Dutch · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "geel" in Dutch?

Q: How do you pronounce geel in Dutch?

geel is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /ɣeːl/. It means “yellow.” khayl — the rasping Dutch g plus a long "ay," ending in a bright l.

khayl — the rasping Dutch g plus a long "ay," ending in a bright l.

geel /ɣeːl/

Its long vowel is what gives this single beat any weight at all. The inflected "gele" drops one e in spelling — "de gele zon" — because an open syllable no longer needs the doubled letter to signal length. The beat does not move; only the spelling economises.

Listen: geel

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Sound it out

g Continuous friction at the soft palate. A useful test: try to sing the sound. If it stops dead, you have made a k; if it hisses on, you have the Dutch g.

ee The long tense e, close to "ay" in "say" but held at one position rather than gliding upward. The doubled letter is Dutch's length marker.

l A clear, front l — tongue tip on the ridge, body of the tongue kept low. English l at the end of a word is dark and hollow; Dutch keeps it lighter.

Hear it in a sentence

De zon is geel.

The sun is yellow.

Listen: De zon is geel.

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"De zon is geel" is short enough that the two content words dominate: "zon" with its barely-voiced z and short o, and "geel" with its fricative and long vowel. Because the adjective is in predicate position it stays bare, which is also why the l ends the sentence with nothing to soften it.

Where English speakers slip

Reading g as English hard g yields "gale," which is a real English word and therefore a comfortable landing spot for the tongue — resist it. The Dutch sound is friction, not a stop. Learners also tend to darken the final l the way English does in "peel," pulling the tongue back; keeping it forward and bright is a small adjustment that noticeably improves the accent.