Swiss German (Schweizerdeutsch) and High German (Hochdeutsch, or Standard German) vary in a number of important ways:
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1. Pronunciation
Swiss German possesses a very characteristic accent and phonology. For instance:
The "ch" sound in ich is usually gutturally pronounced more like in doch.
Long vowels and diphthongs vary (e.g., Haus is usually spoken more like "Huus").
The "r" usually gets rolled or pronounced more forcefully.
2. Vocabulary
Most common words are entirely different:
High German: Fahrrad (bicycle) → Swiss German: Velo (from French vélo)
High German: Mädchen (girl) → Swiss German: Meitli
Swiss German also takes over more from French and Italian as a result of Switzerland's multilingual culture.
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3. Grammar
Swiss German simplifies some grammatical constructions:
The genitive case is virtually nonexistent; instead, forms such as dem Vater sin Huet ("the father's hat") are employed.
Diminutives are typically -li (Hüsli "little house" rather than the High German -chen).
4. Usage
High German is official written and formal spoken Swiss language.
Swiss German is utilized in common parlance, regional radio/TV, and everyday conversation.
High German is utilized in school, official documents, and the newspaper.
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5. Mutual Intelligibility
Spontaneously born Germans find Swiss German hard to understand, particularly the rural ones.
Swiss tend to speak and comprehend High German, but most prefer their local dialect.
In brief: Swiss German is a group of Alemannic dialects rather different from Standard German in grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation. It's rather like comparing a robust regional accent to a standard language — much like Scots compared to English.
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