1. BASIC PHRASES
| Guten Morgen goot-en mor-gen Good Morning | Guten Tag goot-en tahk Hello/Good Day | Guten Abend goot-en ah-bentGood Evening |
| Gute Nacht goot-eh nakhtGood Night | Tag / Hallo / Servus tahk / hah-loh / sair-voohs Hi / Hello / Hi & Bye (Southern Germany & Austria) | Auf Wiedersehen owf vee-dair-zayn Goodbye |
| Grüß dich / Grüß Gott! Hello! / Greetings! (Southern Germany & Austria) | Tschüs / Tschautchews / chow Bye! | Gehen wir! geh-en veer Let's go! |
| Bis späterbiss shpay-ter See you later | Bis baldbiss bahlt See you soon | Bis morgen biss mohr-gen See you tomorrow |
| Bitte bih-tuhPlease | Danke (schön / sehr) dahn-kuh shurn/zair Thank you | Bitte schön bih-tuh shurn You're welcome |
| Es tut mir leid. ehs toot meer liteI'm sorry | Entschuldigen Sie ehnt-shool-dih-gun zeeExcuse me | Verzeihung Pardon me |
| Wie geht es Ihnen? vee gayt es ee-nen How are you? (formal) | Wie geht's? vee gayts How are you? (informal) | (Sehr) Gut / So lala zair goot / zo lahlah (Very) Good / OK |
| Schlecht / Nicht Gut shlekht / nisht gootBad / Not good | Es geht. ess gate I'm ok. (informal) | Ja / Nein yah / nine Yes / No |
| Wie heißen Sie? vee hie-ssen zee What's your name? (formal) | Wie heißt du? vee hiesst doo What's your name? (informal) | Ich heiße... ikh hie-ssuh My name is... [I am called...] |
| Es freut mich. froyt mikh Pleased to meet you. | Gleichfalls. glykh-fals Likewise. | Herr / Frau / Fräulein hair / frow / froi-lineMister / Misses / Miss |
| Woher kommen Sie? vo-hair koh-men zee Where are you from? (formal) | Woher kommst du? vo-hair kohmst doo Where are you from? (informal) | Ich komme aus... ikh koh-muh ows... I'm from... |
| Wo wohnen Sie? vo voh-nen zee Where do you live? (formal) | Wo wohnst du? vo vohnst doo Where do you live? (informal) | Ich wohne in... ikh voh-nuh in I live in... |
| Wie alt sind Sie? vee alt zint zee How old are you? (formal) | Wie alt bist du? vee alt bisst doo How old are you? (informal) | Ich bin ____ Jahre alt. ikh bin ____ yaa-reh alt I am ____ years old. |
| Sprechen Sie deutsch? shpreck-en zee doytch Do you speak German? (formal) | Sprichst du englisch? shprikhst doo eng-lish Do you speak English? (informal) | Ich spreche (kein)... ikh shpreck-uh kine I (don't) speak... |
| Verstehen Sie? / Verstehst du? fehr-shtay-en zee / fehr-shtayst doo Do you understand? (formal / informal) | Ich verstehe (nicht). ikh fehr-shtay-eh nikht I (don't) understand. | Ich weiß (nicht). ikh vise nikht I (don't) know. |
| Können Sie mir helfen? ker-nen zee meer hell-fen Can you help me? (formal) | Kannst du mir helfen? kahnst doo meer hell-fen Can you help me? (informal) | Natürlich / Gerne nah-tewr-likh / gair-nuh Of course / Gladly |
| Kann ich Ihnen helfen? kahn ikh ee-nen hell-fen May I help you? (formal) | Kann ich dir helfen? kahn ikh deer hell-fen May I help you? (informal) | Wie bitte? vee bih-tuh What? Pardon me? |
| Wie heißt ___ auf deutsch? vee heist ___ owf doytch How do you say ___ in German? | Wo ist / Wo sind... ? voh ist / voh zint Where is / Where are... ? | Es gibt... ess geept There is / are... |
