Guten Morgengoot-en mor-genGood Morning

Guten Taggoot-en tahkHello/Good Day

Guten Abendgoot-en ah-bentGood Evening

Gute Nachtgoot-eh nakhtGood Night

Tag / Hallo / Servustahk / hah-loh / sair-voohsHi / Hello / Hi & Bye (Southern Germany & Austria)

Auf Wiedersehenowf vee-dair-zaynGoodbye

Grüß dich / Grüß Gott!Hello! / Greetings! (Southern Germany & Austria)

Tschüs / Tschautchews / chowBye!

Gehen wir!geh-en veerLet's go!

Bis späterbiss shpay-terSee you later

Bis baldbiss bahltSee you soon

Bis morgenbiss mohr-genSee you tomorrow

Bittebih-tuhPlease

Danke (schön / sehr) dahn-kuh shurn/zairThank you

Bitte schönbih-tuh shurnYou're welcome

Es tut mir leid.ehs toot meer liteI'm sorry

Entschuldigen Sieehnt-shool-dih-gun zeeExcuse me

VerzeihungPardon me

Wie geht es Ihnen?vee gayt es ee-nenHow are you? (formal)

Wie geht's?vee gaytsHow are you? (informal)

(Sehr) Gut / So lalazair goot / zo lahlah(Very) Good / OK

Schlecht / Nicht Gutshlekht / nisht gootBad / Not good

Es geht.ess gateI'm ok. (informal)

Ja / Neinyah / nineYes / No

Wie heißen Sie?vee hie-ssen zeeWhat's your name? (formal)

Wie heißt du?vee hiesst dooWhat's your name? (informal)

Ich heiße...ikh hie-ssuhMy name is... [I am called...]

Es freut mich.froyt mikhPleased to meet you.

Gleichfalls.glykh-falsLikewise.

Herr / Frau / Fräuleinhair / frow / froi-lineMister / Misses / Miss

Woher kommen Sie?vo-hair koh-men zee

Woher kommst du?vo-hair kohmst doo

Ich komme aus...ikh koh-muh ows...

Where are you from? (formal)

Where are you from? (informal)

I'm from...

Wo wohnen Sie?vo voh-nen zeeWhere do you live? (formal)

Wo wohnst du?vo vohnst dooWhere do you live? (informal)

Ich wohne in...ikh voh-nuh in I live in...

Wie alt sind Sie?vee alt zint zeeHow old are you? (formal)

Wie alt bist du?vee alt bisst dooHow old are you? (informal)

Ich bin ____ Jahre alt.ikh bin ____ yaa-reh altI am ____ years old.

Sprechen Sie deutsch?shpreck-en zee doytchDo you speak German? (formal)

Sprichst du englisch?shprikhst doo eng-lishDo you speak English? (informal)

Ich spreche (kein)...ikh shpreck-uh kineI (don't) speak...

Verstehen Sie? / Verstehst du?fehr-shtay-en zee / fehr-shtayst dooDo you understand? (formal / informal)

Ich verstehe (nicht).ikh fehr-shtay-eh nikhtI (don't) understand.

Ich weiß (nicht).ikh vise nikhtI (don't) know.

Können Sie mir helfen?ker-nen zee meer hell-fenCan you help me? (formal)

Kannst du mir helfen?kahnst doo meer hell-fenCan you help me? (informal)

Natürlich / Gernenah-tewr-likh / gair-nuhOf course / Gladly

Kann ich Ihnen helfen?kahn ikh ee-nen hell-fenMay I help you? (formal)

Kann ich dir helfen?kahn ikh deer hell-fenMay I help you? (informal)

Wie bitte?vee bih-tuhWhat? Pardon me?

Wie heißt ___ auf deutsch?vee heist ___ owf doytchHow do you say ___ in German?

Wo ist / Wo sind... ?voh ist / voh zintWhere is / Where are... ?

Es gibt...ess geeptThere is / are...

Was ist los?vahs ist lohsWhat's the matter?

Das macht nichts.dass makht nikhtsIt doesn't matter.

Das ist mir egal.dass ist meer eh-gahlI don't care.

Keine Angst!ky-nuh ahngstDon't worry!

Ich habe es vergessen.ikh hah-buh ess fehr-geh-senI forgot.

Jetzt muss ich gehen.yetz mooss ikh geh-enI must go now.

Ich habe Hunger / Durst.ikh hah-buh hoong-er / dirstI'm hungry / thirsty.

Ich bin krank / müde.ikh bin krahnk moo-duhI'm sick / tired.

Ich habe Langeweile.ikh hah-buh lahn-guh-vy-luhI'm bored.

Ich möchte / Ich hätte gern...ikh merkh-tuh / ikh heh-tuh gairnI'd like...

Das gefällt mir.dahs geh-fehlt meerI like it.

Prima / Toll / Super!pree-mah / tohl / zoo-pairGreat / Fantastic!

Gesundheit!geh-soont-hytBless you!

Herzlichen Glückwunsch!herts-likh-en glewk-voonshCongratulations!

Sei ruhig!zy roo-hikhBe quiet! (informal)

Willkommen!vil-koh-menWelcome!

Viel Glück!feel glewkGood luck!

Schauen Sie mal! / Schau mal!show-en zee mal / show malLook! (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 ... ? Was für ein...? Nicht wahr?

How about...? What kind of (a)...? [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.

2. Pronunciation

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

a ah astronaut der Adler (eagle), Januar (January)

B b approximate: bay

baby der Bruder (brother), aber (but)

C capproximate: tsay

creative, Celcius (soft c sound in German sounds like ts)

der Chor, der Christkindlmarkt (south German term for der Weihnachtsmarkt/ Christmas market), Celcius

D dapproximate: day

dollar Dienstag (Tuesday), oder (or)

E e approximate: ay

elegant essen (to eat), zuerst (first)

F f eff effort der Freund (friend), offen (open)

G g approximate: gay

gorgeous gut (good), gemein (mean)

H h haa hammer der Hammer, dieMühle (mill)

I i eeh Igorder Igel (porcupine), der Imbiss (snack), sieben (seven)

J j yot yellow das Jahr (year), jeder (each)

K k kah camel das Kamel, der Kuchen (cake)

L l ell love die Leute (people), das Land (land)

M m em man der Mann, die Ameise

N n en nice nicht (not), die Münze (coin)

O o oh oven Ostern (Easter),rot (red)

P p approximate: party die Polizei (police), der Apfel

pay

Q q koo coraldas Quadrat (square), die Quelle (source)Note: All German words start with qu (kw - sound)

R r approximate: er

rich der Rücken (the back), der Stern (star)

S s eszoo, shine, mouse

summen (to hum), schön (pretty, nice), die Maus

T t approximate: tay

tyrant der Tyrann, acht (eight)

U u ooh ou sound in you die Universität (university), der Mund (mouth)

V v fow father der Vogel (bird), die Nerven (nerves)

W w approximate: vay

vandie Wange (cheek), das Schwein (pig, wieviel (how much)

X x ix sounds like kz

das Xylofon/ Xylophon, die Hexe (witch) Note: There are hardly any German words that start with X

Y y uep-si-lohn yellowdie Yucca, der YetiNote: There are hardly any German words that start with Y.

Z z tset sounds like tsdie Zeitung (newspaper), der Zigeuner (gypsy)

Umlaut + ß

Aussprache des Buchstaben/ Pronunciation of Letter

Beispiele/ Examples

ä sounds similar to the e in melonähnlich (similar), gähnen (to yawn)

ö sounds similar to the i in girlÖsterreich (Austria), der Löwe (lion)

ü no equivalent nor approximate sound in über (over),müde (tired)

English

ß (esszet) double s sound heiß (hot),d

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.)

3. Alphabet

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.

4. Nouns & Cases

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 sentenceThe girl is reading.

Accusative direct objectsWe see the mountain.I bought a gift.

Dative indirect objects

We talk to   the guide.I gave my mom a gift.

Genitiveindicates 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.

5. Articles & Demonstratives

Definite Articles (The)

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

Indefinite Articles (A, An)

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

Demonstratives (This, That, These, Those)

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.

6. Subject (Nominative) Pronouns

Subject Pronouns

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 zeethey, 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 das can be substituted for er, sie and es to show more emphasis.

7. To Be, to Have, & to Become

Present tense of sein - to be (zine)

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 istair/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.

In everyday speech, the final -e on the ich conjugations can be dropped: ich hab' or hab' ich

8. Useful Words

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.

9. Question Words

Who wer vehrWhom (acc.)

Wen vain

What was vahsWhom (dat.)

wem vaim

Why warumvah-room

How come

wieso vee-zo

When wann vahnWhere from

woher vo-hair

Where wo vohWhere to

wohin vo-hin

How wie vee Whichwelche/-r/-s

velsh-uh/er/es

10. Numbers / Die Nummern

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.

11. Days of the Week / Die Tage

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)

SamstagSonnabend

zahms-tahkzon-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.

12. Months of the Year / Die Monate

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.

13. Seasons / Die Jahreszeiten

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.

14. Directions / Die Richtungen

right rechts

left links

straight geradeaus

North der Norden

South der Süden

East der Osten

West der Westen

 

im Norden = in the Northnach Osten = to the Eastaus Westen = from the West

15. Colors & Shapes / Die Farben & Die Formen

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. 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.

16. Time / Die Zeit

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.

17. Weather / Das Wetter

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 clearingDas Wetter klärt sich auf.

dahs vett-er klairt sikh owf

18. Family / Die Familie

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-lawdie 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)

19. To Know People & Facts

kennen - to know people wissen - to know facts

ich kenne ken-nuh wir kennenken-nun

ich weiß vise wir wissen vih-sun

du kennst kenst ihr kennt kent du weißt vist ihr wisst vihst

er/sie/es kennt

kentsie/Sie kennen

ken-nun

er/sie/es weiß

visesie/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.

20. Formation of Plural Nouns

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

21. Possessive Adjectives

Masc. Fem. Neu. Pl.

Nom. mein meine mein meine

Acc. meinen meine mein meine

Dat. meinem meiner meinem meinen

Gen. meines meiner meines meiner

 

Other words that are formed like mein (my) are:  ein - a/an, dein-your (du form), sein-his/its, ihr-her, unser-our, euer-your (ihr form), ihr-their, Ihr-your (Sie form), and kein-no/not any.

22.  Accusative Case

The accusative case corresponds to direct objects.  Here are the accusative forms of the definite

and indefinite articles.  Note that only the masculine changes in this case.

Definite and Indefinite Articles

Masc. Fem. Neuter Plural

Definite den die das die

Indefinite einen eine ein keine

 

Some masculine nouns add an -(e)n to the accusative form, such as international nouns ending in -t (Dirigent, Komponist, Patient, Polizist, Soldat, Student, Tourist, Journalist); nouns ending in -e denoting male persons or animals (Drache, Junge, Kunde, Löwe, Neffe, Riese, Vorfahre, Zeuge); and the following nouns: Elefant, Herr, Mensch, Nachbar.  And wen (whom) is the accusative of wer (who).

Personal Pronouns - Nominative & Accusative

ich I mich me wir we uns us

Du you dich you ihr you euch you

Er he ihn him sie they sie them

Sie she sie her Sie you Sie you

Es it es it

German uses the case system to show the function of a word in a sentence, whereas English relies mainly on word order.  Take, for example, the following sentences:  Ich esse den Apfel translates into I eat the apple.  In German, you can switch the word order around without affecting the meaning.  Den Apfel esse ich is also I eat the apple, but in English, if you were to change word order, you would have to say the apple eats me.  English does not accommodate for the direct object to be placed before the subject and verb like German does. Usually, word order reflects (subjective) focus: the noun having the speakers focus is usually put as much as possible towards the beginning of a sentence.

23.  Dative Case

The dative case corresponds to indirect objects.  Usually in English, we use the words to or for to indicate an indirect object.  But German relies on the endings of the dative case.  Here

are the dative forms of the definite and indefinite articles.

Definite and Indefinite Articles

Masc. Fem. Neuter Plural

Definite dem der dem den

Indefinite einem einer einem keinen

Those same masculine nouns that added an -(e)n in the accusative form also add an -(e)n in the dative form.  And all plural nouns add an -(e)n in the dative plural, unless they already end in an -n or -s.  And wem (to/for whom) is the dative of wer

(who).

Personal Pronouns

mir me uns us

dir you euch you

ihm him ihnen they

ihr her Ihnen you

ihm it

In sentences with both a direct and indirect object, the noun in the dative case precedes the accusative noun, unless the accusative case is a pronoun.

Ich schenke meinem Bruder eine Krawatte.  I give (to) my brother a tie.Ich schenke sie meinem Bruder.  I give it to my brother.

24. Genitive Case

The genitive case is used to show possession, more often in writing than in speech. When speaking, most people use von (of) plus the dative case to show possession. For proper nouns, German only adds an -s to the noun, whereas English would add an apostrophe and an -s. Feminine and Plural nouns do not change in the Genitive case. Masculine and Neuter nouns add an -s if the word is more than one syllable, or an -es if the word is one syllable.  Except the weak masculine nouns that added -(e)n in the accusative and dative; they also add -(e)n in the genitive.  There are some irregular nouns that add -s after -en in the genitive case as well, for example der Name becomes des Namens and das Herz becomes des Herzens.

die Farbe des Vogels - the color of the birddie Grösse des Hauses - the size of the house

die Tasche meiner Mutter - my mother's purse [the purse of my mother]

der Bleistift des Studenten - the student's pencil [the pencil of the student]

Definite and Indefinite Articles

Masc. Fem. Neu. Plural

Definite des der des der

Indefinite eines einer eines keiner

25. To Do or Make

machen - to do or make

mache mock-uh machen mock-en

machst mockst macht mockt

macht mockt machen mock-en

26. Work and School

  masculine feminine

actor   Schauspieler   Schauspielerin 

architect  Architekt (en)  Architektin 

artist   Künstler   Künstlerin 

author   Schriftsteller   Schriftstellerin 

bank clerk   Bankangestellter   Bankangestellte 

businessman/woman Geschäftsmann   Geschäftsfrau 

cashier  Kassierer  Kassiererin

civil servant   Beamter   Beamtin 

conductor  Dirigent  Dirigentin

cook  Koch (ö, e)  Köchin 

custodian  Hausmeister  Hausmeisterin

dentist  Zahnarzt (ä, e)  Zahnärztin

doctor  Arzt (e)  Ärztin

engineer  Ingenieur  Ingenieurin 

farmer   Landwirt   Landwirtin 

flight attendant  Flugbegleiter  Flugbegleiterin

hairdresser  Friseur  Friseurin

journalist   Journalist   Journalistin 

judge  Richter  Richterin

lawyer  Anwalt (ä, e)  Anwältin

lecturer   Dozent   Dozentin 

librarian  Bibliothekar  Bibliothekarin 

mechanic  Automechaniker  Automechanikerin 

nurse  Krankenpfleger  Krankenpflegerin

pensioner  (retired) Rentner   Rentnerin 

pharmacist Drogist Drogistin

photographer   Fotograf   Fotografin 

pilot  Pilot (en)  Pilotin 

police officer  Polizist (en)  Polizistin 

politician   Politiker   Politikerin 

postal worker  Postangestellter Postangestellte

president  Präsident (en)  Präsidentin 

priest  Priester  Priesterin 

professor   Professor   Professorin 

salesperson  Verkäufer  Verkäuferin

secretary  Sekretär  Sekretärin 

student   Student   Studentin 

taxi driver  Taxifahrer  Taxifahrerin 

teacher   Lehrer   Lehrerin 

TV reporter  Fernsehreporter  Fernsehreporterin 

waiter  Kellner  Kellnerin

worker  Arbeiter  Arbeiterin 

writer  Schriftsteller  Schriftstellerin

Besides the plural forms shown above, the rest of the male professions are the same (they do not add anything) in the plural, while all the feminine add -nen in the plural. Also, German does not use articles before professions.  You would only say Ich bin Kellner if you mean I am a waiter.

Was sind Sie von Beruf? What do you do for a living?Ich bin Arzt. I'm a doctor (male).

School die Schule (n) Elementary School die Grundschule (n)

University die Universität (en) Secondary School das Gymnasium

College / University

die Hochschule (n) High School die Oberschule (n)

Subject das Fach (ä, er) Foreign languages Fremdsprachen

Literature Literatur Linguistics Linguistik

Social Studies Sozialkunde History Geschichte

Biology Biologie Natural Science Naturwissenschaft

Philosophy Philosophie Psychology Psychologie

Earth science Erdkunde Sociology Soziologie

Math Mathematik Geography Geographie

Geometry Geometrie Computer science Informatik

Mechanical Maschinenbau Economics Wirtschaft

Engineering

Management Betriebswirtschaft Chemistry Chemie

Marketing Marketing Media Studies Medienwissenschaft

Physics Physik Political Science Politik

Music Musik Art Kunst

Drawing Zeichnen Band Musikkapelle

Test die Prüfung (en) Class die Klasse (n)

Lunchtime die Mittagspause Lunch das Mittagessen

Cafeteria die Mensa School Supplies die Schulsachen

Dictionarydas Wörterbuch (ü, er)

Staplerdie Heftmaschine (n)

Scissors die Schere (n) Ruler das Lineal (e)

Eraserdas Radiergummi (s)

Chalk die Kreide

Book das Buch (ü, er) Notebook das Heft (e)

Pencil der Bleistift (e) Sheet of Paper das Blatt Papier

Schoolbag die Schultasche (n) Calculatorder Taschenrechner (-)

Pender Kugelschreiber / der Kuli

Homework die Hausaufgaben

Girl das Mädchen (-) Boy der Junge (n)

Friend (m) der Freund (e) Friend (f) die Freundin (nen)

Pupil/Student (m) der Schüler (-) Pupil/Student (f) die Schülerin (nen)

Student (m) der Student (en) Student (f) die Studentin (nen)

Teacher (m) der Lehrer (-) Teacher (f) die Lehrerin (nen)

Professor (m) der Professor Professor (f) die Professorin (nen)

Grades die Noten hard schwer

Course der Kurs (e) easy leicht

Semester das Semester (-) Vacation die Ferien (pl.)

Scheduleder Stundenplan (ä, e)

Assignment die Aufgabe (n)

 

In Germany, students must pass das Abitur in order to graduate from high school. In Austria, this final exam is called die Matura. Notice that there are two words for

student: Schüler is used for students in primary and secondary schools, while Student is only used for university students.

 

The verb studieren is used for university study or to state your major. The verb lernen should be used for studying in general, and especially for learning a language.

Er studiert in Freiburg. He studies (goes to university) in Freiburg.Ich studiere Französisch. I study French (in college). / French is my major. Ich lerne Spanisch und Italienisch. I'm studying/learning Spanish and Italian.

27. Prepositions

Prepositions that take the Accusative case

durch through

gegen against

um around / at

für for

ohne without

bis until

Preps. that take the Dative case

aus out (of), from (country, town or place)

mit with, by means of (transportation)

von from (person, open space, or direction), by

seit since, for

bei near, at, at home of or place of business

nach after, to (cities and countries)

zu to (mostly people and specifically named buildings)

gegenüber across from

außer except for, besides

Preps. that take the Genitive case

während during

trotz in spite of

(an)statt instead of

wegen because of

außerhalb outside of

innerhalb inside of

Preps. that may take Acc. or Dat. (two-way)

anat, to, on (vertical surfaces, denotes border or limiting area)

aufonto, on (horizontal surfaces), to (some public buildings)

hinter behind

inin, into, to (building, enclosed space, feminine or plural countries)

neben beside, next to

über over, above, across, about

unter under, below, among, beneath

vor in front of, before

zwischen between

For the two-way prepositions:   The accusative form indicates direction and movement and answers the question where to?  The dative form indicates position and location and answers the question where? For example:  In die Schule means to school and uses the accusative form because it is a direction.  In der Schule means in school and uses the dative form because it is a location.  But one exception is zu Hause - at home (dat.) and nach Hause - (to) home (acc.)  Ich bin zu Hause is I am at home, and Ich gehe nach Hause is I am going home.

Accusative:  movement & direction Dative:  location & position

Er hängt das Bild über das Sofa.He hangs the picture over the sofa.

Das Bild hängt über dem Sofa.The picture hangs over the sofa.

Stell es unter den Tisch.Put it under the table.

Es ist unter dem Tisch.It is under the table.

Fahren Sie den Wagen hinter das Haus.Drive the car behind the house.

Der Wagen steht hinter dem Haus.The car is behind the house.

Stellen Sie die Flaschen vor die Tür.Put the bottles in front of the door.

Die Flaschen stehen vor der Tür.The bottles are in front of the door.

Stell es auf den Tisch.Put it on the table.

Es liegt auf dem Tisch.It's lying on the table.

Schreib es an die Tafel.Write it on the board.

Es steht an der Tafel.It is on the board.

Er geht in die Küche.He goes into the kitchen.

Er ist in der Küche.He is in the kitchen.

Stellen Sie es neben das Haus.Put it beside the house.

Es ist neben dem Haus.It is beside the house.

Stell die Lampe zwischen das Sofa und den Tisch.Put the lamp between the sofa and the table.

Die Lampe steht zwischen dem Sofa und dem Tisch.The lamp is between the sofa and the table.

Stellen, legen and setzen use the accusative case, while stehen, liegen and sitzen use the dative case.

