-
Step 1
Forget that the letter W exists. Though it appears quite frequently in German, native German speakers do not use the W sound familiar to Americans. Use the V sound in place of W.
-
Step 2
Pronounce the letter V as an F. Just because V's pronunciation has been claimed by W doesn't mean that it disappears from the alphabet. When speaking with a German accent, things become "fery good" instead of "very good."
-
Step 3
Stop pronouncing Th as it should be in English. Native Germans have difficulty pronouncing the sound and replace it with D.
-
Step 4
Replace all of your Ds with the T sound.
-
Step 5
Speak from the back of your throat, using the "ich" and "ach" sound regularly. It may help to practice when you have a cold because it is similar to clearing your throat.
-
Step 6
Put all of the consonant sounds together and begin speaking in complete sentences with your new accent. Be concise, limiting yourself to just a few words at a time. Speak properly and seriously without being unpleasant.
Comments
phoenix1991 said
on 9/1/2009 This is an extreme description of a German accent. I'm from Austria (we also speak German) but you will never hear points 1 to 3 in my accent (point 4 rarely; don't know what point 5 is supposed to mean). When I hear somebody talk like that I consider it poor English, that's it. What many German speakers do though is that they pronounce the V like the W in "water" (I personally don't do that either). So it's like "wanguard" instead of "vanguard".
Myshashi said
on 3/26/2009 Anyways, like others have said earlier, a lot of people enjoy a slight accent because it makes you seem exotic. An accent can be very helpful in many circumstances, so you might want to think hard before you make a strong attempt to remove it. Talk German accent more clearly and update your knowledge from http://www.neutralaccent.com
umlaut said
on 12/29/2008 The greatest compliment I received was from my German teacher, who told me that I speak German WITHOUT an accent. But in order to achieve that, I had to do exactly what was recommended above. It's odd to think that what I consider to be a big effort at putting on an accent comes across as no accent at all to a native German speaker. LOL.
BrittanyBrown said
on 5/8/2008 Actors need to know many accents.
...jus sayin
webmom said
on 5/1/2008 Claudia: You would want to speak with a German accent if you got a part in a play or film that requires you to pretend you are someone you are not...
Thanks for the tips! I speak German, but needed some help with accent tips for my son with a part in a play. This seemed to work well for him.