Dutch Consonants
Nederlandse Consonanten

The consonants in Dutch are similar to the consonants in English. The major differences are the “g”, “j”, “r”, and “w”.

Dutch also has the dipthongs “ch”, “ck”, “ng”, “nj”, “sch”, “sj” and “tj”.

”g”

The “g” sound is not found in English. The sound is made when air passes through an opening made in the back of the throat where the tongue and uvula meet. This is around the same area where your tongue and the roof of your mouth meet when making the English “g” sound.

If you are familiar with German pronunciation, the Dutch “g” sound is like the “ch” sound in the word “Dach”.

In some foreign words, the “g” is pronounced as in the language from which it was borrowed.

”j”

The “j” sound in Dutch is straightforward – it is essentially the “y” sound as in the English word “you”. . ”r”

"r"

There are several ways of pronouncing it.

The first option is to roll your “r” using the tip of your tongue. Some people even just tap it instead of doing a sustained roll.

Another option is a more guttural “r”, once again using the uvula as with the “g” sound. It can be quite difficult to roll your r’s using this method, but with a lot of practice it can be learned.

Both of these “r” sounds come at the beginning or middle of words and sometimes at the end, but a lot of Dutch people pronounce the “r” kind of like an American “r” at the end of a word.

”w”

The “w” in Dutch is actually called a “labiodental approximant.” It is not pronounced exactly like “w” in English, nor like a “v” sound. It is a bit like pronouncing the English “w” while having your teeth in lips in the same position as when pronouncing the English consonant “v”.

Dipthongs!

“ch”, “ck”, “ng”, “nj”, “sch”, “sj” and “tj”.

“ch” is pronounced like the Dutch “g”

“ck” is pronounced as a “k” sound

“ng” is like the “ng” in the English “sing”

“nj” is kind of like the “n” in “onion” or for you language buffs out there like the Spanish “ñ”

“sch” is often a combination of “s” and “ch” (as a “g” sound), but can also be pronounced as an “s” at the end of a word, for example “fantastisch”

“sj” is pronounced like the English “sh” sound

"tj” is pronounced like the English “ch” sound, but softer

Sources: https://www.duolingo.com/comment/3732990
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/dutch.htm