28. Prepositional Contractions

Contractions in Writing Contractions in Informal Speech

an dem am an den an'n

auf das aufs auf den auf'n

für das fürs auf dem auf'm

in das ins aus den aus'n

zu dem zum für den für'n

an das ans gegen das gegen's

bei dem beim in den in'n

in dem im nach dem nach'm

von dem vom    

zu der zur    

durch das durchs    

um das ums    

29. Countries and Nationalities

Africa Afrika Ireland Irland

African Afrikaner/in Irishman Ire/Irin

Albania Albanien Israel Israel

Albanian Albaner/in Israeli Israeli

America Amerika Hebrew Hebräisch

American Amerikaner/in Italy Italien

Argentina Argentinien Italian Italiener/in

Argentine Argentinier/in Japan Japan

Asia Asien Japanese Japaner/in

Asian Asiat/in Latvia Lettland

Australia Australien Latvian Lette/Lettin

Australian Australier/in Lithuania Litauen

Austria Österreich Lithuanian Litauer/in

Austrian Österreicher/in Luxembourg Luxemburg

Belgium Belgien Luxembourger Luxemburger/in

Belgian Belgier/in Macedonia Mazedonien

Bosnia Bosnien Macedonian Mazedonier/in

Bosnian Bosnier/in Malta Malta

Brazil Brasilien Maltese Malteser/in

Brazilian Brasilianer/in Mexico Mexiko

Bulgaria Bulgarien Mexican Mexikaner/in

Bulgarian Bulgare/Bulgarin Netherlands die Niederlande

Canada Kanada Dutch Holländer/in

Canadian Kanadier/in New Zealand Neuseeland

China China New Zealander Neuseeländer/in

Chinese Chinese/Chinesin Norway Norwegen

Croatia Kroatien Norwegian Norweger/in

Croatian Kroate/Kroatin Poland Polen

Cyprus Zypern Polish Pole/Polin

Cypriot Zypriot/in Portugal Portugal

Czech Republic

die Tschechische Republik

Portuguese Portugiese/Portugiesin

Czech Tscheche/Tschechin Romania Rumänien

Denmark Dänemark Romanian Rumäne/Rumänin

Danish Däne/Dänin Russia Russland

Egypt Ägypten Russian Russe/Russin

Egyptian Ägypter/in Scotland Schottland

England England Scottish Schotte/Schottin

English Engländer/in Serbia Serbien

Estonia Estland Serbian Serbe/Serbin

Estonian Este/Estin Slovakia die Slowakei

Europe Europa Slovak Slowake/Slowakin

European Europäer/in Slovenia Slowenien

Finland Finnland Slovene Slowene/Slowenin

Finnish Finne/Finnin South Africa Südafrika

France Frankreich South African Südafrikaner/in

French Franzose/Französin Spain Spanien

Germany Deutschland Spanish Spanier/in

German Deutscher/Deutsche Sweden Schweden

Great Britain Großbritannien Swedish Schwede/in

British Brite/Britin Switzerland die Schweiz

Greece Griechenland Swiss Schweizer/in

Greek Grieche/Griechin Turkey die Türkei

Hungary Ungarn Turk Türke/Türkin

Hungarian Ungar/in Ukraine die Ukraine

Iceland Island Ukrainian Ukrainer/in

Icelandic Isländer/in United Kingdom Vereinigtes Königreich

India Indien United States die Vereinigten Staaten

Indian Inder/in Wales Wales

Indonesia Indonesien Welsh Waliser/in

Indonesian Indonesier/in

Female nationalities add -in to the masculine nationality but some need to delete the final -e before adding -in. A few nationalities are slightly irregular or have spelling changes: Deutscher (German man), Deutsche (German woman), Franzose (Frenchman), Französin (Frenchwoman)

To form the adjective, use the masculine nationality stem and add -isch: amerikanisch, belgisch, griechisch, polnisch, schwedisch, etc. Some are slightly irregular: deutsch, englisch, französisch

The adjectives can also refer to the language, but then the word must be capitalized, i.e. deutsch is the adjective that is usually followed by a noun, whereas Deutsch is the German language.

30. Negative Sentences

Nicht and kein are forms of negation, but nicht means not and kein means no, not a, or not any.  Kein is used to negate nouns that either have no articles or are preceded by the indefinite article.  Kein precedes the nouns in sentences.  It is declined as an ein-word.  

Ist das eine Katze? Is that a cat?

Nein, das ist keine Katze. No, that's not a cat.

Nicht negates nouns preceded by a definite article or a possessive adjective; or it could negate any part (verb, noun, adjective) or all of a sentence.  Nicht always follows the verb, but usually precedes the part of the sentence to be negated.  It you want to negate an entire sentence, nicht comes last.  Nicht also follows expressions of time.

Das ist meine Frau. That's my wife.

Das ist nicht meine Frau. That's not my wife.

Heute ist es kalt. It is cold today.

Heute ist es nicht kalt. It is not cold today.

31. To and From Countries and Cities

to nach

from aus

in in

In also means to when it is used before a country that has a definite article (feminine and plural countries.)  

Ich fliege in die Schweiz. I'm flying to Switzerland.  Ich fliege nach Deutschland. I'm flying to Germany.  

And when aus is used with feminine or plural countries, the definite article must also be used.  

Ich bin aus den USA . I am from the US. Ich bin aus Frankreich . I am from France.

32. To Come and to Go

kommen - to come

komme koh-muh kommen koh-men

kommst kohmst kommt kohmt

kommt kohmt kommen koh-men

 

gehen - to go

gehe geh-uh gehen geh-in

gehst gehst geht gate

geht gate gehen geh-in

 

33. Modal Verbs

German has six modal verbs that you should memorize. They express an attitude about an action or condition described by the main verb.  The modal auxiliary is conjugated and placed in the second position of the sentence.  The main verb is in the infinitive form and placed at the end of the clause or sentence.

Ich kann eine Fahrkarte kaufen. (I can buy a ticket.)  Kann is the conjugated auxiliary verb and kaufen is the main verb in infinitive form.

können - to be able to, can

ich kann wir können

du kannst ihr könnt

er/sie/es kann sie/Sie können

 

müssen - to have to, must

ich muß wir müssen

du mußt ihr müsst

er/sie/es muß sie/Sie müssen

 

dürfen - to be allowed/permitted to

ich darf wir dürfen

du darfst ihr dürft

er/sie/es darf sie/Sie dürfen

 

Nicht müssen translates to do not have to or do not need to.  Nicht dürfen translates to must not.  Du mußt es nicht machen is you don't have to do it.  Du darfst es nicht machen is you must not (or are not allowed) to do it.

sollen - to be supposed to

ich soll wir sollen

du sollst ihr sollt

er/sie/es soll sie/Sie sollen

wollen - to want (to)

ich will wir wollen

du willst ihr wollt

er/sie/es will sie/Sie wollen

mögen - to like

ich mag wir mögen

du magst ihr mögt

er/sie/es mag sie/Sie mögen

Subjunctive of mögen - would like

ich möchte wir möchten

du möchtest ihr möchtet

er/sie/es möchte sie/Sie möchten

This subjunctive of mögen expresses would like to and is used more often than the indicative of mögen.  Ich möchte eine Fahrkarte kaufen means I would like to buy a ticket.

Sometimes the infinitive is not required with modal verbs, if the meaning is clear enough without them. For example, you can often omit sprechen and tun after können and you can omit verbs of motion if there is an adverb of place.

Ich kann Spanisch. I can/know how to speak Spanish.Er will nach Hause. He wants to go home.

34. Conjugating Regular Verbs in the Present Tense

To conjugate means to give the different forms of a verb depending on the subject. English only has two regular conjugations in the present tense, no ending and -s ending (I, you, we, they run vs. he/she/it runs).  To form regular verbs in German, remove

the -en ending and add these endings:

-e -en

-st -t

-t -en

Regular Verbs in the Present Tense

antworten to answer machen to make

arbeiten to work passieren to happen

beginnen to begin rauchen to smoke

bekommen to get reisen to travel

benutzen to use rennen to run

besuchen to visit rufen to call

bezahlen to pay for sagen to say

bleiben to remain/stay schlafen to sleep

brauchen to need schreiben to write

dauern to last schwimmen to swim

denken to think sehen to see

entdecken to discover singen to sing

erfinden to invent sitzen to sit

ergänzen to complete sparen to save (money)

erlauben to permit stecken to put

erzählen to tell stehen to stand

essen to eat studieren to study

finden to find suchen to look for

fischen to fish tanzen to dance

fliegen to fly treffen to meet

fragen to ask trennen to separate

gehen to go trinken to drink

gewinnen to win verdienen to earn (money)

glauben to believe/think vergessen to forget

helfen to help verlieren to lose

kaufen to buy versprechen to promise

kennen to know (people) verstehen to understand

kommen to come warten to wait

laufen to run waschen to wash

lehren to teach winken to wave

lernen to learn wischen to wipe

lieben to love wünschen to wish/desire

liegen to lay ziehen to move

English has three ways of expressing the present tense, such as I run, I am running, I do run.  All three of these tenses are translated as one tense in German (ich laufe.) However, you can add gerade after the verb to indicate the progressive form.  Ich mache meine Hausaufgaben can be translated as I do my homework or I'm doing my homework.  Ich mache gerade meine Hausaufgaben is translated as I'm doing my homework.

35. Reflexive Verbs

Reflexive verbs express an action that reciprocates back to the subject. In other words, whoever is

speaking is doing an action to himself. Examples in English would be: I wash myself, he hurts

himself, we hate ourselves. Usually the -self words are a clue in English; however, there are more

reflexive verbs in German than in English.

Reflexive Pronouns

Accusative Dative

mich uns mir uns

dich euch dir euch

sich sich sich sich

The reflexive pronoun follows the verb and agrees with the subject. When a clause contains another object besides the reflexive pronoun, then the reflexive pronoun is in the dative case since the other object is in the accusative case. This is when you use the dative reflexive pronouns instead of the accusative ones.

Accusative: Ich fühle mich nicht wohl - I don't feel well.

Dative: Ich ziehe mir den Mantel aus - I'm taking off my coat.

Also note that parts of the body and articles of clothing use the definite article, not a possessive.  

Reflexive Verbs

sich ärgern to get angry sich aufregen to get agitated

sich ausruhen to rest sich erkälten to catch a cold

sich freuen to be happy sich (wohl) fühlen to feel (well)

sich hinlegen to lie down sich anziehen to get dressed

sich verletzen to get hurt sich ausziehen to get undressed

sich beeilen to hurry sich setzen to sit down

sich erholen to relax sich vorstellen to imagine

Reflexive Verbs + Accusative:

sich ärgern über to get annoyed about

sich erinnern an to remember

sich freuen über to be happy about

sich freuen auf to look forward to

sich gewöhnen an to get used to

sich kümmern um to take care of

sich bewerben um to apply for

sich interessieren für to be interested in

sich konzentrieren auf to concentrate on

sich vorbereiten auf to prepare for

sich entscheiden für to decide on

sich verlieben in to fall in love with

Reflexive Verbs + Dative:

sich trennen von to break up with

sich erkundigen nach to ask about

sich fürchten vor to be afraid of

36. Exceptions: Irregularities in Regular verbs 

1) Some verbs require an umlaut over the a in the 2nd and 3rd person singular.

Fahren-to travel

fahre fahren

fährst fahrt

fährt fahren

Examples: fallen-to fall, schlafen-to sleep, tragen-to carry, waschen-to wash, laufen-to run

2) Some verbs change the e to ie in the 2nd and 3rd person singular.

Sehen-to see

sehe sehen

siehst seht

sieht sehen

Examples: lesen- to read, befehlen-to command, empfehlen-to recommend, geschehen-to happen, stehlen-to steal

3) Some verbs change the e to an i in the 2nd and 3rd person singular.

Geben-to give

gebe geben

gibst gebt

gibt geben

Examples: brechen-to break, essen-to eat, helfen-to help, sprechen-to speak, sterben-to die, treffen-to meet, werfen-to throw*nehmen has another irregularity:  it doubles the m and drops the h*

nehme nehmen

nimmst nehmt

nimmt nehmen

4) Verb stems ending -d or -t, add an e before three endings.

Reden-to speak

rede reden

redest redet

redet reden

5) Verb stems ending in an s or z sound, have -t for du form ending instead of -st.

Sitzen-to sit

sitze sitzen

sitzt sitzt

sitzt sitzen

6) Infinitives ending in -n (not -en) only have -n ending for wir and sie forms.  Infinitive stems

ending in -el or -er can drop the e in the ich form.

Tun-to do / Segeln-to sail

tue tun segle segeln

tust tut segelst segelt

tut tun segelt segeln

37. Verbs with Prepositions

Accusative Dative

denken an to think about arbeiten an to work on

glauben an to believe in erkennen an to recognize something by

kommen an to come to sterben an to die of

schreiben an to write to teilnehmen an to participate in

achten auf to pay attention to helfen bei to help with

ankommen auf

to come down to/be a question of

anfangen mit to begin with

antworten auf

to answer fahren mitto go/travel (by means of)

böse sein auf

to be angry at rechnen mit to count on, expect

gespannt sein auf

to be excited about sprechen mit to talk to

hoffen auf to hope for fragen nach to ask about

warten auf to wait for riechen nach to smell of/like

danken für to thank for abhängen von to depend on

sorgen für to care for erzählen von to tell about

lachen über to laugh about halten vonto think/feel about

lesen über to read about handeln vonto deal with/be about

nachdenken über

to think about sprechen von to talk about

reden über to talk about träumen von to dream about

schreiben über

to write about verstehen von to know about/understand

sprechen über

to talk about wissen von to know of

bitten um to ask for/request Angst haben vor to be afraid of

kämpfen um to fight for retten vor to save from

Fahren mit cannot be used with all forms of transportation, such as on foot or by plane.

38. Separable Prefixes

ab- auf- bei- los- mit- vor- weg- zurück-

an- aus- ein- fern- nach- vorbei- zu- zusammen-

These prefixes are added to the infinitive and change the meaning of the verb. Kommen is to come, but ankommen is to arrive.  When conjugated, the prefix goes to the end of the sentence.   Er kommt um fünf Uhr an means "he is arriving at 5."  But Er kommt um drei Uhr means "he is coming at 3."  With modals, the infinitive goes to the end of the sentence as usual, but the prefix remains attached.  Ich will jetzt ausgehen means "I want to go out now."

Verbs with Separable Prefixes

abholen to pick up ausmachen to turn off

abräumen to clear (the table) aussehen to look like, appear

abtrocknen to dry (dishes) austragen to deliver

abwischen to wipe clean auswandern to emigrate

anfangen to begin ausziehen to take off clothes

ankommen to arrive einkaufen to shop

anmachen to turn on einladen to invite

anrufen to call up einpacken to pack up

anschauen to look at einschlafen to fall asleep

ansehen to look at, watch einsteigen to board

anziehen to put on clothes fernsehen to watch TV

anzünden to light (candles) mitkommen to come with

aufhören to stop mitnehmen to take with

aufmachen to open vorbeikommen to come by

aufräumen to tidy up (clothes) vorschlagen to suggest

aufstehen to get up vorstellen to introduce

aufwachen to wake up weggehen to go away

aufwischen to mop up wegstellen to put away

ausfüllen to fill in (the blanks) zuhören to listen to

ausgeben to spend zumachen to close

ausgehen to go out zurückkommen to come back

ausleeren to empty zusehen to observe

Ausgehen can also mean to be on good/bad terms with someone.

39. Inseparable Prefixes

be- ent- ge- ver-

emp- er- miss- zer-

These prefixes always remain attached to their infinitives.  The inseparable prefixes are unstressed syllables, as compared to the separable prefixes which can stand alone as different words.  Some examples of verbs with inseparable prefixes are besuchen - to visit, erzählen - to tell, gewinnen - to win, and versprechen - to promise.

Unter and über can function as separable prefixes, but they are much more commonly used as inseparable prefixes.  When prefixes are stressed, they are separable; when they are not stressed, they are inseparable.  The stress on the following verbs in not on the prefix, so they are all inseparable: unterhalten - to entertain, unternehmen - to undertake, überholen - to overtake, and übersetzen - to translate.

The German National Anthem: Deutschland-Liedby Heinrich Hoffman von Fallersleben

Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit für das deutsche Vaterland!Danach lasst uns alle streben brüderlich mit Herz und Hand!Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit sind des Glückes Unterpfand Blüh im Glanze dieses Glückes blühe deutsches Vaterland!

Unity and right and freedom for the German fatherland;Let us all pursue this purpose brotherly, with heart and hands.Unity and right and freedom are the pawns of happiness.Flourish in this blessing's glory, flourish, German fatherland.

The Austrian National Anthem: Österreichische Bundeshymneby Paula von Preradovic

Land der Berge, Land am Strome,Land der Äcker, Land der Dome,Land der Hämmer, zukunftsreich!Heimat bist du großer Söhne,Volk, begnadet für das Schöne,Vielgerühmtes Österreich.

Heiß umfehdet, wild umstrittenleigst dem Erdteil du inmitteneinem starken Herzen gleich.Hast seit frühen AhnentagenHoher Sendung Last getragenVielgeprüftes Österreich.

Mutig in die neuen Zeiten,Frei und gläubig sich uns schreiten,Arbeitsfroh und hoffnungsreich.Einig laß in Brüderchören,Vaterland, dir Treue schwören,Vielgeliebtes Österreich.

Land of mountains, land of streams,Land of fields, land of spires, Land of hammers, with a rich future.You are the home of great sons,A nation blessed by its sense of beauty,Highly praised Austria.

Strongly fought for, fiercely contested,You are in the centre of the ContinentLike a strong heart.You have borne since the earliest days.The burden of a high mission, Much tried Austria.

Watch us striding free and believing,With courage, into new eras, Working cheerfully and full of hope.In fraternal chorus let us take in unityThe oath of allegiance to you, our country,Our much beloved Austria.

The Swiss National Anthem: Schweizerpsalm

by Leonhard Widmer

Trittst im Morgenrot daher,Seh' ich dich im Strahlenmeer,Dich, du Hocherhabener, Herrlicher!

Wenn der Alpenfirn sich rötet,Betet, freie Schweizer, betet!Eure fromme Seele ahntGott im hehren Vaterland,Gott, den Herrn, im hehren Vaterland.

Kommst im Abendglühn daher,Find' ich dich im Sternenheer,Dich, du Menschenfreundlicher, Liebender!In des Himmels lichten RäumenKann ich froh und selig träumen!Denn die fromme Seele ahntGott im hehren Vaterland,Gott, den Herrn, im hehren Vaterland.

Ziehst im Nebelflor daher,Such' ich dich im Wolkenmeer,Dich, du Unergründlicher, Ewiger!Aus dem grauen LuftgebildeTritt die Sonne klar und milde,Und die fromme Seele ahntGott im hehren Vaterland,Gott, den Herrn, im hehren Vaterland.

Fährst im wilden Sturm daher,Bist Du selbst uns Hort und Wehr,Du, allmächtig Waltender, Rettender!In Gewitternacht und GrauenLasst uns kindlich ihm vertrauen!Ja, die fromme Seele ahnt,Ja, die fromme Seele ahntGott im hehren Vaterland,Gott, den Herrn, im hehren Vaterland !

40. Present Perfect or Past Indefinite Tense

This tense is used more often than the simple past, especially in conversation, and is equivalent to I have done or I did.  Regular verbs use a form of haben or sein and a past participle.  Past participles are made by adding ge- to the beginning of the verb stem and -t (or -et, if stem ends in -t or -d) to the end. 

Fragen is to ask, and -frag- is the stem; therefore gefragt is the past participle.  Arbeiten is to work, and -arbeit- is the stem; therefore gearbeitet is the past participle.Machen is to do/make, and -mach- is the stem; therefore gemacht is the past participle.

Verbs ending in -ieren only add the -t ending.  Studieren is to study and studier- is the stem, so studiert is the past participle.  

The form of haben or sein is placed where the verb should be, and the past participle goes to the end of the sentence.  Ex:  Ich habe meinen Bruder gefragt - I asked my brother.

Haben or Sein

Most verbs use haben, but a few use sein, if and only if, both of these conditions are met:

1. The verb expresses motion or change of condition. 2. The verb is intransitive (i.e. cannot take a direct object.)

Double Infinitive: When modals are used in the present perfect tense with a dependent infinitive, the past participle is not used.  The infinitive of the modal acts as the past participle.  Logically, I had to go home would be translated as ich habe nach Hause gehen gemußt.  However, it is actually Ich habe nach Hause gehen müssen. When there is no other infinitive in the sentence, then the past participles of the modals are used.  I had to would be translated as Ich habe gemußt.

→ All modals, as well as reflexive verbs, use haben in the present perfect tense.  The reflexive pronouns follow the auxiliary verb as in Ich habe mir den Arm gebrochen. I broke my arm.

→ With separable prefixes, the prefix comes before the ge- in a past participle, such as angekommen and aufgestanden.  From the participle of the base verb, and then add the prefix to the beginning.  But note that the prefix does change the entire meaning of the verb, and it may take a different auxiliary verb than its base verb.  For example, stehen takes haben, but aufstehen takes sein.

→ With inseparable prefixes, whether the verb is regular or irregular, there is no ge- prefix when forming the past participle, such as besucht and verloren.

→ To express something that has been going on or happening for a period of time, German using the present tense (rather than the past) and the word schon.  "I have been studying German for two years" translates to Ich studiere Deutsch schon zwei Jahre.

41. Irregular Past Participles with Haben

 

These irregular past participles end with -en, and some have vowel changes in the stem. All of the following irregular past participles use haben as the auxiliary verb.

