Practise the two English TH sounds with simple A/B exercises, minimal pairs and useful sentences for German speakers.
Übe die zwei englischen TH-Laute mit einfachen A/B-Übungen, Minimalpaaren und nützlichen Sätzen für deutsche Sprecher.
German speakers often replace the English TH sound with S, Z, T or D.
These exercises help you hear and practise the difference.
Deutsche Sprecher ersetzen den englischen TH-Laut oft durch S, Z, T oder D. Diese Übungen helfen dir, den Unterschied zu hören und zu üben.
For the full explanation, see: TH Sounds for German Speakers.
Für die vollständige Erklärung siehe: TH Sounds for German Speakers.
Basic tip: Put the tip of your tongue lightly between your teeth. For think, use air only. For this, add your voice.
Grundtipp: Lege die Zungenspitze leicht zwischen die Zähne. Bei think benutzt du nur Luft. Bei this kommt die Stimme dazu.
Exercise 1: TH or S?
When clicking on the answer try to pronounce the word clearly
1. Which word has the TH sound? Welches Wort hat den TH-Laut?
Correct: A) think has the voiceless TH sound /θ/. Richtig: think hat den stimmlosen TH-Laut /θ/.
2. Which word has the TH sound? Welches Wort hat den TH-Laut?
Correct: B) thin has the voiceless TH sound /θ/. Richtig: thin hat den stimmlosen TH-Laut /θ/.
3. Which word has the TH sound? Welches Wort hat den TH-Laut?
Correct: A) thick has TH. Sick has S. Richtig: thick hat TH. Sick hat S.
4. Which word has the TH sound? Welches Wort hat den TH-Laut?
Correct: B) thought has TH. Sought begins with S. Richtig: thought hat TH. Sought beginnt mit S.
5. Which word has the TH sound? Welches Wort hat den TH-Laut?
Correct: A) theme has TH. Seem begins with S. Richtig: theme hat TH. Seem beginnt mit S.
Exercise 2: TH or T?
1. Which word has TH? Welches Wort hat TH?
Correct: A) three has TH. Tree has T. Richtig: three hat TH. Tree hat T.
2. Which word has TH? Welches Wort hat TH?
Correct: B) thin has TH. Tin has T. Richtig: thin hat TH. Tin hat T.
3. Which word has TH? Welches Wort hat TH?
Correct: A) thank has TH. Tank has T. Richtig: thank hat TH. Tank hat T.
4. Which word has TH? Welches Wort hat TH?
Correct: B) thigh has TH. Tie has T. Richtig: thigh hat TH. Tie hat T.
5. Which word has TH? Welches Wort hat TH?
Correct: A) thought has TH. Taught has T. Richtig: thought hat TH. Taught hat T.
Exercise 3: Voiced TH or D?
1. Which word has voiced TH? Welches Wort hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut?
Correct: A) they has voiced TH /ð/. Richtig: they hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut /ð/.
2. Which word has voiced TH? Welches Wort hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut?
Correct: B) then has voiced TH /ð/. Richtig: then hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut /ð/.
3. Which word has voiced TH? Welches Wort hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut?
Correct: A) those has voiced TH /ð/. Richtig: those hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut /ð/.
4. Which word has voiced TH? Welches Wort hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut?
Correct: B) though has voiced TH /ð/. Richtig: though hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut /ð/.
5. Which word has voiced TH? Welches Wort hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut?
Correct: A) this has voiced TH /ð/. Richtig: this hat den stimmhaften TH-Laut /ð/.
Exercise 4: Choose the correct TH sentence
1. Which sentence practises TH best? Welcher Satz übt TH am besten?
Correct: A) This sentence uses real TH sounds. Richtig: Dieser Satz benutzt echte TH-Laute.
2. Which sentence practises TH best? Welcher Satz übt TH am besten?
Correct: B) Three and the both use TH sounds. Richtig: Three und the benutzen beide TH-Laute.
3. Which sentence practises TH best? Welcher Satz übt TH am besten?
Correct: A) These, three and things practise TH. Richtig: These, three und things üben TH.
4. Which sentence practises TH best? Welcher Satz übt TH am besten?
Correct: B) Brother, thought, the and weather include TH sounds. Richtig: Brother, thought, the und weather enthalten TH-Laute.
5. Which sentence practises TH best? Welcher Satz übt TH am besten?
Correct: A) They, thanked and the practise TH. Richtig: They, thanked und the üben TH.
Exercise 5: German speaker correction practice
1. Correct this mistake: “sink” when you mean “denken”. Korrigiere diesen Fehler: „sink“, wenn du „denken“ meinst.
Correct: B) think = denken. Richtig: think = denken.
2. Correct this mistake: “tree” when you mean “drei”. Korrigiere diesen Fehler: „tree“, wenn du „drei“ meinst.
Correct: A) three = drei. Richtig: three = drei.
3. Correct this mistake: “zis” when you mean “this”. Korrigiere diesen Fehler: „zis“, wenn du „this“ meinst.
Correct: B) this has voiced TH. Richtig: this hat stimmhaftes TH.
4. Correct this mistake: “tank you”. Korrigiere diesen Fehler: „tank you“.
Correct: A) thank you has TH. Richtig: thank you hat TH.
5. Correct this mistake: “dis is important”. Korrigiere diesen Fehler: „dis is important“.
Correct: B) this has voiced TH. Richtig: this hat stimmhaftes TH.
Practice tip: First practise slowly. Then practise the same words in short sentences. Clear TH pronunciation is built step by step.
Übungstipp: Übe zuerst langsam. Danach übe dieselben Wörter in kurzen Sätzen. Eine klare TH-Aussprache entsteht Schritt für Schritt.