The Letter "C" in German In Standard German

"C" is the third letter of the German alphabet. It is a consonant, but it is not common in native German words.
You will mostly see "c" in loanwords, scientific terms, and proper names.

Uppercase Form	C
Lowercase Form	c
Name	ce
Common Sounds	/k/, /s/

Pronouncing "C"

"c" does not have one fixed sound in German.
Its pronunciation depends on the letters that around it and the origin of the word.

"C" as /k/

"c" is often pronounced as /k/, especially before "a", "o", "u", or consonants. In these cases, it sounds like the German letter "k".

Example

Computer → /kɔmˈpjuːtɐ/

computer

Acrobat → /akroˈbaːt/

acrobat

chic → /ʃiːk/

stylish / elegant

"C" as /s/

Before "e" and "i", "c" is often pronounced as /s/, especially in words of Latin or international origin.

Example

Cent → /sɛnt/

cent

Facette → /faˈsɛtə/

facet

Note

In many cases, German adapts pronunciation, so you may also hear /ts/ instead of /s/.

Example

circa → /ˈtsɪrka/

approximately

"C" in Letter Combinations

The letter "c" is also important in letter combinations.
These combinations create different sounds that are very common in German.

"ch"

"ch" is one of the most characteristic sounds in German, and its pronunciation shifts depending on the vowel that comes before it: after "a", "o", "u", it takes on the deeper, more throaty sound /x/, while after "e", "i", "ä", "ö", "ü", it becomes the softer, more fronted /ç/.

Example

Bach → /bax/

stream

ich → /ɪç/