 

anfangen begin angefangen raten advise geraten

aufstehen get up aufgestanden reißen tear gerissen

befehlen order, command befohlen riechen smell gerochen

beginnen begin begonnen rufen call gerufen

beißen bite gebissen scheinen shine geschienen

bekommen get, receive bekommen schieben push geschoben

bewerben apply beworben schlafen sleep geschlafen

binden tie gebunden schließen shut geschlossen

bitten ask gebeten schneiden cut geschnitten

brechen break gebrochen schreiben write geschrieben

einladen invite eingeladen schreien yell geschrieen

empfehlen recommend empfohlen schweigen be silent geschwiegen

essen eat gegessen schwingen swing geschwungen

finden find gefunden sehen see gesehen

fressen eat (of animals) gefressen singen sing gesungen

frieren freeze gefroren sitzen sit gesessen

geben give gegeben sprechen speak gesprochen

gewinnen win gewonnen stehen stand gestanden

gießen pour, water gegossen stehlen steal gestohlen

greifen reach gegriffen streiten quarrel gestritten

halten hold gehalten tragen wear getragen

hängen hang, suspend gehangen treffen meet getroffen

heben lift gehoben trinken drink getrunken

heißen be called geheißen tun do getan

helfen help geholfen verbieten forbid verboten

klingen sound geklungen vergessen forget vergessen

lassen let, allow gelassen verlassen leave verlassen

leiden suffer gelitten verlieren lose verloren

leihen lend geliehen versprechen promise versprochen

lesen read gelesen verstehen understand verstanden

liegen recline gelegen verzeihen forgive verziehen

lügen lie, fib gelogen waschen wash gewaschen

nehmen take genommen werfen throw geworfen

pfeifen whistle gepfiffen ziehen pull gezogen

Some verbs change their stems, like all irregular verbs; but take the endings for regular verbs instead of irregular verbs.  They form their past participles like regular verbs.  (Ge-stem-t)

Infinitive Irregular Stem Past Participle

brennen-to burn brann- gebrannt

bringen-to bring brach- gebracht

denken-to think dach- gedacht

kennen-to know (people) kann- gekannt

nennen-to call, name nann- genannt

rennen-to run rann- gerannt

wenden-to turn wand- gewandt

wissen-to know (facts) wuß- gewußt

42. Sein Verbs and Past Participles

 

The following verbs use sein as the auxiliary verb, and many have irregular past participles.

aufwachen wake up aufgewacht laufen run gelaufen

bleiben remain geblieben passieren happen passiert

erscheinen appear erschienen reisen travel gereist

ertrinken drown ertrunken reiten ride (horseback)

geritten

fahren drive, go, travel

gefahren rennen run gerannt

fallen fall gefallen schwimmen swim geschwommen

fliegen fly geflogen sein be gewesen

folgen follow gefolgt sinken sink gesunken

gebren be born geboren springen jump gesprungen

gehen go gegangen steigen climb gestiegen

gelingen succeed gelungen sterben die gestorben

geschehen happen geschehen treten step getreten

joggen jog gejoggt wachsen grow gewachsen

klettern climb geklettert wandern hike gewandert

kommen come gekommen werden become geworden

kriechen creep gekrochen      

43. Food and Meals

breakfast das Frühstück bread das Brot (e)

lunch das Mittagessen pepper der Pfeffer

dinner das Abendessen salt das Salz

glass das Glas (ä, er) ice das Eis

fork die Gabel (n) vinegar der Essig

spoon der Löffel (-) oil das Öl

knife das Messer (-) sugar der Zucker

napkin die Serviette (n) butter die Butter

plate der Teller (-) table der Tisch (e)

silverware das Besteck dishes das Geschirr

tea der Tee juice der Saft (ä, e)

steak das Steak water das Wasser

cake der Kuchen wine der Wein

chicken das Huhn beer das Bier

coffee der Kaffee soft drink die Limonade

fish der Fisch milk die Milch

ham der Schinken egg das Ei (er)

ice cream das Eis honey der Honig

jam die Marmelade snack der Imbiss

rice der Reis cheese der Käse

salad der Salat mustard der Senf

soup die Suppe pie die Torte (n)

44. Fruits, Vegetables and Meats

fruit das Obst pumpkin der Kürbis (e)

pineapple die Ananas (-) olive die Olive (n)

apple der Apfel (ä) raddish der Rettich (e)

apricot die Aprikose (n) lettuce der Salat

banana die Banane (n) tomato die Tomate (n)

pear die Birne (n) onion die Zwiebel (n)

strawberry die Erdbeere (n) green beans die grünen Bohnen

raspberry die Himbeere (n) corn der Mais

cherry die Kirsche (n) meat das Fleisch

lime die Limone (n) roast der Braten (-)

lemon die Zitrone (n) veal das Kalbfleisch

orange die Orange (n) lamb das Lammfleisch

peach der Pfirsisch (e) beef das Rindfleisch

grape die Traube (n) pork das Schweinefleisch

vegetable das Gemüse bacon der Speck

cauliflower der Blumenkohl sausage die Wurst (ü, e)

bean die Bohne (n) poultry das Geflügel

pea die Erbse (n) duck die Ente (n)

cucumber die Gurke (n) goose die Gans (ä, e)

carrot die Karotte (n) chicken das Huhn (ü, er)

potato die Kartoffel (n) turkey der Truthahn (ä, e)

cabbage der Kohl fish der Fisch (e)

In Austria, der Karfiol is cauliflower, die Fisolen is green beans, and der Kukuruz is corn.

45. Genitive Partitive

 

The genitive partitive is mostly used when talking about quantities of food.  Both words are in the nominative case in German, and of is not needed.

a glass of water - ein Glas Wassera piece of cake - ein Stück Kuchena slice of pizza - ein Stück Pizza

46. Commands

Gehen-to go

du form conjugated form, minus -(s)t Geh!

ihr form conjugated form Geht!

wir formconjugated form with wir following

Gehen wir!

Sie formconjugated form with Sie following

Gehen Sie!

 

Verbs that take an umlaut in conjugations leave it off in commands.  Verbs that change their stem vowel from e to i use the changed stem in the du form.  All commands require an exclamation point. The wir forms translate as Let's + verb in English.

Imperative of Sein

du form Sei!

ihr form Seid!

Sie form Seien Sie!

47. Subordinating Conjunctions

Subordinating conjunctions are used to connect an independent and dependent clause together, and they do affect word order.  An independent (or main) clause contains a subject and verb and can stand alone as its own sentence.  A dependent (or subordinate) clause also contains a subject and verb, but is introduced with a subordinating conjunction and cannot stand alone as its own sentence. 

There are also other conjunctions (called coordinating) that do not affect word order. The easiest way to tell the two types of conjunctions apart is to memorize the coordinating ones.  Und, aber, denn - for/because, sondern - but (on the contrary) and oder are the coordinating conjunctions.  The rest of the conjunctions act as subordinating, and interrogative words can also act as subordinating conjunctions. Some examples are als-when, bevor-before, bis-until, damit-so that, dass-that,

wenn-if/when, ob-whether, obwohl-although, nachdem-after, da-since, während-while, weil-because, and wie-how.

1.  In clauses introduced by subordinating conjunctions, the conjugated verb is forced to the end of the clause (not sentence) and a comma is placed before the conjunction.

Ich bleibe zu Hause.  Ich bin krank.  I'm staying home.  I am sick.Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich krank bin.  I'm staying home because I am sick.(weil is the subordinating conjunction, and bin must go to the end.)

Sie kommt nach zu dir.  Sie hat gegessen.  She's coming to your place.  She has eaten.Sie kommt nach zu dir, nachdem sie gegessen hat.  She's coming to your place after she has eaten.(nachdem is the sub. conjunction, and hat must go to the end.)

→ However, when a double infinitive construction is involved, the conjugated verb form precedes the two infinitives.  The double infinitive always goes to the end of the clause or sentence.

Ich weiß nicht, ob er hat mitkommen wollen.  I don't know if he wanted to come along.

2.  When a sentence begins with a subordinating conjunction, the main clause begins with the conjugated verb in keeping with the normal word order of German that states verbs are always in the second position.  The subordinate clause becomes the first position, so the verb of the main clause must occupy the second position.

Hans telefoniert mit Ihnen, während Sie in Berlin sind.  Hans will call you while you're in Berlin.Während Sie in Berlin sind, telefoniert Hans mit Ihnen.  While you are in Berlin, Hans will call you.(während is a subordinating conjunction, and the subordinating clause occupies the first position of the sentence, so the second position must be occupied by the verb of the main clause, telefoniert.)

3.  If there is a separable prefix verb in a dependent clause, the prefix remains attached to the verb, and the entire verb goes to the end of the clause, whereas normally the prefix would go to the end.

Er ist immer müde, wenn er früh aufsteht.  He is always tired when he gets up early.

4.  When there are two verbs in a dependent clause (such as a modal and an infinitive), the modal goes last, following the infinitive.

Er ist müde, wenn er früh aufstehen muss.  He is tired when he must get up early.

48. Holiday Phrases

Frohe Weihnachten! Merry Christmas!

Frohe Ostern! Happy Easter!

Glückliches Neues Jahr! Happy New Year!

Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag!Alles Gute zum Geburtstag!

Happy Birthday!

das Silvester New Year's Eve

das Neujahr New Year's Day

der Valentinstag Valentine's Day

der Fasching (S. Germany) / der Karneval (Rhineland)

Mardi Gras

das Ostern Easter

das Weihnachten Christmas

der Geburtstag birthday

die Hochzeit wedding

49. Helfen, lassen and the senses

Helfen, lassen and verbs indicating the senses (such as sehen and hören) function like modal auxiliaries.  Like the modals, these verbs require a double infinitive construction when forming the present perfect tense if there is a dependent infinitive involved.  After verbs of this type, English often uses a present participle, but German uses a dependent infinitive.

Ich sehe ihn kommen.  I see him coming. Ich habe ihn kommen hören.  I heard him coming.

Lassen can have different meanings depending on how it is used in the sentence. Usually, lassen means to let or allow, as in Laß den Jungen spielen!  Let the boy play! (Notice that lassen takes an accusative object)  But it can also mean to have something done or to have someone do something. 

Wir lassen uns ein Haus bauen.  We're having a house built./We're building a house.

Ich lasse meinen Sohn die Post abholen.  I'm having my son pick up the mail.

50. Places

street die Straße (n) strass-uh pharmacydie Apotheke (n)

ah-poh-tek-uh

bank die Bank (en) bahnk drugstoredie Drogerie (n)

droh-ger-ee

hotel das Hotel (s) hoh-tel factorydie Fabrik (en)

fah-breek

restaurant das Restaurant (s)res-toh-rahn

butcher shop

die Metzgerei (en)

mets-geh-rie

theater das Theater (-) tay-ah-terdry cleaner's

die Reinigung (en)

rien-ee-gunk

storedas Geschäft / der Laden (ä)

lah-den bookstoreder Buchladen (ä)

booch-lah-den

museumdas Museum (Museen)

moo-zay-um

airportder Flughafen (ä)

flook-hahf-en

church die Kirche (n) keer-kuh garagedie Garage (n)

gah-rah-zhuh

square der Platz (ä, e) plahtz town halldas Rathaus (ä)

raht-house

monumentdas Denkmal (ä, er)

denk-mall castledas Schloss (ö, er)

shlohss

building das Gebäude (-)guh-boy-duh

schooldie Schule (n)

shoo-luh

house das Haus (ä, er) house citydie Stadt (ä, e)

shtaht

grocery store

das Lebensmittel-geschäft (e)

lay-buns-mit-tel-geh-sheft

bardie Kneipe (n)

knigh-puh

library die Bibliothek (en)beeb-lee-oh-tek

cathedral der Dom (e) dome

hospitaldas Krankenhaus (ä, er)

krahnk-en-house

villagedas Dorf (ö, er)

dorf

stadium das Stadion shtah-dee- cemetery der Friedhof freed-hoff

(Stadien) on (ö, e)

movie theater

das Kino (s) kee-noh backerydie Bäckerei (en)

beck-er-ie

hardware store

das Eisenwaren-geschäft (e)

ise-en-war-en-geh-sheft

shoe storedas Schuh-geschäft (e)

shoo-geh-sheft

stationery store

das Schreibwaren-geschäft (e)

shribe-var-en-geh-scheft

 

In Austria and Southern Germany, die Buchhandlung is used for bookstore.

51. Transportation

bus der Bus (se) boos

trolleybus der Obus oh-boos

subway die U-Bahn oo-bahn

train der Zug (ü, e) tsook

airplane das Flugzeug (e) flook-tsoyk

ship das Schiff (e) shiff

boat das Boot (e) boat

motorcycle das Motorrad (ä, er) moh-toh-raht

automobile das Auto (s) ow-toh

streetcar die Straßenbahn (en) shtrass-en-bahn

moped das Moped (s) mo-ped

bike das Fahrrad (ä, er) fah-raht

car der Wagen (-) vah-gen

on foot zu Fuss foos

 

Die U-Bahn is short for die Untergrundbahn and der Obus is short for der Oberleitungsbus. To say by bus, train, etc., use mit dem + the noun for masculine and neuter nouns; and mit der + the noun for feminine nouns.

52. Simple Past / Imperfect Tense

In English, this tense corresponds to I did, you saw, he cried, etc. and is used less often in spoken German than the present perfect tense. It is used more often in writing to tell a sequence of past events.  Nevertheless, even in conversational German, sein, haben, werden, wissen and the modal verbs are preferred in the simple past tense than in the present perfect tense. In addition, the simple past tense is commonly used in clauses that begin with als (when).

All regular verbs add these endings to their original stems:

-te -ten

-test -tet

-te -ten

 

Verb stems ending in -d or -t, add an -e before all endings for ease of pronunciation.

Simple Past of sein, haben & werden

sein haben werden

ich war hatte wurde

du warst hattest wurdest

er, sie, es war hatte wurde

wir waren hatten wurden

ihr wart hattet wurdet

sie waren hatten wurden

For the modal verbs, drop the umlaut found in the infinitive before adding the endings.  Mögen changes the g to ch as well.

Simple Past of Modals

können müssen dürfen sollen wollen mögen

ich konnte mußte durfte sollte wollte mochte

du konntest mußtest durftest solltest wolltest mochtest

er, sie, es konnte mußte durfte sollte wollte mochte

wir konnten mußten durften sollten wollten mochten

ihr konntet mußtet durftet solltet wolltet mochtet

sie konnten mußten durften sollten wollten mochten

The following verbs are called mixed verbs because although they have an irregular stem, they still use the imperfect endings for regular verbs.  These are the same stems that are used in the present perfect tense as well.

Simple Past of Mixed Verbs

wissen bringen denken kennen brennen nennen rennen wenden

ich wußte brachte dachte kannte brannte nannte rannte wandte

du wußtest brachtest dachtest kanntest branntest nanntest ranntest wandtest

er, sie, es

wußte brachte dachte kannte brannte nannte rannte wandte

wir wußten brachten dachten kannten brannten nannten rannten wandten

ihr wußtet brachtet dachtet kanntet branntet nanntet ranntet wandtet

sie wußten brachten dachten kannten brannten nannten rannten wandten

53. Irregular Stems in Simple Past / Imperfect Tense

 

Irregular verbs have a different stem for the past tense and add different endings than those of the

regular verbs.  You will have to memorize these stems, as they can be unpredictable (and unlike

the past participles). Remember the simple past forms given below are just the stems; you must

add different irregular endings depending on the subject.

Infinitive Simple Past Past Participle Translation

anfangen fing ... an angefangen begin

aufstehen stand ... auf aufgestanden get up

befehlen befahl befohlen order, command

beginnen begann begonnen begin

beissen biss gebissen bite

begreifen begriff begriffen comprehend

bekommen bekam bekommen get, receive

bewerben bewarb beworben apply

binden band gebunden tie

biegen bog gebogen turn, bend

bieten bot geboten offer

bitten bat gebeten ask

blasen blies geblasen blow

bleiben blieb ist geblieben remain

brechen brach gebrochen break

einladen lud ... ein eingeladen invite

entscheiden entschied entschieden decide

empfehlen empfahl empfohlen recommend

erscheinen erschien ist erschienen appear

ertrinken ertrank ist ertrunken drown

essen aß gegessen eat

fahren fuhr ist gefahren drive, go, travel

fallen fiel ist gefallen fall

fangen fing gefangen catch

finden fand gefunden find

fliegen flog ist geflogen fly

fressen fraß gefressen eat (of animals)

frieren fror gefroren freeze

geben gab gegeben give

gebören gebar ist geboren be born

gehen ging ist gegangen go

gelingen gelang ist gelungen succeed

geschehen geschah ist geschehen happen

gewinnen gewann gewonnen win

gießen goss gegossen pour, water

greifen griff gegriffen reach

halten hielt gehalten hold

hngen hing gehangen hang, suspend

heben hob gehoben lift

heißen hieß geheißen be called

helfen half geholfen help

klingen klang geklungen sound

kommen kam ist gekommen come

kriechen kroch ist gekrochen creep

lassen liess gelassen let, allow

laufen lief ist gelaufen run

leiden litt gelitten suffer

leihen lieh geliehen lend

lesen las gelesen read

liegen lag gelegen recline

lügen log gelogen lie, fib

nehmen nahm genommen take

pfeifen pfiff gepfiffen whistle

raten riet geraten advise

reissen riss gerissen tear

reiten ritt ist geritten ride (horseback)

riechen roch gerochen smell

rufen rief gerufen call

scheinen schien geschienen shine

schieben schob geschoben push

schiessen schoss geschossen shoot

schlafen schlief geschlafen sleep

schlagen schlug geschlagen hit

schließen schloss geschlossen shut

schneiden schnitt geschnitten cut

schreiben schrieb geschrieben write

schreien schrie geschrieen cry

schweigen schwieg geschwiegen be silent

schwimmen schwamm ist geschwommen swim

schwingen schwang geschwungen swing

sehen sah gesehen see

sein war ist gewesen be

singen sang gesungen sing

sinken sank ist gesunken sink

sitzen saß gesessen sit

spinnen span gesponnen spin

sprechen sprach gesprochen speak

springen sprang ist gesprungen jump

stehen stand gestanden stand

stehlen stahl gestohlen steal

steigen stieg ist gestiegen climb

sterben starb ist gestorben die

streiten stritt gestritten quarrel

tragen trug getragen wear

treffen traf getroffen meet

treiben trieb getrieben play sports

treten trat ist getreten step

trinken trank getrunken drink

tun tat getan do

verbieten verbot verboten forbid

vergessen vergaß vergessen forget

vergleichen verglich verglichen compare

verlassen verliess verlassen leave

verlieren verlor verloren lose

versprechen versprach versprochen promise

verstehen verstand verstanden understand

verzeihen verzieh verziehen forgive

vorschlagen schlug ... vor vorgeschlagen suggest

wachsen wuchs ist gewachsen grow

waschen wusch gewaschen wash

werfen warf geworfen throw

ziehen zog gezogen pull

Irregular Endings

- -en

-st -t

- -en

 

There are no endings for the 1st and 3rd person singular.  If the verb stem ends in an s sound (such as aß-), the du form ending becomes -est (du aßest.)  If the verb stem ends in -t or -d, the ihr form ending becomes -et while the du form ending sometimes becomes -est. Most verb stems do add -est in the du form, but some do not. For example, finden is conjugated without the -e- (du fandst) while sich befinden is conjugated with the -e- (du befandest dich.) Similarly, stehen is conjugated without the -e- (du standst) while verstehen is conjugated with the -e- (du verstandest.)  The other main verbs that are conjugated without the -e- are braten (brietst; to roast), erfinden (erfandst, to invent), laden (ludst, to invite), leiden (littst, to suffer), and schneiden (schnittst, to cut).

54. House and Furniture

window das Fenster (-) ground floor das Erdgeschoss

curtain der Vorhang (ä, e) 1st floor/storey

der erste Stock

clock die Uhr (en) floor/ground der Boden (ö)

bookcase das Bücherregal (e) roof das Dach (ä, er)

lamp die Lampe (n) shower die Dusche (n)

table der Tisch (e) bathtub die Badewanne (n)

sofa das Sofa (s) stairs/steps die Treppen

chair der Stuhl (ü, e) stove der Herd (e)

armchair der Sessel (-) oven der Backofen (ö)

mirror der Spiegel (-) refrigerator der Kühlschrank (e)

towel das Handtuch (ü, er) dishwasherdie Geschirrspülmaschine (n)

toilet die Toilette (n) faucet der Wasserhahn (ä, e)

wastebasket der Papierkorb (ö, e) pot, pan der Topf (ö, e)

bathroom sink das Waschbecken (-) drawer die Schublade (n)

(clothes) closetder (Kleider)schrank (ä, e)

silverware das Besteck

picture das Bild (er) dishes das Geschirr

nightstand der Nachttisch (e) kitchen sink das Spülbecken (-)

vase die Vase (n) desk der Schreibtisch (e)

dresser die Kommode (n) alarm clock der Wecker (-)

bed das Bett (en) shelf das Regal (e)

rug der Teppich (e) television der Fernseher (-)

room das Zimmer (-) telephone das Telefon (e)

bathroom das Badezimmer (-) VCR der Videorekorder (-)

bedroom das Schlafzimmer (-) CD Player der CD-Spieler (-)

living room das Wohnzimmer (-) computer der Computer (-)

kitchen die Küche (n) radio das Radio (s)

hallway/corridor der Flur (e) pillow das Kopfkissen (-)

balcony der Balkon (e) cupboard der Schrank (ä, e)

furniture die Möbelblanket, ceiling

die Decke (n)

wall die Wand (ä, e) door die Tür (en)

lawn der Rasen garden, yard der Garten (ä)

 

Remember that in Europe, buildings always start with the ground floor, and then the next floor up is the first floor. Many Americans would refer to these floors as the first floor and second floor, respectively, and not even use ground floor.

55. Location vs. Direction

Location: the prepositions in, an, auf and bei (followed by the dative case) are used with fixed locations, while aus and von (also followed by the dative case) are used to

signify origin.

in enclosed spacesIch bin in der Kirche.Wir sind in der Schule.

I'm at church.We are at school.

andenotes border or limiting area

Er ist am See.Das Bild ist an der Wand.

He is at the lake.The picture is on the wall.

aufon surfaces, or at public buildings

Es ist auf dem Tisch.Sie sind auf der Bank.

It's on the table.They are at the bank.

bei

before name of place or business where someone lives or works

Ich arbeite bei McDonald's.Ich wohne bei meiner Tante.

I work at McDonald's.I live at my Aunt's (house).

aus

comes from enclosed or defined space, such as country, town or building

Sie kommt aus dem Zimmer.Ich komme aus den USA. 

She comes from the bedroom.I come from the USA.

voncomes from open space, particular direction or person

Das Auto kommt von rechts.Ich weiß es von ihm.

The car comes from the right.I know it from him.

Direction: the prepositions in and auf (followed by the accusative case) or zu and nach (followed by the dative case) are used.

in

building or enclosed space; countriesand cities that have definite articles*

Ich gehe in die Kirche.Ich fliege in die USA.

I'm going to church.I'm flying to the USA.

auf open spaces or public Er geht auf den He's going to the

buildings Markt. market.

zuspecifically  named buildings or places,and people

Sie geht zum Strand.Sie gehen zu McDonald's.Ich gehe zur Bank.

She's going to the beach.They're going to McDonald'sI'm going to the bank.

nachcountries and cities that have no articles

Ich fliege nach Österreich.Ich fliege nach Paris.

I'm flying to Austria.I'm flying to Paris.

 

Only a few countries include the articles, such as der Iran (m.), die Niederlande (pl.), die Schweiz (f.), die Türkei (f.), and die USA (pl.), because they are not neuter.

Remember the two idioms with Haus:  zu Hause is a location and means at home, while nach Hause is a direction and means (to) home.

56. Clothing

jacket die Jacke (n) ring der Ring (e)

dress das Kleid (er) necklace die Halskette (n)

blouse die Bluse (n) bracelet das Armband (ä, er)

shirt das Hemd (en) earring der Ohrring (e)

T-shirt das T-Shirt (s) glove der Handschuh (e)

skirt der Rock (ö, e) jeans die Jeans

sweater der Pullover (-) watch die Armbanduhr (en)

pullover der Pulli (s) glasses die Brille

tie die Krawatte (n) man's suit der Anzug (ü, e)

sock die Socke (n) woman's suit das Kostüm (e)

shoe der Schuh (e) sports jacket das Sakko (s)

boot der Stiefel (-) bag, pocket die Tasche (n)

sandal die Sandale (n) underwear die Unterwäsche

purse die Handtasche (n) pants die Hose (n)

belt der Gürtel (-) raincoat der Regenmantel (ä)

scarf der Schal (s) coat der Mantel (ä)

swimsuit der Badeanzug (ü, e) hat der Hut (ü, e)

 

A few words to describe patterns are: kariert - plaid, gepunktet - polka-dotted, gestreift - striped, geblümt - flowered, gemustert - patterned.