| Was ist los? vahs ist lohs What's the matter? | Das macht nichts. dass makht nikhts It doesn't matter. | Das ist mir egal. dass ist meer eh-gahl I don't care. |
| Keine Angst! ky-nuh ahngst Don't worry! | Ich habe es vergessen. ikh hah-buh ess fehr-geh-sen I forgot. | Jetzt muss ich gehen. yetz mooss ikh geh-en I must go now. |
| Ich habe Hunger / Durst. ikh hah-buh hoong-er / dirst I'm hungry / thirsty. | Ich bin krank / müde. ikh bin krahnk moo-duh I'm sick / tired. | Ich habe Langeweile. ikh hah-buh lahn-guh-vy-luh I'm bored. |
| Ich möchte / Ich hätte gern... ikh merkh-tuh / ikh heh-tuh gairn I'd like... | Das gefällt mir. dahs geh-fehlt meer I like it. | Prima / Toll / Super! pree-mah / tohl / zoo-pair Great / Fantastic! |
| Gesundheit! geh-soont-hyt Bless you! | Herzlichen Glückwunsch! herts-likh-en glewk-voonsh Congratulations! | Sei ruhig! zy roo-hikh Be quiet! (informal) |
| Willkommen! vil-koh-men Welcome! | Viel Glück! feel glewk Good luck! | Schauen Sie mal! / Schau mal! show-en zee mal / show mal Look! (formal / informal) |
| Bitte schön? Yes? / What would you like to order? | Was darf's sein? What can I get you? / How can I help you? | Sonst noch etwas? Anything else? |
| Bitte schön. Here you go. (handing something to someone) | Zahlen bitte! The check, please! | Stimmt so. Keep the change. |
| Ich bin satt. I'm full. | Mir ist schlecht. I feel sick. | Es tut mir weh. It hurts. |
| Ich liebe dich. ikh leeb-uh dikhI love you. (informal) | Du fehlst mir. I miss you. (informal) | Alles ist in Ordnung. Everything is fine. |
| Wie wäre es mit ... ? How about...? | Was für ein...? What kind of (a)...? | Nicht wahr? [general tag question] |
Ich is not actually pronounced ikh, unless you are speaking a northern dialect of German. If you are speaking a southern dialect, then it is more like ish. There is no equivalent sound in English. In standard German, it is somewhere between ish and ikh. Technically, it is a voiceless palatal fricative and its voiced counterpart is the y sound in yes.
German Vowels
|
English Pronunciation
| |
| [i] | viel | meet, eat |
| [y] | kühl | ee rounded / long vowel |
| [ɪ] | Tisch | mitt, it |
| [ʏ] | hübsch | ih rounded / short vowel |
| [e] | Tee | mate, wait |
| [ø] | schön | ay rounded / long vowel |
| [ɛ] | Bett | met, wet |
| [œ] | zwölf | eh rounded / short vowel |
| [a] | Mann | mop, not |
| [ɑ] | kam | ah / longer vowel than [a] |
| [u] | gut | boot, suit |
| [ʊ] | muss | put, soot |
| [o] | Sohn | coat, goat |
| [ɔ] | Stock | caught, bought |
| [ə] | bitte | cut, what |
| [ɐ] | Wetter | uhr / also short vowel like [ə] |
Highlighted vowels do not exist in English.
Notice that words spelled with ö and ü can be pronounced with a long or short vowel, so determining the pronunciation based on the spelling is not possible. The other umlauted letter, ä, is generally pronounced as [e], though it can be pronounced as [ɛ] in some dialects. A general rule for pronunciation, however, states that the short vowels / ɪ ʏ ʊ ɛ ɔ / must be followed by a consonant, whereas the long vowels / i y u e ø o / can occur at the end of the syllable or word.
