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German · Pronunciation Guide
How do you pronounce "spielen" in German?
SHPEE-len. At the start of a word sp is always 'shp', and ie is a long 'ee'.
The beat sits on SPIE-, and this is a regular weak verb, so the vowel and the stress both stay put across every form. That makes it a good anchor: if you can hear where the beat falls in spielen, you can hear it in the dozens of similarly shaped verbs that follow the same pattern.
Listen: spielen
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Hear it in a sentence
Die Kinder spielen im Park.
The children are playing in the park.
Listen: Die Kinder spielen im Park.
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Die Kinder spielen im Park uses im, the compulsory contraction of in and dem, with the dative marking location rather than movement. Kinder has a short i and the softened -er ending, and Park ends in a plain k after the r colours the vowel in front of it.
Where English speakers slip
Saying 'speelen' with a plain sp is the standard first attempt, and it is the single most noticeable giveaway in a beginner's German because sp- and st- words are everywhere. The rule is positional and absolute at the start of a word. Once that is in place, check the ie — a long 'ee', never the 'eye' that English spelling habits suggest.