A few verbs that require dative objects can be used with clothing: gefallen - to like, passen - to fit, stehen - to look (good/bad)

Gefällt dir dieses Hemd? Do you like this shirt? Die Farbe steht mir nicht. The color doesn't look good on me.Größe 48 paßt ihr bestimmt. Size 48 fits her well.

57. Future Tense

The future tense is simple to form in German.  Just use the present tense forms of werden and put the infinitive to the end of the sentence. However, German usually relies on the present tense to indicate the future (implied future) and uses time expressions, such as tonight, tomorrow, etc. so the actual future tense is not quite as common in German as it is in English.  Wir gehen morgen nach Deutschland is translated as We are going to Germany tomorrow, and implies a future action, yet it uses the present tense, in both German and English.  To express present or future probability, use wohl (probably) with the future tense.

 

Present tense of werden

werde werden

wirst werdet

wird werden

 

I will fly to Germany.  Ich werde nach Deutschland fliegen.You will help me!  Du wirst mir helfen!We will learn Latin.  Wir werden Latein lernen.My friend should be home now.  Mein Freund wird jetzt wohl zu Hause sein. (Expresses probability)

58. Asking Questions

1. Simply add a question mark

2. Invert the verb and subject

3. Use a question word + verb + subject

4. Add nicht wahr? to the end of the statement

59. Declensions of Adjectives

There are three types of declensions for adjectives: adjectives used with der words, adjectives used with ein words, and independent adjectives.  Predicate adjectives (Das brot ist frisch.  The bread is fresh.) are not declined and usually follow a form of sein.

Adjectives used after der words (Weak Endings)

Masc. Fem. Neu. Plural

Nom. der gute Wein die gute Milch das gute Brot die guten Freunde

Acc. den guten Wein die gute Milch das gute Brot die guten Freunde

Dat. dem guten Wein der guten Milch dem guten Brot den guten Freunden

Gen. des guten Weines der guten Milch des guten Brotes der guten Freunde

Adjectives used after ein words (Weak Endings)

Masc. Fem. Neu. Plural

Nom. kein guter Wein keine gute Milch kein gutes Brot keine guten Freunde

Acc. keinen guten Wein keine gute Milch kein gutes Brot keine guten Freunde

Dat.keinem guten Wein

keiner guten Milch

keinem guten Brot

keinen guten Freunden

Gen.keines guten Weines

keiner guten Milch

keines guten Brotes

keiner guten Freunde

 

The only difference between the adjectives used after der words and the adjectives used after ein

words are the masculine and neuter nominative, and neuter accusative.  The rest of the endings are

the same.  These types of attributive adjectives are the weak endings.  The strong endings (below)

are used on adjectives that have no preceding article.  They are the same as the endings for the der

words (with the exception of the masculine and neuter genitive.)

Independent Adjectives (Strong Endings)

Masc. Fem. Neu. Plural

Nom. guter Wein gute Milch gutes Brot gute Freunde

Acc. guten Wein gute Milch gutes Brot gute Freunde

Dat. gutem Wein guter Milch gutem Brot guten Freunden

Gen. guten Weines guter Milch guten Brotes guter Freunde

 

Viele (many), wenige (few), andere (other), einige (some), and mehrere (several) are all plural expressions that do not act as limiting words.  Adjectives that follow them take strong endings.  In the singular, mancher (many a) and solcher (such) also use strong endings (when used with another adjective in the singular, they turn into manch ein and so ein), but in the plural they function as normal limiting words.

60. Adjectives

short kurz high, tall hoch light hell

long lang wide breit dark dunkel

loud laut fat, thick dick terrible furchtbar

quiet ruhig thin dünn sweet süß

cute niedlich narrow eng in love verliebt

perfect perfekt weak schwach serious ernsthaft

sad traurig strong stark clean sauber

happy glücklich deep tief dirty schmutzig

dear lieb lazy faul shy schüchtern

famous berühmt cheap billig nervous nervös

different unterschiedlich dumb dumm comfortable bequem

easy leicht early früh worried besorgt

difficult schwierig near nah right richtig

pretty hübsch nice nett wrong falsch

ugly häßlich inexpensive preiswert jealous eifersüchtig

small klein expensive teuer drunk betrunken

large groß crazy verrückt popular beliebt

good gut far weit excellent ausgezeichnet

bad schlecht beautiful schön valuable wertvoll

new neu curious neugierig alone allein

tired müde old alt important wichtig

angry wütend young jung busy beschäftigt

annoying ärgerlich interesting interessant sick krank

wonderful wunderbar fantastic fantastisch ready fertig

61. Comparative & Superlative

For comparisons of equality, use the construction so + adjective or adverb + wie to mean as + adjective or adverb + as.  You can also add nicht in front of the so for a comparison of inequality.

Die Küche ist so gross wie das Wohnzimmer.  The kitchen is as big as the living room.Eine Waschmaschine ist nicht so schwer wie ein Kühlschrank.  A washing machine is not as heavy as a refrigerator.

Comparative

1.  For comparisons of superiority and inferiority, add -er to the adjective or adverb, followed by als (than).  German always uses the -er ending, although English sometimes uses the word more before the adjective instead of the ending.

Ein radio is billiger als ein Fernseher.  A radio is cheaper than a TV.Jens läuft schneller als Ernst.  Jens runs faster than Ernst.Lydia ist intelligenter als ihr Bruder.  Lydia is more intelligent than her brother.

2.  Adjectives that end in -el, -en or -er, drop the -e in the comparative form.  Teuer becomes teurer instead of teuerer, and dunkel becomes dunkler instead of dunkeler. Some one-syllable adjectives and adverbs whose stem vowel is a, o, or u add an umlaut in the comparative, such as alt, arm, dumm, grob, groß, hart, jung, kalt, klug, krank, kurz, lang, oft, scharf, schwach, stark, warm.  Adjectives that never add an umlaut are flach, froh, klar, rasch, roh, schlank, stolz, toll, voll and zart.

Superlative

1.  To form the superlative, add -(e)st to the adjective.  The ending -est is used when the word ends in -d, -t, or an s sound.  The adjectives that end in -el, -en, or -er retain the -s in the superlative form.  The same adjectives that took an umlaut in the comparative take an umlaut in the superlative as well.

2.  The superlative also has an alternative form:  am + adjective or adverb + sten. When the adjective or adverb ends in a d, t or s sound, an e is inserted between the

stem and ending (am grössten is an exception.)  This is the only form of the superlative of adverbs, but either forms of the superlative can be used for adjectives.

Hans is am jüngsten.  Hans is the youngest.Sie ist am intelligentesten.  She is the most intelligent.

Irregular Forms

Adj. / Adv. Comparative Superlative

gern lieber am liebsten

gut besser am besten

hoch höher am höchsten

nah näher am nächsten

viel mehr am meisten

 

Common forms of the comparative

Je mehr, desto besser.  The more, the better.Je mehr Geld er hat, desto glücklicher ist er.  The more money he has, the happier he is.Die preise werden immer höher.  The prices are getting higher and higher.Julia wird immer hübscher.  Julia is getting prettier and prettier.

Keep in mind that the comparative and superlative forms take normal adjective endings when they precede a noun.  And the adjective form of the superlative must always take an adjective ending because it is preceded by the definite article.

Haben Sie billigere Anzüge?  Do you have less expensive suits?Diese Anzüge sind die billigsten.  These suits are the least expensive.

62. Sports & Hobbies

to do sports Sport treiben hang-gliding Drachen fliegen

golf Golf spielen windsurfing Windsurfing gehen

soccer Fußball spielen water-skiing Wasserski fahren

volleyballVolleyball spielen

fishing angeln

football Football spielen aerobics Aerobic machen

basketballBasketball spielen

bungee-jumping Bungee-jumping gehen

baseball Baseball spielen gymnastics turnen

hockeyEishockey spielen

mountaineering bergsteigen gehen

tennis Tennis spielen climbing klettern

table tennis Tischtennis spielen

judo Judo machen

bowling kegeln weight training Body-building machen

sailing segeln wrestling ringen

horseback riding reiten diving tauchen

boxing boxento tinker, build things

basteln

roller-skatingRollschuh laufen

to listen to music Musik hören

ice-skatingSchlittschuh laufen

to play cards Karten spielen

skiing Ski fahren to collect coins/stamps

Münzen/Briefmarken sammeln

bicycling Radfahrento play video games

Videospiele spielen

swimmingSchwimmen gehen

photography fotografieren

jogging joggen to do ceramics töpfern

hiking wandern to draw zeichnen

camping Camping gehen to play chess Schach spielen

gardeningim Garten arbeiten

to knit stricken

go out with friends mit Freunden ausgehen

to watch TV fernsehen

to lie around, be lazy

faulenzen go to the movies ins Kino gehen

 

A lot of sports/hobbies exist as nouns and as verbs, so just as in English, you can say either I like to fish or I like to go fishing. If it's capitalized, it's a noun and if it's not capitalized, it's a verb.

kegeln - to bowldas Kegeln - bowling

63. Nature

barn die Scheune (n) stream der Bach (ä, e)

bridge die Brücke (n) sky der Himmel

hill der Hügel (-) island der Insel (n)

mountain der Berg (e) air die Luft

beach der Strand (ä, e) meadow die Wiese (n)

lake der See (n) desert die Wüste (n)

river die Fluss (ü, e) pond der Teich (e)

street die Straße (n) grass das Gras

farm der Bauernhof (ö, e) leaf das Blatt (ä, er)

field das Feld (er) flower die Blume (n)

forest der Wald (ä, er) ocean der Ozean (e)

plant die Pflanze (n) tree der Baum (ä, e)

city die Stadt (ä, e) country das Land (ä, er)

sea die See / das Meer (e) valley das Tal (ä, er)

bay die Bucht (en) coast die Küste (n)

mountain range

das Gebirge jungle der Dschungel (-)

64. Object Pronouns

Subject (Nom.) Direct Objects (Acc.) Indirect Objects (Dat.)

ich I mich me mir (to) me

du you (fam.) dich you dir (to) you

er he ihn him ihm (to) him

sie she sie her ihr (to) her

es it es it ihm (to) it

wir we uns us uns (to) us

ihr you (pl.) euch you euch (to) you

sie they sie them ihnen (to) them

Sie you (pol.) Sie you Ihnen (to) you

 

If there are two nouns in a sentence, one accusative and one dative, then the dative noun will be first. However, if there are two pronouns, one accusative and one dative, then the accusative pronoun will be first. In sentences with one noun and one pronoun (regardless of which is accusative or dative), the pronoun will be first.

Some verbs always take indirect objects, even if they take direct objects in English. For verbs that

can take two objects, the direct object will usually be a thing, and the indirect object will usually

refer to a person.

antworten to answer (a person) The following four need an object as a subject:

schenken to give schaden to be harmful to

bringen to bring schmecken to taste good to

danken to thank stehen to suit

zuhören to listen to passen to fit

gehören to belong toThe following two need the subject and object inverted from the original English construction:

glauben to believe

helfen to help

gratulieren to congratulate fehlen to be missing to

begegnen to meet gefallen to be pleasing to

vertrauen to trust    

empfehlen to recommend    

geben to give    

kaufen to buy    

leihen to lend, borrow    

sagen to tell, say    

schicken to give as a gift    

schreiben to write    

wünschen to wish    

zeigen to show    

65. Parts of the Body

body der Körper (-) chin das Kinn (e)

arm der Arm (e) knee das Knie (-)

eye das Auge (n) bone der Knochen (-)

cheek die Backe (n) head der Kopf (ö, e)

belly der Bauch (ä, e) lip die Lippe (n)

leg das Bein (e) stomach der Magen (ä)

chest die Brust (ü, e) nail der Nagel (ä)

finger der Finger mouth der Mund (ü, er)

foot der Fuss (ü, e) nose die Nase (n)

ankle das Fussgelenk (e) ear das Ohr (en)

brain das Gehirn back der Rücken (-)

hair das Haar (e) shoulder die Schulter (n)

neck der Hals (ä, e) forehead die Stirn (en)

hand die Hand (ä, e) tooth der Zahn (ä, e)

wrist das Handgelenk (e) toe die Zehe (n)

skin die Haut (ä, e) tongue die Zunge (n)

heart das Herz (en) face das Gesicht (er)

jaw der Kiefer (-) cheek die Wange (n)

 

Ich fühle mich nicht wohl. I don't feel well.Mir ist schlecht. I feel sick.Mir ist kalt/warm. I'm cold/hot.Was fehlt dir? What's the matter?Der Hals tut mir weh. My throat hurts.

 

The separable verb wehtun is used to say that something hurts. Remember when the noun is plural, the verb needs to be plural as well and that parts of the body do not use possessive articles.

Die Füße tun ihm weh. His feet hurt. (The feet are hurting to him.)

 

Other health expressions:

Ich habe Kopfschmerzen. I have a headache.

Ich habe Halsschmerzen. I have a sore throat.

Ich habe Rückenschmerzen. I have a backache.

Ich habe Bauchschmerzen. I have a stomachache.

Ich habe eine Erkältung. I have a cold.

Ich habe Fieber. I have a fever.

Ich habe die Grippe. I have the flu.

Ich habe Husten. I have a cough.

Ich habe Schnupfen. I have a head cold.

Ich habe zu viel gegessen. I ate too much.

Gute Besserung! Get well soon!

66. Relative Pronouns

Relative clauses begin with relative pronouns - words that correspond to who, whom, that and which in English.  These may be omitted in English, but must be included in German.  A comma always precedes the relative pronoun, which is put into the correct gender depending on the noun it refers to, and the correct case depending on its function in the clause.  (In the following example, the relative pronoun is in the masculine accusative case because Mantel is masculine, and is a direct object of the verb "to buy", therefore, it is accusative.)  The conjugated verb goes to the end of the sentence as well.

That's the coat (that) I bought yesterday.Das is der Mantel, den ich gestern gekauft habe.

Relative pronouns have the same gender and number as the nouns they refer to, and the forms closely resemble those of the definite articles:

Masc. Fem. Neu. Plural

Nom. der die das die

Acc. den die das die

Dat. dem der dem denen

Gen. dessen deren dessen deren

Examples

Nominative

Der Fluss, der durch Wien fliesst, heißt Donau.

The river, that through Vienna flows, is called the Danube.

The river that flows through Vienna is called the Danube.

Accusative

Der Hund, den ich letzte Woche gesehen habe, war Julias.

The dog, that I last week seen have, was Julia's.

The dog that I saw last week was Julia's.

Dative

Mein Vater ist der einzige Mensch, dem ich nichts davon erzählt habe.

My father is the only person, to whom I nothing about it told have.

My father is the only person (to) whom I have told nothing about it.

 

When a relative pronoun follows a preposition, the preposition determines the case, while the gender and number are determined by the noun.  The preposition and pronoun always stay together as one unit as well.

Wer war die Frau, mit der ich dich gesehen habe?Who was the woman, with whom I you seen have?Who was the woman (whom) I saw you with?

67. Da- and Wo- Compounds

Personal pronouns are used after prepositions when referring to people.  However, when you need to refer to a thing, a compound using da- (or dar- if the preposition begins with a vowel) plus the preposition is used.

auf dem Tisch (on the table) becomes darauf (on it)

in der Tasche (in the pocket) becomes darin (in it)

vor der Schule (in front of the school) becomes davor (in front of it)

hinter den Häusern (behind the houses) becomes dahinter (behind them)

zwischen dem Haus und der Schule (between the house and the school) becomes dazwischen (between them)

Da(r) Compounds

daraus out of it/them dagegen against it/them darüber over it/them

damit with it/them darin in it/them darunterunderneath it/them

davon from it/them daran in it/them daneben next to it/them

dazu to it/them daraufon top of it/them

dazwischen between it/them

dadurchthrough it/them

dahinter behind it/them dabei on me/you

dafür for it/them davorin front of it/them

darum that's why

 

Dahin is commonly used with verbs of motion to show location, regardless of the preposition used. The English translation is usually there. Dahin can be shortened to hin in everyday speech, and sometimes da is placed at the beginning of the sentence and hin is placed at the end.

Ich muß heute zur Bank. I have to go to the bank.Ich muß auch dahin. I have to go there too.

Dabei and darum are idioms.  Hast du Geld dabei?  Do you have any money on you? Darum hast du kein Glück.  That's why you have no luck.

Not all prepositions + pronouns can be replaced by the da(r) compounds.  Ohne, ausser, and seit

can never form a da(r) compound, and here are others that cannot:

ohnedies without it stattdessen instead

bis dahin until then trotzdem nevertheless

ausserdem besides währenddessen in the meanwhile

seit dem since deswegen for that reason

There are also corresponding questions word that use wo(r)- as the prefix.  Wo(r) can be

substituted in all of the above da(r) compounds.  When asking about people, use a preposition and

wen/wem, and use a preposition and the corresponding personal pronoun to answer. 

Worüber sprechen Sie? Ich spreche darüber.

What are you talking about? I'm talking about it.

Woran denkst du? Ich denke daran.

What are you thinking about? I'm thinking about it.

Mit wem gehst du ins Theater? Mit ihr!

Who are you going to the Theater with? With her!

 

Wo- compounds can also be used as shortcuts for the relative pronouns because you do not need to the know the gender or case to form the relative pronoun.  This shortcut can only be used with things and not people.

Die Uhr, mit der er reist, hat viel gekostet. = Die Uhr, womit er reist, hat viel gekostet.The watch, with which he travels, cost a lot.

Die Stadt, in der wir wohnen, hat ein großes Konzerthaus. = Die Stadt, worin wir wohnen, hat ein großes Konzerthaus.The city, in which we live, has a large concert hall.

68. Animals

animal das Tier (e) bull der Stier (e)

bear der Bär (en) wolf der Wolf (ö, e)

squirrel das Eichhörnchen (-) worm der Wurm (ü, er)

fox der Fuchs (ü, e) bird der Vogel (ö)

hare die Hase (n) rooster der Hahn (ä, e)

dog der Hund (e) hen die Henne (n)

calf das Kalb (ä, er) eagle der Adler (-)

rabbit das Kaninchen (-) chick das Küken (-)

cat die Katze (n) ant die Ameise (n)

kitten das Kätzchen (-) bee die Biene (n)

cow die Kuh (ü, e) fly die Fliege (n)

lion der Löwe (n) grasshopper die Heuschrecke (n)

mouse die Maus (ä, e) moth die Motte(n)

horse das Pferd (e) mosquito die Mücke (n)

rat die Ratte (n) butterfly der Schmetterling (e)

turtle die Schildkröte (n) spider die Spinne (n)

snake die Schlange (n) chicken das Huhn

69. Likes and Dislikes

 

Use the words gern, nicht gern, lieber, and am liebsten after a verb to express preferences.

Ich spiele gern Fussball. I like to play soccer.

Ich spiele lieber Hockey I prefer to play hockey.

Ich spiele am liebsten Tennis. I like to play tennis most of all.

Ich spiele nicht gern Basketball. I don't like to play Basketball.

 

Or just use haben with any of the four phrases for general likes/dislikes.

Ich habe Fussball gern. I like soccer.

Ich habe Julia am liebsten. I like Julia most of all.

Ich habe das Restaurant nicht gern. I don't like the restaurant.

 

Gefallen is another verb used for expressing likes.  It literally means to please.  To use it

correctly, you must switch the object in English with the subject in German.  Das Zimmer is the

object in English, but it becomes the subject in German.  And the object in German (mir) would

become the subject in English (I).  It is always in the dative case in German.

German sentence Literally Translated

Das Zimmer gefällt mir. The room pleases me. I like the room.

 

You could always just use the verb mögen to express likes and dislikes, but another common way of saying that you like (doing) something is macht spaß.

Was macht dir spaß? What do you like (to do)?Fußball macht mir spaß. I like soccer.

70. Past Perfect Tense

The Past Perfect Tense or Pluperfect corresponds to the English had + past participle and refers to something that had already happened when something else happened. It consists of the imperfect of haben or sein and a past participle and is comparable to the present perfect tense.

Present perfect:  Ich habe in Wiesbaden gewohnt.  I (have) lived in Wiesbaden.Past perfect:  Ich hatte in Wiesbaden gewohnt.  I had lived in Wiesbaden.

Present perfect:  Was ist passiert?  What (has) happened?Past perfect:  Was war passiert?  What had happened?

71. Als, wenn and wann

All three words correspond to when and act as subordinating conjunctions (therefore, the conjugated verb goes to the end of the sentence.)  Als is used in past time contexts for a single event, wenn is used to mean whenever or if, as well as in future time, and wann is an adverb of time or a question word and can be used in declarative sentences.

Als ich ihn fand...When I found him.. (followed by simple past tense)

Wenn er kommt...Whenever he comes...If he comes...When he comes... (followed by future tense)

Ich weiß nicht, wann er kommt.

I don't know when (or at what time) he's coming.

72. Review of Word Order

1. In most sentences, the order is subject - verb - time - manner - place. 

Ich gehe morgen mit dem Bus in die Schule.  I'm going to school tomorrow by bus.

2. Sometimes another element begins a sentence instead of a subject.  Then the verb is still in the second position, but the subject follows it.

Morgen gehe ich mit dem Bus in die Schule.  Tomorrow I'm going to school by bus.

3. In sentences with more than one verb or with past participles, the conjugated verb remains in the normal position and the infinitive or past participle goes to the end of the sentence.

Ich will nach Hause gehen.  I want to go home.Ich habe dir geglaubt.  I believed you.

4. When asking questions, you can usually just invert the subject and verb.

Kann ich jetzt gehen?  Can I go now?

5. In sentences with dependent clauses (phrases that have a subject and verb but cannot stand alone as sentences), the verb in the dependent clause is last.  Dependent clauses are introduced with a comma and certain conjunctions, such as als-when, bevor-before, bis-until, damit-so that, dass-that, wenn-if/when, ob-whether, obwohl-although, nachdem-after, da-since, während-while, weil-because, and wie-how. However, these conjunctions use normal word order:  und-and, oder-or, aber-but, denn-for/because.