German Diphthongs
| English Pronunciation | |
| [aɪ] | ein, mein | eye, buy, why |
| [aʊ] | auf, kaufen | cow, now, how |
| [ɔɪ] | neu, Gebäude | toy, boy, foil |
German Consonants
There are a few German consonants that do not exist in English, and some consonant combinations that are not common in English. Notice that the pronunciation of the German r changes according to the location in the countries that speak German, i.e. [R] in northern Germany and [r] in southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
| Spelling | IPA | Sample words | How to pronounce: |
| ch (with vowels e and i) | [ç] | Chemie, mich, nicht | Make yuh sound voiceless (no vibration of vocal cords) |
| ch (with vowels a, o, u) | [x] | Buch, lachen, kochen | Make kuh sound a fricative (continuous airflow) |
| pf | [pf] | Apfel, Pferd, Pfanne | Pronounce together as one sound |
| z | [ts] | Zeit, Zug, Tanz | Pronounce together as one sound |
| j | [j] | ja, Januar, Junge | yuh |
| qu | [kv] | Quote, Quiz, Quitte | kv |
| st / sp (at beginning of syllable) | [ʃt] / [ʃp] | Stadt, sprechen | sht / shp |
| sch | [ʃ] | schenken, schlafen | sh |
| th | [t] | Theater, Thron | t |
| v | [f] | Vater, verboten | f |
| w | [v] | Wasser, warm | v |
| ß | [s] | Straße, groß | s |
| s (before vowel) | [z] | Salz, seit, Sitz | z |
In addition, the sounds [b], [d], and [g] lose their voicing at the end of a syllable, so they are pronounced as their voiceless counterparts [p], [t], and [k], respectively. However, the spelling does not reflect the pronunciation.
Stress
Stress generally falls on the first syllable of the word, except in words borrowed from other languages, where the stress falls on the last syllable (especially with French words.)
| a | ah | j | yoht | s | ess |
| b | bay | k | kah | t | tay |
| c | tsay | l | el | u | oo |
| d | day | m | em | v | fow |
| e | ay | n | en | w | vay |
| f | eff | o | oh | x | eeks |
| g | gay | p | pay | y | irp-se-lon |
| h | hah | q | koo | z | tset |
| i | ee | r | ehr |
There is another letter in written German, ß (es-zet), pronounced like [s]. However, this letter is only used after long vowels or diphthongs, and it is not used at all in Switzerland.
All nouns have a gender in German, either masculine, feminine or neuter. There really isn't a lot of logic to which nouns are which gender, so you must memorize the gender of each noun.
1. Male persons or animals, the seasons, months, and days are all masculine, as are nouns ending in -ant, -ast, -ich, -ig, -ismus, -ling, -or and -us.
2. Female persons or animals, and numerals are all feminine, as are nouns ending in -a, -anz, -ei, -enz, -heit, -ie, -ik, -in, -keit, -schaft, -sion, -sis, -tät, -tion, -ung and -ur.
3. Young persons or animals, metals, chemical elements, letters of the alphabet, hotels, restaurants, cinemas, continents, countries and provinces are all neuter, as are nouns that end in -chen, -icht, -il, -it, -lein, -ma, -ment, -tel, -tum, and -um. Nouns referring to things that end in -al, -an, -ar, -ät, -ent, -ett, -ier, -iv, -o and -on, as well as most words with the prefix ge- and most nouns ending in -nis and -sal are also neuter.
All nouns in German are capitalized in writing.
All nouns (as well as pronouns and adjectives) have a case depending on what function they serve in the sentence. These may seem strange, but remember that English uses cases also; however, we would say direct object instead of accusative, or indirect object instead of dative. Although these cases may make learning new words difficult, they actually help with word order because the position of words in a sentence is not as fixed in German as it is in English. And the reason for that is because words can occur in these four cases:
| Nominative | subject of the sentence | The girl is reading. |
| Accusative | direct objects | We see the mountain. I bought a gift. |
| Dative | indirect objects | We talk to the guide. I gave my mom a gift. |
| Genitive | indicates possession or relationship | The book of the girl. The dog's tail. |
The nouns you look up in a dictionary will be in the nominative case.
| Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | Plural | |
| Nominative | der (dare) | die (dee) | das (dahs) | die |
| Accusative | den (dane) | die | das | die |
| Dative | dem (dame) | der | dem | den |
| Genitive | des (dess) | der | des | der |
| Masculine | Feminine | Neuter | |
| Nom. | ein (ine) | eine (ine-uh) | ein |
| Acc. | einen (ine-en) | eine | ein |
| Dat. | einem (ine-em) | einer(ine-er) | einem |
| Gen. | eines (ine-es) | einer | eines |
| This / These | That / Those | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masc. | Fem. | Neu. | Pl. | Masc. | Fem. | Neu. | Pl. | |
| Nom. | dieser | diese | dieses | diese | der | die | das | die |
| Acc. | diesen | diese | dieses | diese | den | die | das | die |
| Dat. | diesem | dieser | diesem | diesen | dem | der | dem | den |
| Gen. | dieses | dieser | dieses | dieser | des | der | des | der |
Jener is an older word found in written German that was used to mean that or those, but today in spoken German the definite articles are used. Dort or da may accompany the definite articles for emphasis. Das is also a universal demonstrative and therefore shows no agreement. Notice the last letter of each of the words above. They correspond to the last letters of the words for the definite articles. Words that are formed this same way are called der-words because they follow the pattern of the der-die-das declension. Other der-words are: jeder-every, and welcher-which. Mancher (many) and solcher (such) are also der-words, but they are used almost always in the plural.
| ich |
ikh
| I | wir |
veer
| we |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| du |
doo
| you (familiar) | ihr |
eer
| you (all) |
| er, sie, es, man |
air, zee, ess, mahn
| he, she, it, one | sie, Sie |
zee
| they, you (formal) |
Man can be translated as one, we, they or the people in general. When referring to nouns as it, you use er for masculine nouns, sie for feminine nouns and es for neuter nouns. However, the definite articles der, die and dascan be substituted for er, sie and es to show more emphasis.
| I am | ich bin | ikh bin | we are | wir sind | veer zint |
| you are (familiar) | du bist | doo bihst | you (plural) are | ihr seid | eer zide |
| he/she/it is | er/sie/es ist | air/zee/ess isst | they/you (formal) are | sie/Sie sind | zee zint |
Past tense of sein | |||||
| I was | ich war | ikh var | we were | wir waren | veer vah-ren |
| you were (familiar) | du warst | doo varst | you (plural) were | ihr wart | eer vart |
| he/she/it was | er/sie/es war | air/zee/es var | they/you (formal) were | sie/Sie waren | zee vah-ren |
| Present tense of haben - to have (hah-ben) | |||
| ich habe | hah-buh | wir haben | hah-ben |
| du hast | hahst | ihr habt | hahbt |
| er/sie/es hat | haht | sie/Sie haben | hah-ben |
Past tense of haben | |||
| ich hatte | hah-tuh | wir hatten | hah-ten |
| du hattest | hah-test | ihr hattet | hah-tet |
| er/sie/es hatte | hah-tuh | sie/Sie hatten | hah-ten |
| Present tense of werden - to become (vair-den) | |||
| ich werde | vair-duh | wir werden | vair-den |
| du wirst | veerst | ihr werdet | vair-det |
| er/sie/es wird | veert | sie/Sie werden | vair-den |
Past tense of werden | |||
| ich wurde | voor-duh | wir wurden | voor-den |
| du wurdest | voor-dest | ihr wurdet | voor-det |
| er/sie/es wurde | voor-duh | sie/Sie wurden | voor-den |
Haben is frequently used in expressions that would normally take to be in English.
Ich habe Hunger. = I am hungry.
Ich hatte Durst. = I was thirsty.
Ich habe Langeweile. = I am bored.
Ich hatte Heimweh. = I was homesick.
Ich habe Angst. = I am afraid.
Ich habe Hunger. = I am hungry.
Ich hatte Durst. = I was thirsty.
Ich habe Langeweile. = I am bored.
Ich hatte Heimweh. = I was homesick.
Ich habe Angst. = I am afraid.
