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The letter ß (also called sharp S or Eszett in German) is a special letter in the German alphabet. It's the only German letter that isn't part of the basic Latin alphabet we use for English. You pronounce the ß like the "s" in "see." This unique letter is only used in German words.

Where Did the ß Come From?

Evolution of 'ß' from 'ſ' and 's' in roman type (top) and from 'ſ' and 'z' in blackletter (bottom).

The letter ß we see today was created around the 1900s. It developed from two older letters: the long s (ſ) and the letter 'z'. Over time, when people wrote these two letters by hand, they often joined them together. This joining eventually formed the single letter ß that we know now.

How to Use the ß in German Words

The ß is only found in the German language. You will always see it in the middle or at the end of a German word. There is also an uppercase version of the letter, called . This capital letter is mainly used for things like dictionary entries or when you need to write a word entirely in capital letters.

Instead of using the lowercase ß, you can often write ss instead. For example, the word Straße (street) can sometimes be written as Strasse. However, not every ss can be changed to a ß.

When to Use ß or ss

The rules for German spelling changed in 1996. This change made it clearer when to use ß and when to use ss. Many common words that used to have ß are now spelled with ss.

Here's the main rule:

  • Use ss when the vowel before it is short. For example, Fluss (river) has a short 'u' sound.
  • Use ß when the vowel before it is long. For example, Straße (street) has a long 'a' sound.

ß in Compound Words

German often combines two or more words to create a new, longer word. If two 's' letters come together when words are joined, they usually stay as ss and do not become ß.

For example, if you combine "Voß" (a name) and "Straße" (street), you get "Voßstraße." This can also be written as "Vossstraße." However, you would never write "Vosßtraße." This is because the ß belongs to the first part of the word ("Voß"), and "sstraße" is not a separate word.

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See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: ß para niños

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