Ich bleibe im Bett, wenn ich krank bin.  I stay in bed when I am sick.

6.  If there is a separable prefix verb in a dependent clause, the prefix remains attached to the verb, and the entire verb goes to the end of the sentence, whereas normally the prefix would go to the end.

Er ist immer müde, wenn er früh aufsteht.  He is always tired when he gets up early.

7.  When there are two verbs in a dependent clause (such as a modal and an infinitive), the modal goes last, following the infinitive.

Er ist müde, wenn er früh aufstehen muss.  He is tired when he must get up early.

8.  And when a dependent clause begins a sentence, it acts as an element, therefore the subject and verb in the following clause are inverted.

Wenn ich krank bin, bleibe ich im Bett.  When I am sick, I stay in bed.

9. If you have both direct and indirect pronouns in your sentence, remember that if the direct object is a noun it is placed after the indirect object.  If the direct object is a pronoun, it goes before the indirect object.  So basically the only time the accusative is placed before the dative is when the accusative is a pronoun.

Ich schenke meinem Bruder eine Krawatte.  I give my brother a tie.Ich schenke sie meinem Bruder.  I give it to my brother.

73. Flavoring Particles

German has many words that cannot be translated literally into English.  These words are mostly

for emphasis.

doch yes, of coursecounteracts negative statement, used for persuasion, or implies something is obvious

ja really emphasis

aber is it ever emphasis

denn well then indicates impatience, or adds emphasis to question

gerade right now immediacy

nur, bloß

only, just

malsometime, someday

used in suggestions, or softens commands

74. Colloquial Expressions and Idioms

In informal speech and writing, es is commonly contracted with the preceding word by 's.  Geht es = geht's

Es is also used as an impersonal pronoun (es regnet, it's raining), but it can also be used as an introductory word for emphasis or stylistic reasons.  Es begins the sentence, and the true subject follows the verb.

Es ist niemand zu Hause.  No one is at home.Es kommen heute drei Kinder.  Three children are coming today.

Es can also be used to anticipate a dependent clause or infinitive phrase.  This is almost like in English when we say I hate it when that happens instead of I hate when that happens.  "It" has no real meaning in the first sentence, but it is not incorrect to say it.

Ich kann es nicht glauben, daß er sich vor nichts fürchtet. I can't believe that he's not afraid of anything.Er haßt es, nichts davon zu wissen.  He hates not knowing anything about it.

Other idioms:

Sie ist mit ihrem Urteil immer sehr schnell bei der Hand.  She makes her judgments rather quickly. (Literally: She is quick at hand with her judgments.)

Alles ist in Butter.  Everything is fine.  (Literally:  Everything is in butter.)

Er geht mit dem Kopf durch die Wand.  He does as he pleases.  (Literally:  He goes with his head through the wall.)

75. Word Formation

Noun compoundsGerman uses compounds more often than English and they are formed by simply putting the two words together (sometimes adding an -n or -s in between), and using the gender of the last word.  Die Woche (week) + der Tag (day)  =  der Wochentag (Days of the week)

The prefix un-As in English, the prefix un- gives a word a negative or opposite meaning.  klar (clear) - unklar (unclear)

The suffix -losThis suffix is often the equivalent of the English suffix -less, and is used to form adjectives and adverbs from nouns.  das Ende (the end) - endlos (endless)

The suffix -haftThe suffix -haft is used to form adjectives from nouns so as to designate related qualities.  das Kind (the child) - kindhaft (childlike)

The suffix -ungThis suffix may be added to the stem of a verb to form a noun.  All nouns ending in -ung are feminine.  wandern (to hike) - die Wanderung (the hike)

The suffix -erThis suffix designates a person is from a certain place.  Frankfurt (a city) - Frankfurter (a person from Frankfurt)

The suffix -inThis suffix designates a female person and is added to the male counterpart. Architekt (male architect) - Architektin (female architect)

76. Adjectival Nouns

When referring to people, adjectives can sometimes be used as nouns.  The definite article precedes the adjective, which is now capitalized because it is functioning as a noun.  The adjectival nouns take the regular adjective endings for adjectives preceded by a der word as well.

 

der Alte - the old mandie Alte - the old womandas Alte - everything that is olddie Alten - the old people

77. Ordinal Numbers

To form the ordinal numbers, just add -te to the cardinal numbers for 1-19, and -ste for 20 and up.  The exceptions are erste, dritte, siebte, and achte.

first erste eleventh elfte

second zweite twelfth zwölfte

third dritte thirteenth dreizehnte

fourth vierte fourteenth vierzehnte

fifth fünfte fifteenth fünfzehnte

sixth sechste sixteenth sechzehnte

seventh siebte seventeenth siebzehnte

eighth achte eighteenth achtzehnte

ninth neunte nineteenth neunzehnte

tenth zehnte twentieth zwanzigste

 

In writing dates, German uses the number followed by a period.  On February 2nd would be am 2. Februar.  However, when saying this out loud, you would say am zweiten Februar.  You must use the construction am + -en to answer a question beginning with Wann?  But you use the construction der + -e to answer the question Welches Datum?

Wann sind Sie geboren?  When were you born?Am achzehnten Mai.  On May 18th.

Welches Datum is heute?  What is today's date?Heute ist der neunte Oktober.  Today is October ninth.

78. Passive Voice

To change a sentence from the active to the passive, change three things:

1. accusative object of active sentence to nominative subject of passive sentence2. active verb to a tense of werden (same tense!) plus the past participle of verb in active sentence3. subject to von + dative object in the passive sentence, if agent is mentioned

Present TenseViele Studenten lesen diesen Roman. = Dieser Roman wird von vielen Studenten gelesen.Many students read this novel. = This novel is read by many students.

Imperfect TenseViele Studenten lasen diesen Roman. = Dieser Roman wurde von vielen Studenten gelesen.Many students read this novel. = This novel was read by many students.

Future TenseViele Studenten werden diesen Roman lesen. = Dieser Roman wird von vielen Studenten gelesen werden.Many students will read this novel. = This novel will be read by many students.

Present Perfect TenseViele Studenten haben diesen Roman gelesen. = Dieser Roman ist von vielen Studenten gelesen worden.Many students have read this novel. = This novel has been read by many students.

Past Perfect TenseViele Studenten hatten diesen Roman gelesen. = Dieser Roman war von vielen Studenten gelesen worden.Many students had read this novel. = This novel had been read by many students.

*Notice that in the passive voice, the past participle of werden is worden and not geworden.

Durch can replace von when the agent is an impersonal force (fire, wind, etc.); but it cannot be used if preceded by a limiting word (such as an article or adjective.)

Passive with modalsShifts in tense will only affect the modal part of the sentence.  The infinitive forms of the past participles are used with modals in the passive voice as well.  And where you might expect something like Das Haus hat werden müssen verkauft, the actual construction is Das Haus hat verkauft werden müssen because of the double infinitive construction.  Double infinitives always go to the end of the sentence, but you only need to worry about these in the present perfect and past perfect tenses.

Passive InfinitivesTo be + past participle in English is translated as the past participle + werden in German. With a passive infinitive, usually only the present or simple past of modals is used.

Die Tiere konnten gerettet werden. The animals were able to be saved.

79. Problems with the Passive

False PassiveGrammatically, the false passive is the same as sein + an adjective.  This construction describes a condition rather than an action.  Das Haus ist verkauft is the false passive, while das Haus wird verkauft is the true passive.  The false passive sentence indicates that the house is already sold (condition), while the true passive indicates the house is in the process of being sold (action).

Passive with Absentee SubjectsPassive forms may have a definite or indefinite subject, or no apparent subject at all. The accusative object of an active sentence becomes the nominative subject of the passive sentence.  But sometimes there is no accusative object.  Since a verb cannot be in the first position of sentence without turning the sentence into a question, es is used as the subject.  

Man antwortet ihnen nicht is an active sentence, but if it were turned into the passive, there would be no accusative object.  The passive would have to be es wird ihnen nicht geantwortet.  (Here werden agrees with the apparent subject, es.)

But if another element, such as a dative object or time expression, can be put in the first position, then es is omitted.  Ihnen wird nicht geantwortet can also be used as the passive.  There is no apparent subject, only an implied es, so the form of werden remains wird to agree with es.

80. Avoiding the Passive

1.  The construction man + an active verb can be used instead of the passive voice. Man translates to one, you, we, they, people and constitutes the subject.

Diese Bluse wird gereinigt.  This blouse is being dry-cleanedMan reinigt diese Bluse. They are dry-cleaning this blouse.

Der Dieb wurde gefunden. The thief was caughtMan fand den Dieb. They caught the thief.

2.  Man + modal + an infinitive is frequently used with müssen or können.

Der Flecken kann nicht entfernt werden.  The stain cannot be removed.Den Flecken kann man nicht entfernen.  We can't remove the stain.

3.  Sein + zu + an infinitive can be used with können or müssen to express the possibility or necessity of an action.

Das kann schnell gemacht werden.  That can be done quickly.Das ist schnell zu machen.  That is quickly done.

4.  Sich lassen + an infinitive can replace können and a passive infinitive.

Das kann gemacht werden.  That can be done.Das läßt sich machen.  That can be done.

Die Loreleiby Heinrich Heine

Ich weiß nicht, was soll es bedeuten  I know not, what it is portending

Daß ich so traurig bin;  that I am so depressed;

Ein Märchen aus alten Zeiten  a legend from olden days past

Das kommt mir nicht aus dem Sinn.  will not leave my mind alone.

Die Luft ist kühl und es dunkelt,  The breeze is cool and it darkens,

Und ruhig fließt der Rhein;  and peaceful flows the Rhine;

Der Gipfel des Berges funkelt  the peak of the mountain sparkles

Im Abendsonnenschein.  with evening's setting sun.

Die schönste Jungfrau sitzet  The fairest maiden sits perched

Dort oben wunderbar,  right up there wondrously,

Ihr gold'nes Geschmeide blitzet  her golden jewelry flashes

Sie kämmt ihr gold'nes Haar.  she combs her golden hair.

Sie kämmt es mit gold'nem Kamme  She combs with a comb all golden

Und singt ein Lied dabei;  and thus she sings a song;

Das hat eine wundersame  that has a mysteriously

Gewaltige Melodei.  Tyrannical melody.

Den Schiffer im kleinen Schiffe  The sailor in tiny vessel

ergreift es mit wildem Weh,  is seized with a savage woe,

Er schaut nicht die Felsenriffe,  he sees not the rocky reef edge,

Er schaut nur hinauf in die Höh'.  he looks only up toward the height.

Ich glaube, die Wellen verschlingen  I think that the waves have devoured

Am Ende Schiffer und Kahn;  at last the sailor and boat;

Und das hat mit ihrem Singen  and that's the deed, by her singing

Die Lorelei getan.  the Lorelei has done.

81. Showing Purpose

Weil (because) + a dependent clause shows the reason for an action; however, damit and um…zu (so that, in order to) show the goal of an action. Damit is also followed by a dependent clause, whereas um…zu introduces an infinitive.

Sie macht das Fenster zu, damit sie nicht friert. = Sie macht das Fenster zu, um nicht zu frieren.She closes the window, so that she won't freeze . = She closes the window, in order to not freeze.

Commonly, you use damit when the subject of the main clause is different from the subject of the dependent clause, and um…zu when the understood subject of the infinitive is the same as the subject of the main clause.

82. Shopping

box die Schachtel

VCR der Videorecorder

camera die Kamera

video camera die Videokamera

film der Film

wristwatch die Armbanduhr

handkerchief das Taschentuch

perfume das Parfüm

wallet der Geldbeutel, die Geldbörse

radio das Radio

razor das Rasiermesser

size die Größe

department (in store) die Abteilung

greeting card die Glückwunschkarte

83. Post Office and Bank

letter der Brief teller der Kassierer (in)

postcard die Postkarte bill der Schein

stamp die Briefmarke check der Scheck

phone booth die Telefonzelle checkbook das Scheckbuch

mailbox der Briefkasten ATM der Geldautomat

mail slot der Briefeinwurf key die Schlüssel

address die Adresse lock das Schloß

sender/return address

der Absender filing cabinet der Aktenschrank

label das Etikettsafety deposit box

das Bankschließfach

packing tapedas Paketklebeband

notepad der Notizblock

package das Paket credit card die Kreditkarte

postmark der Poststempel security camera die Überwachungsanlage

rubber band das Gummiband security guard die Wache

ink pad das Stempelkissendrive-thru window

der Autoschalter

string die Schnur safe der Tresor

84. Zu with Infinitives

Infinitives are usually preceded by zu (except when modals are used) when they act as complements of verbs, adjectives or nouns.  Zu + infinitive is always the last element in a sentence. If a separable prefix is used in the infinitive, the zu is inserted between the prefix and the stem.

Hast du Lust, den Dom zu besichtigen?  Do you feel like visiting the cathedral?Es dauert lange, durch die Stadt zu fahren.  It takes a long time to drive through the city.Es ist zu früh um aufzustehen.  It is too early to get up.

Um, ohne and anstatt can be used with zu as well.  They introduce infinitival clauses. Um.. zu is used to indicate purpose, while ohne...zu and anstatt...zu are used with

infinitives, and translated as present participles in English.  (Um...zu must be used instead of just zu when the English equivalent "in order to" can be used sensibly.)

Er kam, um das Buch abzuholen.  He came in order to pick up the book.Sie sagte es, ohne mich anzusehen.  She said it, without looking at me.Statt hier zu sitzen, sollten wir ihn suchen.  Instead of sitting here, we should look for him.

Sein + zu + an infinitive is used the same way in English and German, but the construction is far more common in German.

Das ist nicht zu machen.  That can't be done.Das ist in jedem Laden zu finden.  That can be found in any store.

The verbs brauchen (to need) and scheinen (to seem, appear) are often used with zu + an infinitive. Brauchen in the negative is usually translated as to not have to, and is the opposite of müssen.

Es scheint kaputt zu sein. It seems to be broken. Ich brauche heute nicht zu arbeiten. I don't have to work today.

85. Office & School Supplies

compact disc die Compact Disc calculator der Taschenrechner

floppy disk die Diskette eraser der Radiergummi

document das Dokument notebook das Heft

computer der Computer folder das Prospekt

monitor der Monitor colored pencil der Buntstift

keyboard die Tastatur ruler das Lineal

mouse die Mauspencil sharpener

der Anspitzer (or Spitzer)

printer der Drucker pencil der Bleistift

memo die Mitteilung pen der Kuli

paper das Papier scissors die Schere

photocopier das Fotokopierer glue der Klebstoff

typewriterdie Schreibmaschine

binder der Ordner

software die Software chalk die Kreide

file / computer file

die Akten / die Datei

chalkboard die Tafel

cabinet der Schrank backpack der Rucksack

briefcase die Aktentasche stapler die Heftmaschine

86. Expressions of Time

The accusative case is used to indicate definite time when no preposition is used.

Letzten Sonntag blieb ich zu Hause.  Last Sunday I stayed home.Sie fährt nächste Woche nach Deutschland.  She's going to Germany next week.Er hat uns voriges Jahr besucht.  He visited us last year.

Time expressions with the prepositions an, in and vor are in the dative case.

Wir müssen am Sonntag zurück.  We must return on Sunday.In der Nacht wird es kalt.  It gets cold at night.Vor drei Jahren war es hier genau so kalt.  Three years ago it was just as cold here.

The genitive case is used to express indefinite time, and may refer to the future or past.

Eines Tages war er krank.  One day he was sick.Eines Morgens wird er zu spät kommen.  One morning he'll be late.

87. Travelling / Airport

Customs Office das Zollamt

Airline Office das Büro der Fluglinie

Travel Agency das Reisebüro

Information Office das Auskunftsbüro

Train Station der Bahnhof (ö, e)

departure die Abfahrt (en)

arrival die Ankunft (ü, e)

flight tickets die Flugkarten

baggage das Gepäck

bag die Tasche (-n)

suitcase der Koffer (-)

passport der Pass (ä, e)

left links

right rechts

next (to) neben

near bei

straight ahead geradeaus

along the (noun) (acc. noun +) entlang

over the (noun) über (+ acc. noun)

past the (noun) an (noun) vorbei

up to, as far as the (noun) bis zu (noun)

across from the (noun) gegenüber von (noun)

88. Another

Ein(e) ander- and noch ein- both mean another, but they cannot be used interchangeably.  Ein(e) ander- means a different one, and ander- takes the adjective endings for adjectives preceded by ein words.  Noch ein means one more.

Sollen wir ein anderes Mal wiederkommen?  Should we come again at another (a different) time?

Möchtest du noch einen Raum anschauen?  Would you like to look at another (one more) room?

89. Cosmetics & Toiletries

toothbrush die Zahnbürste hair spray der Haarfestiger

toothpaste die Zahnpasta hair dryer der Fön

dental floss die Zahnseide nail polish der Nagellack

hair brush die Bürste mascara die Wimperntusche

comb der Kamm lipstick der Lippenstift

shampoo das Shampoo powder der Puder

curling iron der Lockenstab soap die Seife

shaving cream die Rasiercreme makeup die Schminke

razor das Rasiermesser perfume das Parfüm

mousse der Schaum cologne das Kölnisch Wasser

90. Subjunctive II or General Subjunctive (Conditional)

This subjunctive mood is used to make statements that are contrary to fact, instead of factual statements that are made in the indicative mood.  There are two forms of the German subjunctive: Subjunctive II and Subjunctive I.  Subjunctive II or the general subjunctive is used with if...then (wenn... dann) statements and conditional sentences. Subjunctive I or special subjunctive is a less common mood that is used with indirect discourse. (If you study other languages with a subjunctive mood, please don't confuse it with the German subjunctive. They are not the same!)

The present tense of Subjunctive II is derived from the simple past / imperfect tense of the

indicative.  For weak (regular) verbs, the subjunctive II is the same as the simple past tense.  For

strong (irregular) verbs, the present tense of the subjunctive II uses the stem of the simple past,

adds an umlaut where possible, and then adds the following endings:

-e-est-e

-en-et-en

 

Strong verbs in the subjunctive II

gehen fahren fliegen

gingegingestginge

gingengingetgingen

führeführestführe

führenführetführen

flögeflögestflöge

flögenflögetflögen

Sein, haben and werden in the subjunctive II

sein haben werden

wärewärestwäre

wärenwäretwären

hättehättesthätte

hättenhättethätten

würdewürdestwürde

würdenwürdetwürden

Some exceptions include the mixed verbs, modals and wissen which use the same endings as the

simple past:

Imperfekt Subjunctive II

brachtedachtedurftekonntemochte

brächtedächtedürftekönntemöchte

solltewolltemußtewußte

solltewolltemüßtewüßte

 

The past tense of Subjunctive II is simply the subjunctive II of sein or haben (whichever auxiliary the verb takes in the indicative) and a past participle. The future tense of Subjunctive II is the subjunctive II of werden and an infinitive.

Conditional sentencesThese sentences are based on an if... then (wenn... dann) pattern in both English and German.  Dann can be omitted in these sentences also.  Remember that wenn is a subordinating conjunction, and forces the conjugated verb to the end of the clause.

Present Subj. II:  Wenn ich Zeit hätte, (dann) ginge ich ins Kino.  If I had time, (then) I would go to the movies.Past Subj. II:  Wenn ich Zeit gehabt hätte, dann wäre ich ins Kino gegangen.  If I had had time, (then) I would have gone to the movies.

Wenn clauses may be introduced by a verb, and in this case, wenn disappears and dann may be replaced by so:

Kommt er heute nicht, (so) kommt er morgen.  If he's not coming today, then he'll come tomorrow.

A conditional sentence may begin with the dann clause as well; but in this case, dann is not actually used and the clause uses normal word order:

Wir trinken den Kaffee nicht, wenn er zu heiß ist.  We don't drink coffee if it is too hot.

Forms of würden + an infinitiveWürde and an infinitive translates to would + infinitive and is more common than the one word form in the dann clause.  Wenn clauses tend to avoid the würde construction, except with these eight verbs: helfen, stehen, sterben, werfen, brennen, kennen, nennen, and rennen.  These eight verbs use the würde construction in the wenn clause because the one word forms are archaic.  Moreover, conversational German tends to replace many subjunctive II forms of strong verbs with the würde construction.  However, this construction is generally not used with the modal auxiliaries, wissen, haben or sein.

Wenn ich Zeit dann ginge ich ins Kino. If I had time, I would go to the

hätte, dann würde ich ins Kino gehen. movies.

Wenn ich Geld hätte,

dann flöge ich nach Deutschland.dann würde ich nach Deutschland fliegen.

If I had money, I would fly to Germany.

91. Other uses of Subjunctive II

1. Being PoliteTo be more polite, use the subjunctive II form of the modals.

Subjunctive II forms of modals

können müssen dürfen sollen wollen mögen

ich könnte müsste dürfte sollte wollte möchte

du könntest müsstest dürftest solltest wolltest möchtest

er, sie, es könnte müsste dürfte sollte wollte möchte

wir könnten müssten dürften sollten wollten möchten

ihr könntet müsstet dürftet solltet wolltet möchtet

sie könnten müssten dürften sollten wollten möchten

Könnten sie mir bitte helfen? Could you please help me?Dürfte ich Ihr Telefon benutzen? Could I use your phone?

In modern German, the subjunctive forms of mögen has become almost a synonym of wollen. Was willst du?  = What do you want? Was möchtest du? = What would you like?

Hätte gern is also becoming common as a synonym for "would like" especially when ordering food. Wir hätten gern zwei Colas, bitte. = We would like two colas, please.

Note that these polite forms are only limited to the modal verbs, sein, haben and werden.  For this reason, you may hear Würden Sie mir helfen? but never Hülfen Sie mir?

2. Expressing Wishes The subjunctive II is also used to express wishes. These phrases generally begin with "I wish" or "If only" in English. Wenn (if) can be omitted from these statements, but then you must move the conjugated verb in the subjunctive II to the place of wenn at the beginning of the phrase. When expressing wishes, the present and past tenses of the subjunctive II can be used.

Wenn ich nur noch jung wäre! = Wäre ich nur noch jung! I wish I were still young! / If only I were still young! Wenn er nur früher gekommen wäre! = Wäre er nur früher gekommen! If only he had come earlier! Wenn sie doch mehr Zeit gehabt hätten! = Hätten sie doch mehr Zeit gehabt! If only they had had more time!