In everyday speech, the final -e on the ich conjugations can be dropped: ich hab' or hab' ich
| and | und | oont | isn't it? | nicht wahr? | nikht vahr |
| but | aber | ah-ber | too bad | schade | shah-duh |
| very | sehr | zair | gladly | gern | gehrn |
| or | oder | oh-der | immediately | sofort | zoh-fort |
| here | hier | here | sure(ly) | sicher(lich) | zikh-er-likh |
| also | auch | owkh | but, rather | sondern | zohn-dehrn |
| both | beide | by-duh | finally | schließlich | shleess-likh |
| some | etwas | eht-vahss | right! | stimmt | shtimt |
| only | nur | noor | anyway | überhaupt | oo-ber-howpt |
| again | wieder | vee-der | enough | genug | guh-nook |
| hopefully | hoffentlich | hoh-fent-likh | exact(ly) | genau | guh-now |
| between | zwischen | zvish-en | sometimes | manchmal | mahnch-mal |
| therefore | deshalb | des-halp | always | immer | im-er |
| a lot, many | viel(e) | feel(uh) | never | nie | nee |
| really | wirklich | veerk-lish | often | oft | ohft |
| together | zusammen | tsoo-zah-men | of course | klar | klahr |
| all | alle | ahl-luh | perhaps | vielleicht | fee-likht |
| now | jetzt | yetst | a little | ein bisschen | ine biss-khen |
| so | also | al-zoh | a little | ein wenig | ine vay-nikh |
| another | noch ein | nohkh ine | not at all | gar nicht | gar nikht |
| already | schon | shone | not a bit | kein bisschen | kine biss-khen |
Es gibt is commonly used to mean there is/are and it is always followed by the accusative case.
| Who | wer | vehr | Whom (acc.) | wen | vain |
| What | was | vahs | Whom (dat.) | wem | vaim |
| Why | warum | vah-room | How come | wieso | vee-zo |
| When | wann | vahn | Where from | woher | vo-hair |
| Where | wo | voh | Where to | wohin | vo-hin |
| How | wie | vee | Which | welche/-r/-s | velsh-uh/er/es |
| 0 | null | nool | ||
| 1 | eins | ines | 1st | erste |
| 2 | zwei | tsvy | 2nd | zweite |
| 3 | drei | dry | 3rd | dritte |
| 4 | vier | feer | 4th | vierte |
| 5 | fünf | fewnf | 5th | fünfte |
| 6 | sechs | zecks | 6th | sechste |
| 7 | sieben | zee-bun | 7th | siebte |
| 8 | acht | ahkht | 8th | achte |
| 9 | neun | noyn | 9th | neunte |
| 10 | zehn | tsayn | 10th | zehnte |
| 11 | elf | elf | 11th | elfte |
| 12 | zwölf | tsvurlf | 12th | zwölfte |
| 13 | dreizehn | dry-tsayn | 13th | dreizehnte |
| 14 | vierzehn | feer-tsayn | 14th | vierzehnte |
| 15 | fünfzehn | fewnf-tsayn | 15th | fünfzehnte |
| 16 | sechzehn | zeck-tsayn | 16th | sechzehnte |
| 17 | siebzehn | zeep-tsayn | 17th | siebzehnte |
| 18 | achtzehn | ahkh-tsayn | 18th | achtzehnte |
| 19 | neunzehn | noyn-tsayn | 19th | neunzehnte |
| 20 | zwanzig | tsvahn-tsikh | 20th | zwanzigste |
| 21 | einundzwanzig | ine-oont-tsvahn-tsikh | 21st | einundzwanzigste |
| 22 | zweiundzwanzig | tsvy-oont-tsvahn-tsikh | 22nd | zweiundzwanzigste |
| 23 | dreiundzwanzig | dry-oont-tsvahn-tsikh | 23rd | dreiundzwanzigste |
| 24 | vierundzwanzig | feer-oont-tsvahn-tsikh | 24th | vierundzwanzigste |
| 30 | dreißig | dry-sikh | 30th | dreißigste |
| 40 | vierzig | feer-tsikh | 40th | vierzigste |
| 50 | fünfzig | fewnf-tsikh | 50th | fünfzigste |
| 60 | sechzig | zekh-tsikh | 60th | sechzigste |
| 70 | siebzig | zeep-tsikh | 70th | siebzigste |
| 80 | achtzig | ahkh-tsikh | 80th | achtzigste |
| 90 | neunzig | noyn-tsikh | 90th | neunzigste |
| 100 | (ein)hundert | ine-hoon-duhrt | ||
| 1,000 | (ein)tausend | ine-tow-zuhnt |
Sometimes zwo (tsvoh) is used instead of zwei to avoid confusion with drei when talking on the telephone. The use of commas and periods is switched in German, though a space is commonly used to separate thousandths, i.e. 1,000 would be 1 000. When saying telephone numbers, you can either say each number individually or group them in twos. For years, you use the hundreds: 1972 is neunzehn hundert zweiundsiebzig; or the thousands: 2005 is zwei tausend fünf.
