Dutch · Pronunciation Guide

How do you pronounce "het antwoord" in Dutch?

Q: How do you pronounce het antwoord in Dutch?

het antwoord is pronounced with the stress described below. In IPA it is written /ət ˈɑntʋoːrt/. It means “answer.” ut AHNT-vohrt — beat on the first syllable, soft lip-teeth w, and a final d said as a t.

ut AHNT-vohrt — beat on the first syllable, soft lip-teeth w, and a final d said as a t.

het antwoord /ət ˈɑntʋoːrt/

Compound stress on the first element, ANT-woord — this is "ant-" (against) plus "woord," literally a counter-word. The second element keeps a full long vowel under secondary stress, which is typical of Dutch compounds.

Listen: het antwoord

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Sound it out

ant- Open back "ah" plus n and t, carrying the primary stress. The t closes this element and runs straight into the w.

w Coming straight out of a t, this is an awkward junction: the tongue drops as the lip rises to the teeth, with no vowel between the two gestures.

oo Long and pure, taking secondary stress. It is noticeably longer than the short a in the first syllable, which is the contrast the compound depends on.

rd A light tap and a d that devoices to t at the end of the word. The plural "antwoorden" restores the voiced d.

Hear it in a sentence

Dat is een goed antwoord.

That's a good answer.

Listen: Dat is een goed antwoord.

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"Dat is een goed antwoord" leaves the adjective uninflected before a neuter noun with "een." "Goed" itself ends in a devoiced t, so the sentence has two devoicing sites within its last three words.

Where English speakers slip

The tw junction is the physical difficulty: learners insert a vowel, giving "ANT-uh-voord," or convert the w into an English rounded w. Run the t straight into the labiodental. The final d is the other trap, devoiced to t despite the spelling.