813005 by pne, translation #1813006 by pne
- Sie hat dir Nein gesagt.She’s told you no.Tatoeba #13671557 by Naina, translation #10016300 by espamatics
- Jetzt geht’s um die Wurst!It’s now or never!Tatoeba #1248670 by Esperantostern, translation #12232518 by valhentai
- 391 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Sarah and Felix are practicing the alphabet together.
- SarahWie schreibt man das?How do you write that?
- FelixMit einem S.With an S.
- SarahIst das ein S?Is that an S?
- FelixJa, genau.Yes, exactly.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry S, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries S, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