Wann sind Sie geboren? When were you born?
Ich bin in 1982 geboren. I was born in 1982.
Ich bin in 1982 geboren. I was born in 1982.
| Monday | Montag | mohn-tahk |
| Tuesday | Dienstag | deens-tahk |
| Wednesday | Mittwoch | mit-vock |
| Thursday | Donnerstag | don-ers-tahk |
| Friday | Freitag | fry-tahk |
| Saturday (N & E Germany) | Samstag Sonnabend | zahms-tahk zon-nah-bent |
| Sunday | Sonntag | zon-tahk |
| day | der Tag (-e) | dehr tahk |
| morning | der Morgen (-) | mawr-gun |
| afternoon | der Nachmittag (-e) | nakh-mih-tahk |
| evening | der Abend (-e) | ah-bunt |
| night | die Nacht (ä, -e) | nahkt |
| today | heute | hoy-tuh |
| tomorrow | morgen | mawr-gun |
| tonight | heute Abend | hoy-tuh ah-bunt |
| yesterday | gestern | geh-stairn |
| last night | gestern Abend | geh-stairn ah-bunt |
| week | die Woche (-n) | voh-kuh |
| weekend | das Wochenende (-n) | voh-ken-en-duh |
| daily | täglich | teh-glikh |
| weekly | wöchentlich | wer-khent-likh |
To say on a certain day or the weekend, use am. Add an -s to the day to express "on Mondays, Tuesdays, etc." All days, months and seasons are masculine so they all use the same form of these words: jeden - every,nächsten - next, letzten - last (as in the last of a series), vorigen - previous. In der Woche is the expression for "during the week" in Northern and Eastern Germany, while unter der Woche is used in Southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
| January | Januar | yah-noo-ahr |
| (Austria) | Jänner | yeh-ner |
| February | Februar | fay-broo-ahr |
| March | März | mehrts |
| April | April | ah-pril |
| May | Mai | my |
| June | Juni | yoo-nee |
| July | Juli | yoo-lee |
| August | August | ow-goost |
| September | September | zehp-tehm-ber |
| October | Oktober | ok-toh-ber |
| November | November | no-vehm-ber |
| December | Dezember | deh-tsem-ber |
| month | der Monat (-e) | moh-naht |
| year | das Jahr (-e) | yaar |
| monthly | monatlich | moh-naht-likh |
| yearly | jährlich | jehr-likh |
To say in a certain month, use im.
Wann hast du Geburtstag? When is your birthday?
Mein Geburtstag ist im Mai. My birthday is in May.
Mein Geburtstag ist im Mai. My birthday is in May.
| Winter | der Winter | dehr vin-ter |
| Spring | der Frühling | dehr frew-ling |
| Summer | der Sommer | dehr zom-mer |
| Autumn | der Herbst | dehr hehrpst |
To say in the + a season, use im.
| right | rechts |
| left | links |
| straight | geradeaus |
| North | der Norden |
| South | der Süden |
| East | der Osten |
| West | der Westen |
im Norden = in the North
nach Osten = to the East
aus Westen = from the West
nach Osten = to the East
aus Westen = from the West
| orange | orange | square | das Viereck |
| pink | rosa | circle | der Kreis |
| purple | violett / lila | triangle | das Dreieck |
| blue | blau | rectangle | das Rechteck |
| yellow | gelb | oval | das Oval |
| red | rot | octagon | das Achteck |
| black | schwarz | cube | der Würfel |
| brown | braun | sphere | die Kugel |
| gray | grau | cone | der Kegel |
| white | weiß | cylinder | der Zylinder |
| green | grün | ||
| turquoise | türkis | ||
| beige | beige | ||
| silver | silber | ||
| gold | gold |
Because colors are adjectives, they must agree in gender and number with the noun they describe if they are placed before the noun. However, not all adjectives agree, such as colors ending in -a or -e; nor do they agree when they are used as predicate adjectives. More about Adjectives in German III. To say that a color is light, put hell- before it, and to say that a color is dark, put dunkel- before it.