Ich wünschte and ich wollte (I wish) are fixed expressions followed by the subjunctive II or würde + infinitive. Another expression always followed by the subjunctive is an deiner Stelle (in your place / If I were you) when giving advice.

92. Subjunctive I or Special Subjunctive (Indirect Discourse)

The Subjunctive I form is used with indirect discourse when reporting what someone says in a formal, impartial way.  The indicative can also be used to imply a statement of fact, while the subjunctive II can be used to imply the statement is open to question (since subjunctive II is used with contrary to fact statements.)  These three distinctions are quite subtle, although they are important.  In everyday conversation, the tendency is to avoid the subjunctive I and to choose instead between the indicative and subjunctive II.

The present tense of Subjunctive I is derived from the present tense of the indicative and

formed by adding the following endings to the stem of the verb.  Note that the subjunctive I forms

never have the stem vowel change found in their present indicative counterparts (a does not

become ä, e does not become ie, etc.)

-e-est-e

-en-et-en

 

Haben, werden and wissen in the subjunctive I

haben werden wissen

habehabesthabe

habenhabethaben

werdewerdestwerde

werdenwerdetwerden

wissewissestwisse

wissenwissetwissen

 

Notice that sein has no endings in the ich and er forms:

seiseiestsei

seienseietseien

 

The past tense of Subjunctive I is derived from the present perfect tense of the indicative.  It is composed of the subjunctive I form of haben or sein and a past participle. The future tense of Subjunctive I is simply the subjunctive I form of werden and an infinitive.

TensesThe tense used in an indirect quotation is dependent upon the tense used in the direct quotation

that underlies it.  If the direct quotation is in the present tense of the indicative, then the indirect

quotation must be in the present tense of the subjunctive I.  If the direct quotation is in any tense

referring to past time in the indicative (simple past, present perfect, or past perfect), then the

indirect quotation is in the past tense of the subjunctive I.  Subjunctive I only has one tense when

referring to past time, as compared to the three tenses of the indicative.  If the direct quotation is in

the future tense, then the future tense of subjunctive I is used. If the original quotation is in

subjunctive II, then the indirect quotation will also be in subjunctive II.

Tense in direct quotation Tense in indirect quotation

present indicative present subjunctive I

simple past, present perfect, past perfect indicative

past subjunctive I

future indicative future subjunctive I

subjunctive II subjunctive II

In certain cases, the subjunctive I forms and the indicative forms are identical, so the subjunctive II forms must be used instead. Overall, you can use subjunctive I solely for the third person singular form, and use subjunctive II forms for all other persons.

93. Parts of a Car

brake die Bremse (n) wheel das Rad (ä, er)

horn die Hupe (n) carder Wagen (-) / der PKW

hood die Motorhaube (n) traffic light die Ampel (n)

flat tire die Reifenpanne (n) highway die Autobahn (en)

gear der Gang (ä, e) intersection die Kreuzung (en)

trunk der Kofferraum (ä, e)(one-way) street

die (Einbahn)straße (n)

tire der Reifen (-) pedestrian der Fussgänger (-)

windshield wiper

der Scheibenwischer (-)

sidewalk der Fussgängerweg (e)

seat belt der Sicherheitsgurt (e) traffic jam der Stau (s)

seat der Sitz (e) ticket der Strafzettel (-)

steering wheel das Lenkrad (ä, er) (traffic) signdas (Verkehrs)schild (er)

parking space die Parklücke (n) license plate das Nummernschild (er)

 

Der PKW is short for der Personenkraftwagen. Der LKW is also commonly used to mean truck. It is short for der Lastkraftwagen.

94. Present Participle

To form the present participle, simply add -d to the infinitive.  It usually functions as an adjective and takes the normal adjective endings.  It can also function as an adverb, but then of course, it does not add any endings.

kochendes Wasser - boiling waterdie führenden Kritiker -  the leading critics im kommenden Sommer - in the coming summer

Sie spricht fließend Deutsch. She speaks German fluently.

95. In the Ocean

scuba diver

wet suit

flipper

oxygen tank

der Taucher

der Wasseranzug

die Schwimmflosse

der Lufttank

shipwreck

helm

anchor

treasure chest

der Schiffbruch

der Helm

der Anker

die Schatzkiste

snorkel

mask

starfish

jellyfish

sea urchin

sea horse

seaweed

fishing line

fish hook

der Schnorchel

die Tauchermaske (or Tauchmask)

der Seestern

die Qualle

der Seeigel

das Seepferdchen

der Seetang

die Angelschnur

der Angelhaken

barnacle

coral

seashell

wave

sand

bubble

clam

crab

die Entenmuschel

die Koralle

die Muschel

die Welle

der Sand

die Blase

die Muschel

die Krabbe

96. Als ob / Als wenn

The conjunctions als wenn and als ob are interchangeable; they both mean "as if" or "as though."  Both introduce a dependent clause, so the conjugated verb must go to the end.  In addition, both require the subjunctive II.

Als ob ich das nicht wüßte!  As if I didn't know that!Er tut, als wenn er nichts Besseres zu tun hätte.  He acts as though he had nothing better to do.

97. In Space

astronaut

space shuttle

control panel

satellite

spaceship

der Astronaut

die Raumfähre

die Kontrolltafel

der Satellit

das Raumschiff

beaker

test tube

galaxy

Earth

moon

das Becherglas

das Reagenzglas

die Milchstraße

die Erde

der Mond

alien

asteroid

space suit

lunar rover

landing capsule

space station

solar panel

meteor shower

constellation

solar system

der Ausserirdische

der Asteroid

der Raumanzug

das Mondfahrzeug

das Landungsgerät

die Raumstation

die Sonnenzellen

der Meteorschwarm

das Sternbild

das Sonnensystem

sun

planet

rings

crater

stars

comet

rocket

robot

nebula

laboratory

die Sonne

der Planet

die Höfe

der Krater

die Sterne

der Komet

die Rakete

der Roboter

der Nebelfleck

das Labor

98. Future Perfect

The future perfect tense is comparable to the other perfect tenses.  It is formed with the future of haben or sein, and the past participle.  The future perfect deals with the future as if it were already past time (he will have done it), or it is used to imply probability (that was probably him.)  The latter case commonly uses the past tense in English though.

Er wird gegangen sein.  He will have gone.Ich werde es genommen haben.  I will have taken it.Es wird dunkel geworden sein.  It will have become dark.Das wird Rudi gewesen sein.  That will have been Rudi. / That was probably Rudi.

When using modals, the future perfect tense can create the double infinitive construction, so make sure to put the double infinitive at the very end.

Die Uhr wird sehr viel gekostet haben müssen.

99. Fantasy & Make-Believe

dragon der Drache unicorn das Einhorn

fairy

elf

giant

tower

knight

squire

court jester

minstrel

armor

dungeon

moat

castle

die Fee

der Elf / die Elfe

der Riese

der Turm

der Ritter

der Edelknabe

der Hofnarr

der Minnesänger

die Rüstung

der Kerker

der Burggraben

das Schloß

shield

sword

lance

ax

drawbridge

crown

king

queen

princess

prince

throne

der Schild

das Schwert

die Lanze

die Axt

die Zugbrücke

die Krone

der König

die Königin

die Prinzessin

der Prinz

der Thron

100. Spelling Reform

Recently, there has been a spelling reform of the German language. The following are a few points that have changed:

1. Write ss after a short vowel, and ß after a long vowel or diphthong.  Please note that ß is not used in Switzerland or Liechtenstein and a lot of people don't pay attention to this rule anyway.  Also, there is no capital letter that corresponds to the lower case ß, so it must be written as SS.

2. Words that are now capitalized: (auf) Deutsch, Mittag, Abend, Morgen, Recht haben, Leid tun…

3. The forms of Du (familiar you) are no longer capitalized in letters.

4. A comma is not necessary when two independent clauses are joined by und.

Review of Declensions of Nouns

1)  Feminine Singular nouns remain unchanged in all Singular cases.

Singular: Typewriter Street

Nom. die Schreibmaschine die Straße

Acc. die Schreibmaschine die Straße

Dat. der Schreibmaschine der Straße

Gen. der Schreibmaschine der Straße

2) All Neuter and most Masculine Singular add -s or -es (if one syllable) to Genitive Singular.

Singular: Shoe Shirt

Nom. der Schuh das Hemd

Acc. den Schuh das Hemd

Dat. dem Schuh dem Hemd

Gen. des Schuhes des Hemdes

Note: The genitive singular of shoe is generally written des Schuhs in colloquial German.

3) Masculine nouns that end in -e in Nom. Sing. and designate living things add -n to form both Singular and Plural for all cases.

Lion(s)

Singular Plural

Nom. der Löwe die Löwen

Acc. den Löwen die Löwen

Dat. dem Löwen den Löwen

Gen. des Löwen der Löwen

4) All Dative Plural either adds -n or -en.

Man Woman Child

Nom. Sing.

der Mann die Frau das Kind

Dat. Pl. den den den

Männern Frauen Kindern

5) In Plurals of all declensions of all genders, the Nominative, Genitive, and Accusative Plural are the same.

Forest Pear

Nom. Sing. der Wald die Birne

Nom. Pl. die Wälder die Birnen

Acc. Pl. die Wälder die Birnen

Dat. Pl. den Wäldern den Birnen

Gen. Pl. der Wälder der Birnen

To form the Dative Plural, add -n or -en to the Nominative Plural, unless it already ends in -s or -n, then add nothing.

Most singular declensions can be formed from the first three rules above, but plural nouns are more complex and irregular.  Some may add -n, -en, -r, -er, -e, or an umlaut over the stem vowel with a final -e, and some nouns do not change from singular to plural.

Group 1-Singular follows rules

-Plural adds umlaut to stem vowel and -n to all datives

Father(s) (masc.)

Sing. Plural

Nom. der Vater die Väter

Acc. den Vater die Väter

Dat. dem Vater den Vätern

Gen. des Vaters der Väter

Nouns belonging to this group:  Most nouns whose Nom. Sing. end in -el, -en, -er; and neuter nouns that begin with Ge- and end with -e

Group 2-Singular follows rules

-Plural sometimes adds umlaut to stem vowel and -e to Nominative, Genitive, and Accusative; -

en to Dative

Fruit (fem.)

Sing. Plural

Nom. die Frucht die Früchte

Acc. die Frucht die Früchte

Dat. der Frucht den Früchten

Gen. der Frucht der Früchte

Nouns belonging to this group:  Masculine that are one syllable; half of feminine and neuter that are one syllable

Group 3-Singular follow rules

-Plural adds umlaut to stem vowel and -er to Nominative, Genitive, and Accusative; -ern to Dative

Man/men (masc.)

Sing. Plural

Nom. der Mann die Männer

Acc. den Mann die Männer

Dat. dem Mann den Männern

Gen. des Mannes der Männer

Nouns belonging to this group: Many neuter that are one syllable; no feminine nouns

Group 4-Singular adds -en to all Masculine Dative, Accusative, and Genitive; Feminine

follows rule-Plural adds -n or -en to all forms

Student (s)Woman/Women

Sing. Plural Sing. Plural

Nom.

der Student

die Studenten

die Frau

die Frauen 

Acc.den Studenten

die Studenten

die Frau

die Frauen

Dat.dem Studenten

den Studenten

der Frau

den Frauen

Gen.des Studenten

der Studenten

der Frau

der Frauen

Nouns belonging to this group:  Most feminine that are more than one syllable, most masculine that denote living things; no neuter nouns

Group 5-Add -s to Genitive Singular

-Add -s to all plural forms

Auto(s) (neu.)

Sing. Plural

Nom. das Auto die Autos

Acc. das Auto die Autos

Dat. dem Auto den Autos

Gen. des Autos der Autos

Nouns belonging to this group:  Foreign origin words, such as das Radio, das Restaurant, and das Hotel.

Group 6 - Irregular-Add -ns or -ens to Genitive Singular

-Add -en to Dative Singular, may add -en to Accusative Singular -All plural add -en

Heart(s) Name(s)

Sing. Plural Sing. Plural

Nom. das Herz die Herzen der Name die Namen

Acc. das Herz die Herzen den Namen die Namen

Dat. dem Herzen den Herzen dem Namen den Namen

Gen. des Herzens der Herzen des Namens der Namen

Group 7 - Mixed-Add -s or -es for Genitive Singular

-Add -n or -en for all plural

Bed(s) (neu.)

Sing. Plural

Nom. das Bett die Betten

Acc. das Bett die Betten

Dat. dem Bett den Betten

Gen. des Bettes der Betten

German States / BundeslAnder

German States English Translation

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg

Berlin Berlin

Brandenburg Brandenburg

Bremen Bremen

Hamburg Hamburg

Bayern Bavaria

Sachsen Saxony

Thüringen Thuringia

Hessen Hesse

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

Niedersachsen Lower Saxony

Nordrhein-Westfalen North Rhine-Westphalia

Rheinland-Pfalz Rhineland-Palatinate

Saarland Saarland

Sachsen-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein

Berlin, Bremen and Hamburg are cities as well as states.

Austrian States / BundeslAnder

Austrian States English Translation

Burgenland Burgenland

Kämten Carinthia

Niederösterreich Lower Austria

Oberösterreich Upper Austria

Salzburg Salzburg

Steiermark Styria

Tirol Tyrol

Vorarlberg Vorarlberg

Wien Vienna

There are 4 declinations in German:

 

1. NOMINATIV - (Subject): Answers questions such as: Who? (Wer?) and What?

(Was?)

 Gender Definitive Indefinite Negative Demonstrative

(Pronoun)Masculine: Der Ein Kein DieserFeminine: Die Eine Keine DieseNeutral: Das Ein Kein DiesesPlural:  Die --- Keine Diese

 

 

2.         AKUSATIV:   (Direct Object). Answers questions such as: Whom? (Wen?) and What?

(Was?)

 Gender Definitive Indefinite Negative Demonstrative

(Pronoun)Masculine: Den Einen Keinen DiesenFeminine: Die Eine Keine DieseNeutral: Die Ein Kein DiesesPlural:  Die --- Keine Diese 

 

3. DATIV:   (Indirect Object) Answers questions such as: To whom? (Wem?)

 Gender Definitive Indefinite Negative Demonstrative

(Pronoun)Masculine: Dem Einem Keinem DiesemFeminine: Der Einer Keiner DieserNeutral: Dem Einem Keinem DiesemPlural:  Den --- Keinem Diesen  +  n  at

the end of the noun

     

 

4. GENITIV : (Possessive case):answers questions such as: Whose? (Wessen?)

 Gender Definitive Indefinite Negative Demonstrative

(Pronoun)Masculine: Des Eines Keines Dieses  + e/es

at the end of the noun

Feminine: Der Einer Keiner DieserNeutral: Des Eines Keines Dieses  + e/es

at the end of the noun

Plural:  Der --- Keiner Dieser Observation: a) these endings accomplish also other kind of pronouns like possessives,

indefinites etc.

         b) the cases Akusativ, Dativ and Genitiv also depend on prepositions (not

detailed here).

 

Examples:

 

Nominativ (Masculine): 

      WER ist das? (Who is this?)

     Das ist der/ein/kein/dieser Fußballspieler.  (That is the/a/not a/this soccer player).

 

Nominativ   (Neutral):

      WAS ist das? (What is this?)

     Das ist das/ein/kein/dieses Buch. (That is the/a/not a/this book).

 

 

Akusativ (Masculine):

      WEN siehst du? (Whom do you see?)

     Ich see den/einen/keinen/diesen Mann. (I see the/a/not a/that Mann).

 Akusativ (Feminine):    

     WAS kauft Linda? (What does Linda buy?)   

    Sie kauft die/eine/keine/diese Tasche. (She buys the/a/not a/these purse).

 

 

Dativ (Plural):

      WEM gehört dieses Haus? (To whom belongs this house?)

     Das Haus gehört den/keinen/diesen Leuten. (This house belongs to the/these people).

 

Genetive   (Neutral):  

      WESSEN Spielzeug ist das? (Whose toy is that?)

     Das ist das Spielzeug des/eines/keines/dieses  Kindes. (It is the child’s toy)

 

 The verb “Sein” – “to be” in German is very similar in his use as in English.

 Conjugation in present tense:

 Singular:

Ich bin (I am)

Du bist (You are – informal)

Sie sind (You are – formal)

Er ist (He is)

Sie ist (she is)

Es ist (it is)

 

Plural

Wir sind (we are)

Ihr seid (you are – informal)

Sie sind (You are – formal)

Sie sind (they are)

 Formal form is always written with capital letters, the others only at beginning of a sentence.

 Examples:

 Ich bin Amerikaner. (I am American.)

Bist du glücklich? (Are you happy?)

Er ist aus England. (He is from England.)

Ist sie auch aus England?  (Is she also from England?)

Das ist ihr Kind. (This is her child).

 

Wir sind in Urlaub. (We are on vacation)

Seid ihr meine Freunde? (Are you my friends?)

Herr Schmidt, Sie sind herzlich willkommen! (Mr. Schmidt you are welkomm!)

Die Kinder sind im Garten. (The children are in the Garden)

Definite and Indefinite articles – Definit and Indefinit Artikel

 

Definite articles precede a noun

 

Indefinite articles (positive or negative*) indicate that a thing or person is not unique in some

way

 

* In German you deny a noun with a negative article:

 

English: This is not (isn’t) a book.

German: Das ist kein Buch.

 

There are 3 Articles:

 

Singular: Definite Indefinite Positive

Indefinite Negative

Masculine: Der Ein Kein

Feminine: Die Eine Keine

Neutral: Das Ein Kein

Plural **: Die --- Keine

 

 

** Plural is the same for all 3 articles. Plural has several forms in German.

 

Note: all nouns in German are written with capital letters.

 

 

Examples masculine:

 

Der / Ein / Kein Mann, Vater, Direktor, Fußball, Tisch (singular)......ist.....

Die / - - / Keine Männer, Väter, Direktoren, Fußbälle, Tische (plural).....sind....

 

Note:  Fußball means soccer. ß is equivalent to double s – you get it by pressing ALT 225 in

windows/word. Tisch means table. As you see plural can be formed in various ways.

 

Examples feminine:

 

Die / Eine /Keine Frau, Mutter, Direktorin, Lektion, Blume (singular)  ....ist.....

Die / --- / Keine Frauen, Mütter, Direktorinnen, Lektionen, Blumen (plural)...sind...

Note:  Frau means lady/ misses, Blume means flower

 

Examples neutral:

 

Das / Ein / Kein Kind, Bier / Museum / Hotel / Haus (singular)....ist.....

Die / --- / Keine Kinder, Biere, Museen, Hotels, Häuser (plural) ....sind.....

 

Note:  Kind means child, Bier beer, Haus house.

Diphthongs

DiphthongDoubleVowels

AussprachePronunciation

Beispiele / Examples

ai / ei eyebei (at, near), das Ei (egg), der Mai (May)

au ow auch (also), das Auge (eye), aus (out of)

eu / äu oyHäuser (houses), Europa (Europe), neu (new)

ie eeh bieten (offer), nie (never), Sie (you)

Grouped Consonants

BuchstabeConsonant

AussprachePronunciation

Beispiele / Examples

ck k dick (fat, thick), der Schock (shock)

ch >>

After a, o, u and au, pronounced like the guttural ch in Scottish "loch" - das Buch (book), auch (also). Otherwise it is a palatal sound as in: mich (me), welche (which), wirklich (really). TIP: If no air is passing over your tongue when you say a ch-sound, you aren't saying it correctly. No true equivalent in English. - Although ch doesn't usually have a hard k sound, there are exceptions: Chor, Christoph, Chaos, Orchester, Wachs (wax)

pf pf

Both letters are (quickly) pronounced as a combined puff-sound: das Pferd (horse), der Pfennig. If this is difficult for you, an f sound will work, but try to do it!

ph fdas Alphabet, phonetisch - Some words formerly spelled with ph are now spelled with f: das Telefon, das Foto

qu kvdie Qual (anguish, torture), die Quittung (receipt)

sch sh

schön (pretty), die Schule (school) - The German sch combination is never split, whereas sh usually is (Grashalme, Gras/Halme; but die Show, a foreign word).

sp / st shp / shtAt the start of a word, the s in sp/st has a sch sound as in English "show, she." sprechen (speak), stehen (stand)

th t

das Theater (tay-AHTER), das Thema (TAY-muh), topic - Always sounds like a t (TAY). NEVER has the English th sound!

Letters in Words

SpellingAussprache

PronunciationBeispiele / Examples

final b p Lob (LOHP)

final d t Freund (FROYNT), Wald (VALT)

final g k genug (guh-NOOK)

silent h - gehen (GAY-en), sehen (ZAY-en)

When h follows a vowel, it is silent. When it precedes a vowel (Hund), the h is pronounced.

German th t Theorie (TAY-oh-ree)

German v f Vater (FAHT-er)

In some foreign, non-Germanic words with v, the v is pronounced as in English: Vase (VAH-suh), Villa (VILL-ah)

German w v Wunder (VOON-der)

German z tsZeit (TSITE), like ts in "cats"; never like an English soft z (as in "zoo")

Similar Words

Pronunciation Pitfalls

WortWord

AussprachePronunciation

Comments

Bombebomb

BOM-buh The m, b, and e are all heard

Geniegenius

zhuh-NEEThe g is soft, like the s sound in "leisure"

Nationnation

NAHT-see-ohnThe German -tion suffix is pronounced TSEE-ohn

Papierpaper

pah-PEER Stress on the last syllable

Pizzapizza

PITS-uhThe i is a short vowel because of the double z

1 Main Sentence

If a verb has a separable prefix, this prefix is moved to the end of the sentence.

Ich werde den Müll wegwerfen. ("I will throw away the rubbish.", literally "I will the rubbish away-throw.")Ich werfe den Müll weg. (statement) ("I'm throwing away / I throw away the rubbish.", literally "I throw the rubbish away.")Werfe ich den Müll weg? (question) ("Am I throwing away the rubbish?", literally "Throw I the rubbish away?")Wirf den Müll weg! (command, familiar form) ("Throw away the rubbish!", literally "Throw the rubbish away!")

2 Statement

A normal statement is quite simple to construct. First the Subject, then the conjugated verb, at last the rest of the infinitive without this verb.

Ich + den Baum sehen -> Ich sehe den Baum.("I + to see the tree" -> I see the tree.)Ein Text + geschrieben werden -> Ein Text wird geschrieben("A text + to be written -> A text is being written.")Wir + den Raum verlassen -> Wir verlassen den Raum("we + to leave the room -> We leave the room.")Der König + eine Burg bauen lassen -> Der König lässt eine Burg bauen.("the king + to have a castle built -> The king has a castle built.")

