Dutch · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "de trui" in Dutch?

duh TROW — but the ui is that rounded diphthong again, not the "ow" of "trout."

de trui /də ˈtrœy/

One beat ending on an open diphthong with no closing consonant, which leaves the vowel completely unprotected. That makes this a harder test of your ui than "tuin" or "huis," where a consonant follows and masks small errors.

Listen: de trui

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Sound it out

tr A quiet t into a brief flick. English "true" aspirates the t and curls the r, both of which reshape the vowel that follows.

ui Lips rounded and tongue mid-front to begin, then a glide with the rounding held throughout. Because nothing follows it, the diphthong is fully exposed at the end of the word.

Hear it in a sentence

Ik draag een warme trui.

I'm wearing a warm sweater.

Listen: Ik draag een warme trui.

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"Ik draag een warme trui" uses the inflected "warme," so the sentence runs three unstressed syllables together before the diphthong lands at the end. "Draag" earlier gives you a velar fricative, making this a fairly demanding short sentence.

Where English speakers slip

The English "ow" of "trout" is the substitution everyone makes, and with nothing after the vowel to disguise it, the error is unusually audible here. Purse the lips before you start. Learners also aspirate the t and curl the r, which together pull the word toward English "try."