Das Viereck ist braun. The square is brown.
Das Rechteck ist hellblau. The rectange is light blue.
Das Rechteck ist hellblau. The rectange is light blue.
| What time is it? | Wie spät ist es? | vee shpayt isst ess |
| (It is) 2 AM | Es ist zwei Uhr nachts | ess ist tsvy oor nahkts |
| 2 PM | Es ist zwei Uhr nachmittags | tsvy oor nahk-mih-tahks |
| 6:20 | Es ist sechs Uhr zwanzig | zex oor tsvahn-tsikh |
| half past 3 | Es ist halb vier | hahlp feer |
| quarter past 4 | Es ist Viertel nach vier | feer-tel nahk feer |
| quarter to 5 | Es ist Viertel vor fünf | feer-tel for fewnf |
| 10 past 11 | Es ist zehn nach elf | tsyan nahk elf |
| 20 to 7 | Es ist zwanzig vor sieben | tsvahn-tsikh for zee-bun |
| noon | Es ist nachmittag | nakh-mih-tahk |
| midnight | Es ist mitternacht | mih-ter-nahk |
| in the morning | morgens / früh | mawr-guns / frew |
| in the evening | abends | aah-bunts |
| It's exactly... | Es ist genau... | ess ist guh-now |
| At 8. | Um 8 Uhr. | oom akht oor |
| early(ier) | früh(er) | frew(er) |
| late(r) | spät(er) | shpayt(er) |
Official time, such as for bus and train schedules, always uses the 24 hour clock. Notice that halb + number means half to, not half past, so you have to use the hour that comes next.
| How's the weather today? | Wie ist das Wetter heute? | vie ist dahs vet-ter hoy-tuh |
| It's hot | Es ist heiß | ess isst hise |
| It's cold | Es ist kalt | ess isst kahlt |
| It's beautiful | Es ist schön | ess isst shern |
| It's bad | Es ist schlecht | ess isst shlehkt |
| It's clear | Es ist klar | ess isst klahr |
| It's icy | Es ist eisig | ess isst ise-ikh |
| It's warm | Es ist warm | ess isst varm |
| It's sunny | Es ist sonnig | ess isst zohn-ikh |
| It's windy | Es ist windig | ess isst vin-dikh |
| It's cloudy | Es ist bewölkt | ess isst beh-verlkt |
| It's hazy | Es ist dunstig | ess isst doons-tikh |
| It's muggy | Es ist schwül | ess isst schvool |
| It's humid | Es ist feucht | ess isst foikht |
| It's foggy | Es ist nebelig | ess isst neh-beh-likh |
| It's snowing | Es schneit | ess schnite |
| It's raining | Es regnet | ess rayg-net |
| It's freezing | Es friert | ess freert |
| It looks like rain. | Es sieht nach Regen aus. | es seet nahkh ray-gen ows |
| The weather is clearing | Das Wetter klärt sich auf. | dahs vett-er klairt sikh owf |
| Parents | die Eltern | Relative | der Verwandte (-n) |
| Mother | die Mutter (ü) | Man | der Mann (ä, -er) |
| Father | der Vater (ä) | Sir / Mister | der Herr (-en) |
| Son | der Sohn (ö, -e) | Woman / Ma'am / Mrs. / Ms. | die Frau (-en) |
| Daughter | die Tochter (ö) | Husband | der Ehemann (ä, -er) |
| Brother | der Bruder (ü) | Wife | die Ehefrau (-en) |
| Sister | die Schwester (-n) | Boy | der Junge (-n) |
| Grandparents | die Großeltern | Girl | das Mädchen (-) |
| Grandfather | der Großvater (ä) | Grandpa | der Opa (-s) |
| Grandmother | die Großmutter (ü) | Grandma | die Oma (-s) |
| Grandchildren | die Enkelkinder | Dad | der Vati |
| Grandson | der Enkel (-) | Mom | die Mutti |
| Granddaughter | die Enkelin (-nen) | Friend (m) | der Freund (-e) |
| Niece | die Nichte (-n) | Friend (f) | die Freundin (-nen) |
| Nephew | der Neffe (-n) | Partner / Significant Other (m) | der Partner (-) |