If the conjugated verb has a separable prefix, this prefix stays at the end of the sentence.

Ich + den Müll wegwerfen -> Ich werfe den Müll weg.("I + to dispose of the trash -> I dispose of the trash.")

In addition, past participles in the perfect tenses fall at the end of the sentence, with the conjugated auxiliary verb (Hilfsverb) in the second position of the sentence.

Conventional German syntax presents information within a sentence in the following order:

Wichtigstes (what is the most important thing of the things following? *, **) Was (what? the conjugated verb***) Wer (who? the subject) Wem (to/for whom - dative object) Wann (when - time) Warum (why - reason) Wie (how - manner) Wo (where - place) Wen (whom - accusative object) Wohin/Woher (to/from where) Verb, nochmal (first part of the separable verb)

*The word "da" with the meaning "then suddenly" must take the first place. A "dann", then, does so

often, but not necessarily; otherwise, the Subject will do.

**If the verb is most important, the first part of the separable verb is placed here, but even then

separated from the second part. If the verb is not separable or periphrastical, the infinitive will do.

***and in this case, a form of "tun" is legitimately inserted for the conjugated verb, as in Arbeiten tun

wir. "Working, that's what we do."

Wir gehen am Freitag miteinander ins Kino. Literally,"We go on Friday together to the movies."

Wegen ihres Jahrestages bereiten wir unseren Eltern eine Exkursion (Ausflug) nach München vor. Literally,We are planning for our parents today because of their anniversary a trip to Munich.

Comparisons can be put after both parts of the verb, or before the place of its later part. So:Er ist größer gewesen als ich. / Er war größer als ich. "He was greater than me."OREr ist größer als ich gewesen

Additionally, German often structures a sentence according to increasing news value. So:Wir gehen am Donnerstag ins Kino. We're going to the movies on Thursday. BUT

An welchem Tag gehen wir ins Kino? (On) What day are we going to the movies?

Am Donnerstag gehen wir ins Kino. OR Wir gehen am Donnerstag ins Kino. On Thursday we're going to the movies. OR We're going on Thursday to the movies."

Additionally, when the accusative object is a pronoun, it moves in front of the dative object. Florian gibt mir morgen das Buch. "Florian is giving me tomorrow the book." BUT Florian gibt es mir morgen. "Florian is giving it to me tomorrow."

Inversion

By an inversion you emphasize a component of the sentence: an adverbial phrase, a predicative or an object, or even an inner verbal phrase. The subject phrase is put directly behind the conjugated verb, and the component to emphasize is taken to the beginning. The conjugated verb is always the second sentence element in indicative statements.

Ich fliege schnell - Schnell fliege ich ("I fly fast - I fly fast")Du bist wunderschön - wunderschön bist du ("You are lovely - you are lovely")Ich bin gelaufen - Gelaufen bin ich ("I ran - I ran")

3 Questions

Questions may be divided into yes/no questions, asking for the truthfulness of a statement, and specific questions, which ask for a concrete aspect of a statement.

Specific questions are similar to inverted statements. They begin with a question word, then there is the conjugated verb, followed by the subject (if there is one), and the rest of the sentence follows.

Was machst du jetzt? ("What are you doing now?")Wer geht ins Kino? ("Who is going to the cinema?" -- In this sentence, the interrogative pronoun wer serves as the subject)

Yes/No questions

This kind of question is similar to the inversion: you put the inflected verb at the beginning of the (not inverted) sentence.

Du kommst. - Kommst du? ("You are coming - Are you coming?")Ich habe geschlafen. - Habe ich geschlafen? ("I slept - Did I sleep?")

Ich werde das Spiel beenden. - Werde ich das Spiel beenden? ("I'm going to (lit. 'I will') finish the game - Am I going to (lit. 'Will I') finish the game?")Du wirfst den Torwart raus. - Wirfst du den Torwart raus? ("You are throwing the goalkeeper out - Are you throwing the goalkeeper out?")

Asking for subject or object

In a normal question, you replace the subject phrase or object phrase with a corresponding interrogative pronoun, then move it to the beginning of the sentence, like an inversion. Theoretically, you must use the interrogative pronoun of welcher, welche, welches or a nominal phrase with the interrogative article.

Du hast deiner Frau einen Ring gekauft. ("You bought your wife a ring.") - Welchen hast du deiner Frau gekauft? ("Which one did you buy your wife?")Du hast deiner Frau einen roten Ring gekauft. ("You bought your wife a red ring.") - Welchen Ring hast du deiner Frau gekauft? ("Which ring did you buy your wife?")Du hast deiner Frau einen roten Ring gekauft. ("You bought your wife a red ring.") - Welchen Roten hast du deiner Frau gekauft? ("Which red one did you buy your wife?")Du hast deiner Frau einen roten Ring gekauft. ("You bought your wife a red ring.") - Welchen roten Ring hast du deiner Frau gekauft? ("Which red ring did you buy your wife?")

But the usage of this pronoun implies that the speaker knows both the gender and number of the unknown object. So, practically, you replace these pronouns by short forms.

Du hast deiner Frau einen Ring gekauft. ("You bought your wife a ring.") - Was hast du deiner Frau gekauft? ("What did you buy your wife?")

person thing

nominative wer was

genitive (object) wessen wessen

dative wem wem

accusative wen was

Regardless of whether you use the full pronoun or the short form, the genitive case is practically only used for genitive objects.

Asking for a predicative

You ask for a predicative with the either interrogative pronoun Was or, if knowing it is not a nominal phrase, Wie.

Er ist schnell - Wie/Was ist er? ("He's fast - What is he?")Ein Schmetterling ist ein Insekt - Was ist ein Schmetterling? ("A butterfly is an insect - What is a butterfly?")

You can also use other interrogative pronouns like Wo.

Asking for an adverb

It is possible to ask for the adverb of a predicative, if it is not a nominal phrase (and even for the adverb of the adverb etc.)

Der Baum ist 3 Meter hoch.- Wie hoch ist der Baum? ("The tree is three metres tall - How tall is the tree?")

Asking for a possessor

When searching for the possessor of a nominal phrase, you first act as if you would invert the corresponding statement, placing the noun with the unknown possessor at the beginning. Then give it the possessive interrogative article (wessen for all cases, genders and numbers). Of course, this nominal phrase may not have a genitive possessor.

Ich habe das Auto des Chefs gesehen. - Wessen Auto hast du gesehen? ("I saw the boss's car - Whose car did you see?")Ich habe sein Auto gesehen - Wessen Auto hast du gesehen? ("I saw his car - Whose car did you see?")Ich habe sein Auto gesehen - Wessen hast du gesehen? ("I saw his car - Whose did you see?") (Wessen is no longer an article, but a pronoun)

Usage is the same for both unknown possessive articles as for unknown genitive possessors.

Asking for an adverb

First the interrogative pronoun (Wie), then the conjugated verb, next the subject, then the rest of the sentence.

Der Vogel fliegt schnell am Himmel - Wie fliegt der Vogel am Himmel? ("The bird flies quickly in the sky - How does the bird fly in the sky?")

If the adverb describes another adverb or an adjective:

Der Vogel fliegt ungeheuer schnell - Wie schnell fliegt der Vogel? ("The bird flies amazingly quickly - How quickly does the bird fly?")

Asking for position or adverbial clause

Developing the question for an adverbial phrase may be slightly more complicated.

Theoretically, like the other specific questions, the unknown position is inverted to the beginning of the sentence. Whereas the pre- or post- position remains, the nominal part is replaced either by an interrogative pronoun or by a nominal phrase having the interrogative article.

Er sah den Vogel auf dem Baum. - Auf welchem Baum sah er den Vogel? ("He saw the bird in the tree - In which tree did he see the bird?")Dein Hund wurde in diesem Jahr geboren. ("Your dog was born this year")- In welchem Jahr wurde dein Hund geboren? ("Which year was your dog born?")

Practically, the person asking the question will know neither the gender of the noun, nor the number of the noun, nor even the kind of preposition, before he hears the answer. So a short form is used instead in nearly every case. These short forms are also the only way to ask for an adverbial clause or for a proposition.

Er sah den Vogel auf dem Baum. - Wo sah er den Vogel? ("He saw the bird in the tree - Where did he see the bird?")Dein Hund wurde damals geboren. - Wann wurde dein Hund geboren? ("Your dog was born at that time - When was your dog born?")

Some interrogative pronouns: Wo, Woher, Wohin, Wann, Wieso, Weshalb, Warum, Weswegen.

4 Commands

For a command, take the imperative form of the conjugated verb from the infinitive and put it at the beginning of the sentence followed by the corresponding personal pronoun. There also must be an exclamation point at the end of the sentence to make it a command. The separable prefix, if there is one, remains at its old place, separated. In the literary language it is possible to leave the verb at the second place.

If the verb changes the vowel in the second and third person singular, the vowel is also changed in the second person singular of the imperative.

The 2nd person plural pronoun is always omitted. In archaic language, or to emphasize who is ordered for the action, the 2nd person singular pronoun may be left.

Das Tier verfolgen - Verfolge (du) das Tier! ("to trail the animal - Trail the animal!")Das Tier verfolgen lassen - Lass(e) (du) das Tier verfolgen! ("to have the animal trailed - Have the animal trailed!")wegfahren - Fahr(e) (du) weg! ("to drive away - Drive away!")jemanden mitnehmen - Nimm (du) jemanden mit! ("to give someone a lift - Give someone a lift!")

Note that an "'e"' may be added on to the end of the command form, but only if the verb does not have a stem-change. This is a result of the spoken language and has no difference in meaning. Schreib das Wort auf! means the same as Schreibe das Wort auf! ("Write the word down!")

*Lese das Buch!, though very common in spoken language, is considered incorrect because the stem changes from les to lies in the command form. Lies das Buch! ("Read the book!") (singular) and Lest das Buch! (plural) are correct.

There are no imperative forms for first person plural and second person formal. The first and third person plural of the conditional of the present (this is mostly the same form as verb infinitive aside from sein 'to be' for which seien is used) is used (but not for tun 'to do' for which tun is used). You must put it to beginning of the sentence, separate the separable prefix before that, and place the personal pronouns wir or Sie directly after it.

wegfahren - Fahren wir weg! (Let's drive away!) - Fahren Sie weg! (You) Drive away!froh sein - Seien wir froh! (Let's be glad!) - Seien Sie froh! Be glad!

Note that imperatives must have the same word order as yes/no questions.

As a matter of fact, actual commands are often given as simple unconjugated infinitive. This is inevitable in the military (excepting the formal commands Rührt euch and Richt't euch), but way not restricted to it.

In Linie antreten! (Line up! to soldiers) but alsoWarm anziehen und den Schlüssel nicht vergessen! (Put some warm clothes on and do not forget your key; a mother to her child)Hey, nicht faulenzen, arbeiten! (Hey yo, do not laze around, get some work done!, normal imperative would be very odd)

The military command "Stillgestanden", Freeze!, oddly even takes the perfect participle for an imperative.

5 Subordinate clauses

A subordinate clause (Nebensatz) is always incorporated in a main sentence (or another subordinate clause). Any part of the main clause can be replaced by it, but some conjugated verb must remain. However, subclauses are generally moved to the end of the sentence if it can be done without inconvenience, and if they do not take the first place because of importance. As for its word order, it differs in two things only from a main clause:

1. In general, it begins with a special word, a 'subordinating conjunction' or a relative pronoun, setting it into relation with the encompassing sentence.2. The verb is, without separation, sent to the place where the first part of a separable verb would be in a main clause, i. e. at the end of the sentence.

Ich nehme das frühere Flugzeug, damit ich heute noch ankomme. = "I'll take the earlier plane so that I arrive even today."

Question words (in the following example, 'wohin') have the same effect as subordinating conjunctions within a sentence.

Wohin ist er gelaufen? Niemand wusste, wohin er gelaufen ist. ("Where did he run (to)? No one knew where he ran (to)." -- Note that, unlike in English, a subordinate or dependent clause is always separated from the independent clause (Hauptsatz) by a comma.)

Oddities:

1. Final clauses can be replaced by an "um-zu"-infinitive, if the subject is identical; in practice, um behaves as conjunction, and the infinitive, with a zu, as conjugated verb, and the subject falls away.

Wir haben genug Geld, um diese CD zu kaufen. = Wir haben genug Geld, damit wir diese CD kaufen. "We have enough money to/that we buy this CD."

2. In conditional phrases, the conjunction wenn may be left out in the main clause and the verb put into its place. In this case, so replaces dann in the subordinate clause.

Hast du genügend Geld, so no "dann" in this case kannst du diese CD kaufen. = Wenn du genügend Geld hast, dann kannst du diese CD kaufen. "If you have enough money, then you can buy this CD."

3. Indirect speech may behave as subclause in relation to the main clause, but the conjunction (which would be "dass") may be left out and then its word-order is as in main clauses.

Er sagte, er sei mit der Arbeit fertig. = Er sagte, dass er mit der Arbeit fertig sei. = "He said (that) he had finished his work."

4. Denn, by custom translated into English as for, is in practice just an equivalent to weil "because", but it requires a main-clause word-order and may even take a semicolon instead of a comma.

Er kommt nicht zur Arbeit, denn er ist krank. (He doesn't come to work, for he's ill.) = Er kommt nicht zur Arbeit, weil er krank ist. = "He doesn't come to work because he's ill."

To confuse things, in some dialects weil has the role which denn has in Standard German. However this

doesn't mean they generally neglect the subclause word order, since other conjunctions meaning the

same, i. e. da "as" or even a "deswegen weil" (literally: because of that because) take ordinary

subclauses even there.

6 Subordinate sentence structure

Just as in English, a subordinate clause may be used at the beginning or end of a complete expression, so long as it is paired with at least one independent clause. For instance, just as one could say either:

I will go with you, if I can. or If I can, I will go with you.

so you can also say in German:

Ich komme mit, wenn ich kann. or Wenn ich kann, komme ich mit.

Note, however, that in German when the independent clause comes after a subordinate clause the conjugated verb comes before the subject. This arises from the basic rule that always places the conjugated verb in a sentence in the second position, even if that puts it ahead of the sentence's subject.

7 Clauses with dass

Subordinate clauses beginning with dass [thus, so, that] enable the speaker to use statements like nominal phrases or pronouns. These sentences are singular, neuter and either nominative or accusative. However, the verb must go at the end of the sentence. Ich denke, dass er ein Vater ist.

Dass Spinnen keine Insekten sind, ist allgemein bekannt. ("It's well-known that spiders are not insects.")Ich weiß, dass Spinnen keine Insekten sind. - Ich weiß das. ("I know that spiders are not insects - I know that.")

8 Indirect questions with ob

Whereas the word dass indicates that the statement is a fact, ob starts an indirect yes/no question.

Ich weiß nicht, ob ich fliegen soll. ("I don't know whether I should fly.")9 Specific indirect question10 Relative clauses

The outer nominal phrase the relative clause relates to can be any nominal phrase in any case. The clause begins with a form of the relative pronoun derived from and largely identical to the definite pronoun (der/die/das), or the interrogative pronoun (welchem/welcher/welches), the remaining words are put after it. Using the interrogative pronoun without good cause is considered typical for legalese language.

Der Mann, der/welcher seiner Frau den Hund schenkt (nominative subject)("The man who gives his wife the dog")Der Hund, den/welchen der Mann seiner Frau schenkt (accusative object) ("The dog which the man gives his wife")Die Frau, der/welcher der Mann den Hund schenkt (dative object) ("The woman to whom the man gives the dog")Der Mann, der/welcher ich bin (predicative noun) ("The man I am")

The outer nominal phrase can also be the possessor of a noun inside. You use the genitive case of a relative pronoun matching the outer nominal phrase in gender and number.

Der Mann, dessen Auto auf der Straße parkt ("The man whose car is parked on the street")Die Person, deren Auto ich kaufe ("The person whose car I am buying")Das Auto, dessen Fahrer ich helfe ("The car whose driver I am helping")Die Kinder, deren Lehrer ich kenne ("The children whose teacher I know")

Prepositions/Postpositions are attached to these phrases in the relative clause if necessary.

Das Haus, in dem ich lebe ("The house I live in")Die Person, derentwegen ich hier bin ("The person I am here because of")Das Haus, durch dessen Tür ich gegangen bin ("The house whose door I came in by")

If the relative pronoun is identical to the definite article several identical forms may follow each other.

Der, der der Frau, der ich schon Honig gegeben hatte, Honig gab, muss mehr Honig kaufen ("The man who gave honey to the woman I had already given honey to, has to buy more honey")

Such constructions are generally avoided by using forms of welch- as relative pronouns.

Der, welcher der Frau, welcher ...

or rather

Derjenige, welcher der Frau, der ich ...

Otherwise, welcher is rarely used (never in the genitive), and without a difference in meaning. If the relative pronoun refers to a thing as yet unknown or a whole sentence and not a part of it, was is used instead, always equivalent here to an English "which".

Der Chef stellte einen Arbeiter ein, was diesen sehr gefreut hat. - "The manager hired a worker, which the latter was very happy about."

From sentences such as this

In dem Geschäft, wo ( or in dem) man auch Brot kaufen kann, kaufe ich Bier. - "In this shop where you also can buy bread I am buying beer."

one may understand why colloquial usage extends this to other quasi-locational prepositional expressions

Die Zeit, wo (= in der) wir Rom besucht haben, war sehr schön. - "The time lit. where we visited Rome was really fine." Regular "in der", literally "in which",

would translate to a "when" in English.

and then, in Northern German slang, to all relative clauses:

Der Mann, wo bei Siemens arbeitet, hat an der Technischen Universität studiert. "The man where works at Siemens's has graduated from the Technical University."

Southern Germans never use this form, but they have constructed a double form "der wo, die wo, das wo" which is almost necessary in their dialect. "Wo" may here be replaced

by "was", which for undiscoverable reasons seems to occur mostly in the feminine genus.

11 Adverbial clauses

An adverbial clause begins with a conjunction, defining its relation to the verb or nominal phrase described.

Als ich auf dem Meer segelte ("When/As I was sailing on the sea")

Some examples of conjunctions: als, während, nachdem, weil?

German Gender: MasulineSuffix: Most nouns ending in -en, -el, -ling, -ner, -ismus, -ig, -ich, or -er are masculine:der Boden (ground), der Vogel (bird), der Frühling (spring), der Vater (father).Rules: Days, months, and seasons, weather (rain, snow…) are usually masculine in German.

der Sonntag (Sunday), der Winter (winter), der Februar (February, der Regen (rain), der Schnee (snow), but das Wetter (the weather).

Note that these suffixes and rules can only assist you in increasing your chance of guessing what the gender would be, but it’s still guessing, because there are some exceptions that can be found time to time.

 

German Gender: FeminineSuffix: Nouns ending in -heit, -ie, -ik, -age, -ei ,-ion, -itis, -keit, -ur, -schaft, -tät, and -ung are feminine: die Freiheit (freedom), die Garage (garage), die Operation (operation), die Möglichkeit (possibility), die Natur (nature), die Freundschaft (friendship), die Qualität (quality), die Ehrung, (honor).Rules: Trees, flowers, fruit, and cardinal numbers are most of the time feminine:die Föhre (pine tree), die Rose (rose), die Orange (Orange), die Sieben (the seven).

 

German Gender: NeuterSuffix: Nouns ending in -ett, -chen, -lein, -il, -ium, -ma, -ment, -nis, -tel, -tum, -um and -o are neuter:das Bett (bed), das Kaninchen (Rabbit), das Stadium (stage), das Klima (climat), das Geheimnis (secret), das Viertel (quarter), das Album (album), das Fräulein (young lady).Rules: Names of towns, countries, colors, infinitives used as nouns, and the

diminutives that we’ve seen above ending in -chen or -lein, they’re all usually neuter: das Berlin (Berlin), das Deutschland (Germany), das Rot (Red), das Schwimmen (swimming), das Hündchen (little dog), das Kindlein (little child).

12 The Plural in German

German is more diverse in its plural than in English, to express the plural in English we simply add “s” or “es” to the end of the noun, well in German it’s not the case. Some nouns add “e” to their end: der Freund (friend) becomes die Freunde (friends), der Schuh (a shoe) becomes die Schuhe (shoes).

Other nouns add “en” to their end: der Student (student) becomes die Studenten (students), die Zeit (time) becomes die Zeiten (times).

The other forms of plural in German are:

(-n) for example: die Schule becomes die Schulen (schools).

(no diffrence) for example: das Fenster (window) stays die Fenster (windows).

(-¨) for example: der Bruder becomes die Brüder (brothers).

(-¨er or -er) for example: das Haus becomes die Häuser (houses), or das Kind becomes die Kinder (childen).

(-s) for example: das Radio becomes die Radios (this form can be used usually with foreign words) das Baby becomes die Babys

 

Tips: Note that most nouns ending in the suffixes (-heit, -ie, -ik, -age, -ei ,-ion, -itis, -keit, -ur, -schaft, -tät, and -ung) add -en in the plural.

Feminine nouns ending in (-in) add -nen to form their plural.

Note that most German plurals add an extra -n or -en to the plural form in the dative case.

Finally note that while English takes capital letter only in countries names or days… in German all nouns take a capital letter as you may have noticed in this lesson.

13 German Articles

If you don’t know it yet articles in German change depending on the case used in the sentences. If you’re not familiar with that then please check the German Cases page before proceeding to this page.

 German Definite Articles

The definite articles in German refer to specific persons, objects, ideas…etc. and they are : der, die, das, die (plural) they all mean the expression “the” in English, der is used for masculine nouns, die is used for feminine nouns, das is used for neuter nouns, and finally die used also for plural nouns.

 German Definite ArticleMasculine der Mann (the man)Feminine die Frau (the woman)Neuter das Brot (the bread)Plural die Männer (the men), die Frauen (the women), die Brote (the

breads)

 Well, that’s not all; the form we went through above is only for the nominative case. Now let’s have a look at all the rest:

 German Definite Articles  masculine feminine neuter plural  Nominative case der die das die theAccusative case den die das die theDative case dem der dem den to theGenitive cases des der des der of the

 Here are some examples:

Nominative: der Mann ist hier (the man is here)

Accusative: Ich grüße den Mann (I greet the man)

Dative: Ich gebe dem Mann ein Buch (I give the book to the man)

Genitive: Ich habe das Buch des Mannes (I have the book of the man)

 You may have noticed how the definite article changes each time the case changes. So try to memorize the table above by heart, I’m sure it’s not that hard.

