How German works

The short version

• The article carries the grammar. German has six forms of the where English has one, and they mark both gender and the noun's job in the sentence.
• Never learn a noun without its article. der Tag, not Tag. It is the single highest-return habit in beginner German and it costs nothing.
• Pronunciation is nearly free. German spelling is close to phonetic. Almost all the difficulty is grammar, which is unusual and, on balance, good news.
• This is a 100-word starter course, not a full one. It is enough to read simple sentences and decide whether German suits you.