How do you pronounce the Dutch g, ui and ij?

The Dutch g and ch

To make it, say a /k/ — and then don’t close your tongue completely. Let air pass through the narrow gap at the back of your mouth, so you hear friction:

• goed

  good

• gaan

  to go

• lachen

  to laugh

• acht

  eight

• Scheveningen

  a seaside district of The Hague

  sch = s + ch, not “sh”

Regional variation is large. In much of the Netherlands the g is voiceless and scraping; in the south and in Belgium it is softer and voiced. Both are correct. In loanwords from French and English, g often keeps its original sound: garage (with a soft “zh”), goal (with an English g).

The ending -isch is pronounced “-ies”: logisch sounds like “lo-gies”, praktisch like “prak-ties”.

ui

Ui is one of the hardest Dutch sounds for English speakers:

1. Say the vowel of English hut or cut.
2. Keep that tongue position and round your lips, as if to whistle.
3. Glide slightly forward towards a rounded “ee” (like French u or German ü).

• huis

  house

• uit

  out

• buiten

  outside

• fruit

  fruit

• thuis

  at home

Avoid the two common substitutes: an English “ow” (house) or an English “oy” (boy). Huis sounds like neither.

ij and ei

Ij and ei are pronounced the same way: start near the vowel of bed or day and glide towards “ee”, with the mouth less open than in English eye.

• mijn

  my

• tijd

  time

• trein

  train

• klein

  small

In spelling, ij is treated as one letter in Dutch: at the start of a sentence or a name, both letters are capitalised: IJsland (Iceland), IJmuiden.

Other vowels to watch

Vowel length matters: man (man) and maan (moon), bal (ball) and baal (bale) — the long vowel takes noticeably more time.

Consonants that surprise

• Final devoicing: b and d at the end of a word sound like p and t: hond sounds like “hont”, heb like “hep”.
• w: between English w and v — the lower lip touches the upper teeth lightly.
• r: varies by region and speaker — rolled, from the throat, or (at the end of words in parts of the Netherlands) close to an English r.
• sch at the start of a word is s + ch: school is “s-ch-ool”, never “skool” or “shool”.

Pairs to practise

• man — maan

  man — moon

  short vs long a

• hut — huid

  hut — skin

  u vs ui

• uur — oor

  hour — ear

  uu vs oo

• lig — leg

  lie (down) — put

  i vs e

• hart — haard

  heart — fireplace

How to practise

1. Listen first. Play a word several times before you try it.
2. Exaggerate the lips for ui, uu, eu — rounding is what makes them Dutch.
3. Record yourself saying ten words with ui or g, and compare with native audio.
4. Practise in short phrases: Ik ga naar huis, Mijn trein is te laat, Goedemorgen.