Dutch · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "de stoel" in Dutch?

duh STOOL — plain s, the "oo" of boot, and a bright l.

de stoel /də ˈstul/

The rounded vowel carries the whole beat. The plural "stoelen" adds a schwa and moves the l between vowels, where keeping it bright is easier — a useful stepping stone before tackling the bare singular.

Listen: de stoel

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Sound it out

st A hissing s into an unaspirated t. German palatalises this at the start of a word; Dutch keeps the s clean, and the t releases quietly.

oe Tenser and longer than the vowel in English "stool," though the two are close enough that the cognate genuinely helps here.

l Bright and forward at the end, with the tongue body low. English "stool" darkens this l heavily, which changes the vowel before it.

Hear it in a sentence

Ga op deze stoel zitten.

Sit on this chair.

Listen: Ga op deze stoel zitten.

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"Ga op deze stoel zitten" splits the expression "op iets gaan zitten," with the infinitive "zitten" at the very end. The demonstrative "deze" agrees with the de-word "stoel," and "ga" is the bare imperative stem.

Where English speakers slip

The English "stool" is very close and therefore misleadingly comfortable: it darkens the l and shortens the vowel slightly. German speakers add a worse error, saying "shtool." Keep the s clean and the l bright and the word will land.