| Cousin (m) | der Vetter (-n) | Partner / Significant Other (f) | die Partnerin (-nen) |
| Cousin (f) | die Kusine (-n) | Marital Status | der Familienstand |
| Uncle | der Onkel (-) | Single | ledig |
| Aunt | die Tante (-n) | Married | verheiratet |
| Siblings | die Geschwister | Divorced | geschieden |
| Baby | das Baby (-s) | Male | männlich |
| Godfather | der Pate (-n) | Female | weiblich |
| Godmother | die Patin (-nen) | Child | das Kind (-er) |
| Step- | der/die Stief- | Toddler | das Kleinkind (-er) |
| -in-law | der/die Schwieger- | Teenager | der Teenager (-) |
| Brother-in-law | der Schwager (ä) | Adult | der Erwachsene (-n) |
| Sister-in-law | die Schwägerin (-nen) | Twin | der Zwilling (-e) |
The letters in parentheses indicate the plural form of the noun. Notice that sometimes an umlaut is placed over the main vowel of the word in the plural. For example, der Mann is singular (the man) and die Männer is plural (the men). For step- and -in-law relations, just add Stief- or Schwieger- before the main person, except in the case of brother-in-law and sister-in-law noted above. The plurals follow the pattern for the main person, i.e. die Schwiegermutter (singular) and die Schwiegermütter (plural)
| kennen - to know people | wissen - to know facts | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ich kenne | ken-nuh | wir kennen | ken-nun | ich weiß | vise | wir wissen | vih-sun |
| du kennst | kenst | ihr kennt | kent | du weißt | vist | ihr wisst | vihst |
| er/sie/es kennt | kent | sie/Sie kennen | ken-nun | er/sie/es weiß | vise | sie/Sie wissen | vih-sun |
Kennen is a regular verb, while wissen is irregular in the present tense. You must use the subject pronouns (ich, du, er...); however, I will leave them out of future conjugations.
Plural nouns in German are unpredictable, so it's best to memorize the plural form with the singular. However, here are some rules that can help:
1. Feminine nouns usually add -n or -en. Nouns that end in -in (such as the female equivalents of masculine nouns) add -nen.
| eine Lampe | zwei Lampen |
| eine Tür | zwei Türen |
| eine Studentin | zwei Studentinnen |
| eine Gabel | zwei Gabeln |
2. Masculine and neuter nouns usually add -e or -er. Many masculine plural nouns ending in -e add an umlaut as well, but neuter plural nouns ending in -e don't. Plurals that end in -er add an umlaut when the stem vowel is a, o , u or au.
| Masculine | Neuter | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ein Rock | zwei Röcke | ein Heft | zwei Hefte |
| ein Mann | zwei Männer | ein Buch | zwei Bücher |
3. Masculine and neuter singular nouns that end in -er either add an umlaut or change nothing at all. Many nouns with a stem vowel of a, o, u or au add an umlaut. Masculine and neuter singular nouns that end in -el also add nothing at all (with three exceptions: Pantoffel, Stachel, Muskel).
| Masculine | Neuter | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| ein Bruder | zwei Brüder | ein Fenster | zwei Fenster |
| ein Kegel | zwei Kegel | ein Mittel | zwei Mittel |
4. Nouns that end in a vowel other than an unstressed -e and nouns of foreign origin add -s.
| ein Hobby | zwei Hobbys |
| ein Hotel | zwei Hotels |
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