Long and Short Vowels

Level 1

For a, i, o and u in a stressed syllable, count the consonant letters after the vowel. One consonant after a single vowel means it is long: Dag, Kap. Two consonants after a single vowel mean it is short: Kapp, Mond. A doubled vowel is always long: Strooss.

How It Works

Long vowels

  • At the end of a word, write one letter: Fra (woman), blo (blue).
  • Before one consonant, write one letter: Dag (day), al (old), Kap (cap).
  • Before two or more consonants, double the vowel: aalt (old, neuter), laang (long), Luucht (lamp), Kiischt (cherry).

Short vowels are written once, and there must be two consonants after them. Either the consonant is doubled, as in Kapp (head), blann (blind) and gutt (good), or two different consonants follow, as in Mond (mouth), Kand (child) and Hand.

Pairs to compare. The rule makes some words look almost the same:

  • Kap (cap, long a) and Kapp (head, short a)
  • Bal (a dance, long a) and Ball (a ball, short a)

ch and sch count as two letters. So Buch (book) has a short u, and a long vowel before ch is doubled: Sprooch (language).

The same verb can change spelling. In molen (to paint) the long o comes before one consonant, so it is written once. In hie moolt (he paints), two consonants follow, so the o is doubled.

Exceptions. Some very common short words have a short vowel but only one consonant: am, an, bis, mat, ob, op, um, un, vum, vun. The rules for the letter e are different: long e is always written ee. See e ee é ë and ä.

Examples (5)

  1. Huel d'Kap vum Kapp!

    Take the cap off your head!

    Word by Word: Take the cap from the head!

    Kap has one p, so its a is long. Kapp has two, so its a is short.

  2. Gees de den Owend mat op de Bal?

    Are you coming to the dance tonight?

    Word by Word: Go you the evening along to the dance?

    Bal (a dance) has a long a. Ball, with two l letters, is a ball you play with.

  3. Déi Strooss ass laang.

    That street is long.

    The long vowels in Strooss and laang come before two consonants, so they are doubled.

  4. Ech molen e Bild, an hatt moolt och eent.

    I'm painting a picture, and she's painting one too.

    Molen has one l after the o. In moolt, two consonants follow, so the long o is doubled.

  5. Seng Mamm baakt all Samschdeg e Kuch.

    His mother bakes a cake every Saturday.

    In baakt the long a comes before two consonants, so it is doubled. Kuch has a short u, because ch counts as two letters.

Common Mistakes

  • Writing one consonant after a short vowel.

    Mäi Kap deet wéi.
    Mäi Kapp deet wéi.

    With one p, the a reads as long, and Kap means cap. Head is Kapp, with a short a and two p letters.

  • Doubling a long vowel before a single consonant.

    Haut ass e schéinen Daag.
    Haut ass e schéinen Dag.

    A long vowel before one consonant is written only once.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Long and Short VowelsLevel 1

Learn This First

Before Long and Short Vowels, learn One Official Spelling.

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Patterns that build on this one.