14 German Indefinite Articles

The indefinite articles in German refer to unspecified persons, objects, ideas…etc. and they are: ein, eine, ein, they all mean the indefinite article “a, an” in English, ein is used for masculine nouns, eine is used for feminine nouns, ein is used for neuter nouns, and there is no plural for the indefinite article.

 German Indefinite ArticleMasculine ein Mann (a man)Feminine eine Frau (the woman)Neuter ein Brot (a bread)

 Again, that’s not all; the form we went through above is only for the nominative case. Now let’s

have a look at all the rest:

German Indefinite Articles  masculine feminine neuter  Nominative case ein eine ein a, anAccusative case einen eine ein a, anDative case einem einer einem to a, to anGenitive cases eines einer eines of a, of an

 Here are some examples:

Nominative: ein Mann ist hier (a man is here)

Accusative: Ich grüße einen Mann (I greet a man)

Dative: Ich gebe einem Mann ein Buch (I give the book to a man)

Genitive: Ich habe das Buch eines Mannes (I have the book of a man)

 So the same thing happens to the indefinite article, it changes each time the case changes. So try to memorize the table above by heart as well.

A. GENERAL GENDER RULES AND TIPS

1. With words referring to people, the grammatical gender usually coincides with the person's sex.

2. Many words which can be used to refer to human beings of either gender are masculine.

3. With most of the words in category 2 above, the feminine form can be created by adding the suffix -in.

4. The masculine version of some nouns is frequently used to refer to females, even when feminine forms with the suffix -in exist [Frau Doktor Kranzl ist Professor (Professorin) an der Universität].

5. With animals, generally nouns referring to the animal as a category where no thought is given to gender, are neuter.

6. Young animals also tend to be neuter.7. Where for some reason an animal is thought to have more feminine or more

masculine characteristics. that gender is used. Sometimes the gender may be due to the structure of the word.

8. Compound nouns take the gender of the last element of the compound.

B. FEMININE NOUNS

1. Most nouns which end in -e (but not -ee).2. Those words denoting feminine human beings (and occasionally animals)

which are formed from the masculine words by adding -in.3. Numerals used as nouns.4. Nouns with the Germanic suffixes -ei, -heit, -keit, -schaft, -ung.5. Nouns with the suffixes -d and -t are usually feminine. The ending must be a

suffix, though, and not just a -d or -t ending.6. Nouns with the common foreign suffixes -ie, -ik, -ion, -et.7. A host of other foreign suffixes are also feminine, including -a, -ade, -age, -

eille, -aise, -anee, -äne, -anz, -elle, -enz, -esse, -ette, -euse, -(i)ere, -ille, -ine, -isse, -itis, -ive, -ose, -sis, -se, -ur, -üre.

C. MASCULINE NOUNS

1. Male human beings and nouns referring specifically to the male of an animal species.

2. Names of days of the week, months, seasons and directions.3. Names of most stones and minerals.4. Names for storms and most other weather phenomena.5. Five nouns ending in -ee.6. Nouns with the suffix -ling.7. Those nouns which indicate the person doing a given verb action (agent

nouns) which are formed by adding -er to the stem of the verb.8. Many other nouns ending in -er, most ending in -s, and a large percentage (but

not all) of those ending in -en and -el.9. Almost all nouns formed from one of the principle parts of a verb, especially

one-syllable ones formed from strong verbs.10. Nouns formed with the foreign suffixes -and, -ant, -ar, -är, -ast, -ent, -cur, -

ier, -iker, -ikus, -ismus, -ist, -or, -us. Of these, the most important are -ier, -ismus, -ist, -or.

D. NEUTER NOUNS

1. Those nouns which end in -chen and -lein.

2. Young persons and animals except those which, because of a suffix, have another gender).

3. Names for many animals designating both male and female collectively.4. Names of cities, touns, most countries and continents. Note: the article is not

generally used with any of these geographic entities, unless an adjective precedes the name.

5. Other parts of speech used as nouns, unless they designate persons.6. Most collective nouns, especially those formed with the prefix ge- and the

suffix -e.7. Most nouns with the suffixes -icht, -tel, -tum.8. Most nouns ending with the foreign suffixes -ett, -il, -in, -ium, -ma, -ment, -

um.9. Letters of the Alphabet.

E. NOUNS WITH MORE THAN ONE GENDER

Some nouns have two different genders, depending on the definition. Here is a list of the most common such words.

der Alp (nightmare) die Alp (mountain pasture)

der Band (volume) das Band* (ribbon)

der Bauer (farmer) das (der) Bauer (birdcage)

der Bund (federation) das Bund (bundle, bunch)

der Erbe (heir) das Erbe (inheritance)

der Flur (hallway) die Flur (meadow)

der Gefallen (favor) das Gefallen (pleasure)

der Gehalt (content) das Gehalt (salary)

der Harz (mountain range) das Harz (resin)

der Heide (heathen) die Heide (heath)

der Hut (hat) die Hut (protection)

der Junge (boy) das Junge (animal offspring)

der Kiefer (jaw) die Kiefer (pine tree)

der Kristall (type of mineral) das Kristall (type of glass)

der Kunde (customer) die Kunde (news, information)

der Leiter (leader) die Leiter (ladder)

das Mark (marrow) die Mark (monetary unit)

der Marsch (march) die Marsch (marsh)

das Maß (measure) die Maß (liter container--Bavaria)

der Mast (mast) die Mast (fattening of animals)

der Messer (surveyor) das Messer (knife)

der Moment (moment, instant) das Moment (motive, factor)

der Otter (otter) die Otter (adder)

der Reis (rice) das Reis (twig)

der Schild (shield) das Schild (sign)

der See (lake) die See (sea)

das Steuer (rudder) die Steuer (tax)

der Stift (pin) das Stift (convent)

der Tau (dew) das Tau (rope)

der Tor (fool) das Tor (gate)

der Verdienst (earnings) das Verdienst (merit)

das Wehr (dam) die Wehr (defense)

* also "die Band" (with English pronunciation; band)

The words "Meter" and "Teil" and their compounds occur as both neuters and masculines.

"Meter" by itself was originally neuter but it is now usually considered masculine. In compounds indicating units of length it is always masculine: "der Zentimeter," "der Kilometer." Compounds indicating a measuring device are neuter: "das Thermometer," "das Barometer."

"Teil" is masculine if it is felt to be a component part of the whole: "der westlichc Teil." If it designates a separate part or an individual share it is neuter: "Das ist mein Teil." In a store displaying various unrelated items on sale for the same price you frequently see a sign indicating the price for "jedes Teil." Compounds of "Teil" vary in gender: "das Abteil," "das Urteil," "der Vorteil," "der Nachteil," "der Körperteil," "der Bruchteil."

With a few nouns two (or, rarely, even all three genders) are possible without any difference in meaning. Most of them are foreign words for which a firm gender has not (yet) been determined, but there are also a few old Germanic ones in this category:

der (die) Abscheuder (das) Mündelder (das) Dotterder (das) Simsder (das) Erbteilder (die) Wulst

der (das) Knäuelder (das) Zubehör

Some of the foreign words include the following:

der (das) Barockder (das, die) Dschungelder (das) Kathederder (das) Kompromißder (das) Lassodas Taxi/die Taxeder (das) Bonbonder (das Filterder (das) Keksder (das) Lampionder (das) Radardie (das) Cola

15 German Vocabularya (indefinite article) eine (for feminine)

a (indefinite article) ein (for masculine & neuter)

ability Fähigkeit, f

able, capable fähig

about (circa) etwa

about (concerning) über

above über, darüber

abroad im Ausland

absent abwesend

accept annehmen

accident Unfall, m

account Konto, n

achieve erreichen

across (through) durch

act (verb) handeln

action Handlung, f

activity Tätigkeit, f

actor Schauspieler, m

actress Schauspielerin, f

actual tatsächlich

actually eigentlich

add hinzufügen

added zusätzlich

additional beigefügt

address Adresse, f

adequate angemessen

administration Verwaltung, f

adult erwachsen

advanced fortgeschritten

advantage Vorteil, m

advertising Werbung, f

advice Rat, m

affairs (plural) Geschäfte, pl

afraid besorgt

after nach

after that darnach

afternoon Nachmittag, m

afterwards nachher

again wieder

against gegen

age Alter, n

ago vor

agree zustimmen

agreement Vereinbarung, f

aid (help) Hilfe, f

aim Ziel, n

air Luft, f

airplane Flugzeug, n

airport Flughafen, m

alarm clock Wecker, m

alcohol Alkohol, m

alive lebendig

all alle

allow erlauben

almost fast

alone allein

along entlang

already schon

also (too) auch

although obwohl

always immer

among unter, zwischen

amount Betrag, m

amuse vergnügen

ancient alt

and und

and so on und so weiter (or simply usw.)

angle Winkel, m

angry wütend

animal Tier, n

ankle Fessel, f

announce ankündigen

annual jährlich

another ein anderer,-e,-es

answer Antwort, f

ant Ameise, f

any jeder, e, -es

anyone irgend jemand

anything irgend etwas

anywhere irgendwo

apartment Wohnung, f

appear erscheinen

appetite Appetit, m

apple Apfel, m

apply anwenden

approach sich nähern

appropriate passend

approval Billigung, f

approximately ungefähr

apricot Aprikose, f

April April, m

area Gebiet, n

argument Beweis, m

arm Arm, m

armchair Sessel, m

arms (plural) Waffen, pl

army Armee, f

around herum

arrival Ankunft, f

arrive ankommen

art Kunst, f

article Artikel, m

artist (feminine) Künstlerin, f

artist (masculine) Künstler, m,

as (like) wie

as (when) als

ask (beg) bitten

ask (question) fragen

aspect Anblick, m

assembly Versammlung, f

assignment Zuweisung, f

assistance Beistand, m, Assistenz, f

association Verband, m

assume annehmen

at (hour) um

at (place) an

at last endlich

at least wenigstens

at most höchstens

at the same time zur gleichen Zeit

attack angreifen

attempt Versuch, m

attention Achtung, f

attitude Haltung, f

attorney Anwalt, m

August August, m

aunt Tante, f

author (feminine) Schriftstellerin, f

author (masculine) Schriftsteller, m,

autumn Herbst, m

available käuflich

avoid vermeiden

awake erwachen

aware aufgeweckt

away weg

baby Baby, n

back zurück

back (body) Rücken, m

background Hintergrund, m

bacon Speck, m

bad schlechter,-e,-es

badly schlecht

bag Tasche, f

baggage Gepäck, n

bake backen

baker Bäcker, m

bakery Bäckerei, f

balcony Balkon, m

ball Ball, m

banana Banane, f

band Band, n

bank Bank, f

bank note Banknote, f

bar Bar, f

base Grundlage, f

based beruhen auf

basement Keller, m

basic grundlegend

basket Korb, m

bath Bad, n

bathroom Badezimmer, n

battle Schlacht, f

bay Bucht, f

be sein

be called heissen

be valid gültig sein

beach Strand, m

bean Bohne, f

bear Bär, m

beard Bart, m

beat schlagen

beautiful schön

beauty Schönheit, f

because weil

become werden

bed Bett, n

bedroom Schlafzimmer, n

bee Biene, f

beef Rindfleisch, n

beefsteak Steak, n

beer Bier, n

before vor

begin beginnen

beginning Anfang, m

behavior Benehmen, n

behind hinter

belief Glauben, m

believe glauben

bell (door) Klingel, f

below unter

belt Gurt, m

beneath unter

benefit Nutzen, m

beside neben

besides ausserdem

best bester,-e,-es

bet Wette, f

better besser

between zwischen

beverage Getränk, n

beyond jenseits

bible Bibel, f

bicycle Fahrrad, n

big gross

bill Rechnung, f

bird Vogel, m

birth Geburt, f

birthday Geburtstag, m

biscuit Biscuit, n

bit Stück, f

bitter bitter

black schwarz

black schwarz

blanket Decke, f

blind blind

block Block, m

blood Blut, n

blouse Bluse, f

blue blau

board Brett, f

boat Boot, n

body Körper, m

boil kochen

bone Knochen, m

book Buch, n

bookshop Buchhandlung, f

boring langweilg

both beide

bottle Flasche, f

bottom Boden, m

bowl Schale, f

box Schachtel, f

boy Junge, m

brain Gehirn, n

brake Bremse, f

bread Brot, n

break brechen

breakfast Frühstück, n

breast Brust, f

breath Atem, m

bridge Brücke, f

brief kurz

bright hell

brilliant strahlend

bring bringen

broad breit

broke pleite

broom Besen, m

brother Bruder, m

brown braun

brush Bürste, f

budget Budget, f

build bauen

building Gebäude, n

burn brennen

burning Verbrennung, f

bus Bus, m

business Geschäft, n

busy beschäftigt

but aber

butcher Metzger, m

butter Butter, f

butterfly Schmetterling, m

button Knopf, m

buy kaufen

buy kaufen

by (a person) durch, von

by chance zufällig

by heart auswendig

by the way übrigens

Bottom of Form

cabbage Kohl, m

café Café, n

cake Kuchen, m

calf Kalb, n

call rufen, anrufen

camp Lager, n

can können

candle Kerze, f

capacity Aufnahmefähigkeit, f

capital Kapital, n

captain Kapitän, m

car Wagen, m, Auto, n

card Karte, f

care sorgen

career Karriere, f

careful vorsichtig

carpet Teppich, m

carrot Rübe, f, Karrotte, f

carry tragen

case, instance Fall, m

cashier Kassierer, m,

cat Katze

catch fangen

cathedral Kathedrale, f

cattle Vieh, n

cauliflower Blumenkohl, m

cause Grund, m

cell Zelle, f

cellar Keller, m

center Zentrum, n

central zentral

century Jahrhundert, n

certain gewiss

certainly gewiss

chain Kette, f

chair Stuhl, m

chairman Vordsitzender, m

chance Chance, f

changable veränderlich

change (noun) Wechsel

change (verb) wechseln

chapter Kapitel, f

character Charakter, m

characteristics Merkmal

charge beladen

cheap billig

check (verb) prüfen

cheek Wange, f

cheese Käse, m

chemical chemisch

cherry Kirsche, f

chest Brust, f

chicken Hühnchen, n

chief Leiter, m

child Kind, n

childhood Kindheit, f

chill kühlen

chin Kinn, n

china Porzellan, n

chinese chinesisch

chocolate Schokolade, f

choice Wahl, f

choose wählen, auswählen

christian christlich

christmas Weihnachten

church Kirche, f

cigarette Zigarette, f

circle Kreis, m

circumstances Umstände, pl

citizen Bürger, m

city Stadt, f

civil bürgerlich

claim Anspruch, m

class Klasse, f

clay Lehm, m

clean sauber

clear klar, hell

client Kunde, m

clock(tower) Uhr, f

clock,watch Armbanduhr, f

close nahe, bei

closely eng

clothes Kleider, pl

cloud Wolke, f

club Club, m

coast Küste, f

coat Mantel, m

coffee Kaffee, m

cold kalt

collar Kragen, m

collection Sammlung, f

college College, n

color Farbe, f

column Säule, f

comb Kamm, m

combination Verbindung, f

come kommen

come back zurückkommen

command befehlen

commerce Handel, m

commercial Werbespot, m

commission Kommission, f

committee Komittee, n

common gewöhnlich

communication Verbindung, f

company Gesellschaft, f

compare vergleichen

competition Wettbewerb, m

complete vollständig

complexion Hautfarbe, f

comrade Kamarad, m

concept Planung, f

concern betreffen

conclusion Ergebnis, n

condition Bedingung, f

conduct Verhalten, n

conference Besprechung, f

confess bekennen

confidence Zutrauen, n

conflict Konflikt, m

congress Kongress, m

connection Verbindung, f

consider erwägen, überlegen

considerable beträchtlich

construction Bauwerk, n

contact kontaktieren

contain enthalten

contemporary zeitgenössisch

content Inhalt, m

continue fortsetzen

contract Vertrag, m

contrary Gegenteil, n

contrast Gegensatz, m

control Kontrolle, f

conversation Gespräch, n

conviction Ueberzeugung, f

convince überzeugen

cook kochen

cook Koch, m, Köchin, f

cool kühl

cord Seil, n

corner Ecke, f

corporation Gesellschaft, f

correct richtig

cost kosten

council Ratsversammlung, f

count zählen, berechnen

country Land, n

county Grafschaft, f

couple Paar, n

course Lauf, m, Verlauf, m

court Gericht, n

cousin Cousin, m, Cousine, f

cover bedecken

cow Kuh, f

cream Sahne, f

create erschaffen

credit Kredit, m

crime Verbrechen, n

crisis Krise, f

critical kritisch

cross Kreuz, n

crowd Menge, f

crown Krone, f

cry, weep weinen

cucumber Gurke, f

cultural kulturell

culture Kultur, f

cup Tasse, f

cupboard Schrank, m

current laufend

curtain Vorhang, m

customs Zoll, m

cut schneiden

 daddy Papa, m

daily täglich

dance tanzen

danger Gefahr, f

dangerous gefährlich

dark dunkel

data Daten, pl

date Datum, n

daughter Tochter, f

day Tag, m

dead tot

deaf taub

deal Abmachung, f

dear teuer, lieb

December Dezember

decide entscheiden

decision Entscheidung, f

declare bekanntgeben

deep tief

defense Verteidigung, f

degree Grad, m

demand Anfrage, f

demand verlangen

democratic demokratisch

dentist Zahnarzt, m

depart, leave abreisen

department Abteilung, f

departure Abfahrt, f

depth Tiefe, f

describe beschreiben

desert Wüste, f

design entwerfen

desire begehren

desk Schreibtisch, m

despite trotz

dessert Dessert, n

detail Detail, f

detective Detektiv, m

determine bestimmen

determined entschlossen

develop entwickeln

development Entwicklung, f

device Gerät, n

devoted ergeben

dictionary Wörterbuch, n

die sterben

difference Unterschied, m

different verschieden

difficult schwierig

dining room Esszimmer, n

dinner Abendessen, n

direct lenken

direction Richtung, f

directly direkt

director Direktor, m

dirty schmutzig

disappointed enttäuscht

discover entdecken

discuss besprechen

discussion Besprechung

disease Krankheit, f

distance Distanz, f

distribute verteilen

district Distrikt, m

divided geteilt

division Abteilung, f

do tun, machen

doctor Arzt, m, Aerztin, f

dog Hund, m

domestic häuslich

dominant herrschend

donkey Esel, m

door Türe, f

double doppelt

doubt Zweifel, m

down unten, hinunter

dozen Dutzend, n

dramatic dramatisch

draw zeichnen

drawer Schublade, f

dream Traum, m

dress Kleid, n

drink trinken

drive Auto fahren

drunk betrunken

dry trocken

duck Ente, f

due Gebühr, f

during während

dust Staub, m

duty Pflicht, f

dwelling Wohnung, f

each jeder, -e, -es

ear Ohr, n

early früh

earn verdienen

earth Erde, f

east Osten

easy leicht

eat essen

economy Wirtschaft, f

edge Kante, f

editor Herausgeber, m

education Erziehung, f, Bildung, f

effect Wirkung, f

effective wirksam

effort Anstrengung, f

egg Ei, n

eight acht

either beide

elbow Ellbogen, m

election Wahl, f

electric elektrisch

electronic elektronisch

element Element, n

elephant Elefant, m

elevator Fahrstuhl, m, Lift, m

eleven elf

else sonst

emotional gefühlsmässig

employee Angestellter, m

empty leer

end Ende, n

enemy Feind, m

energy Energie, f

engine Motor, m

enjoy geniessen

enough genug

enter eintreten

entire ganzer

entrance Eingang, m

envelope Briefumschlag, m

equal gleich

equipment Ausrüstung, f

escape entkommen

especially besonders

essential wesentlich

establish einrichten

estate Liegenschaft, f

estimated geschätzt

even A622 sogar

evening Abend, m

event Ereignis, n

eventually schliesslich

ever jemals, immer

every jeden,-e,-es

everybody jeder

everyone jeder

everything alles

everywhere überall

evidence Beweis, m

evil Übel, n

exactly genau

example Beispiel, f

excellent ausgezeichnet

except ausser

exchange Wechsel, m

executive Geschäftsführer, m

exercise Uebung, f

exist existieren

existence Dasein, n

exit Ausgang, m

expect erwarten

expenses Auslagen, pl

expensive teuer

experience Erfahrung, f

experiment Experiment, n

explain erklären

express ausdrücken

expression Ausdruck, m

extended erweitert

extent Ausdehnung, f

extra zusätzlich

extreme äusserst

eye Auge, n

 face Gesicht, n

facilities Möglichkeiten

fact Tatsache, f

factor Faktor, m

factory Fabrik, f

fail fehlschlagen

failure Versagen, n

fair ehrlich

fairly eher

fairy tale Märchen, n

faith Glauben, m

fall fallen

false, falsch

familiar gewohnt, vertraut

family Familie, f

far weit

farm Bauernhof, m

fashion Mode, f

fast schnell

fat fett

father Vater, m

fault Fehler, m

favor Gefallen, m

fear Angst, f

features Eigenschaften

February Februar, m

feed ernähren, füttern

feel (good) sich fühlen

feeling Gefühl, n

felicitate beglückwünschen

female weiblich

fetch holen

few wenig

field Feld, n

fifteen fünfzehn

fifty fünfzig

fig Feige, f

fight Kampf, m

figure out herausfinden

file Akte, f

fill füllen

film Film, m

finally endlich

find finden

fine fein, schön

finger Finger, m

finish (verb) beenden

fire Feuer, n

first erster,-e,-es

fish Fisch, m

five fünf

flat Wohnung

flat (adj.) flach

flesh (body) Fleisch

floor Boden, m

flour Mehl, n

flow fliessen

flower Blume, f

fly (insect) Fliege, f

fly (verb) fliegen

follow folgen

food Nahrung, f, Essen, n

foot Fuss, m

for für

forbidden verboten

force Kraft, f

foreign fremd, ausländisch

forest Wald, m

forget vergessen

forgive vergeben

fork Gabel, f

form Form, f

former früherer

forty vierzig

fountain Brunnen, m

four vier

fourteen vierzehn

fox Fuchs, m

frame Rahmen, m

free gratis

free (not occupied) frei

frequently häufig

fresh frisch

Friday Freitag, m

friend Freund, m, freundin, f

friendly freundlich

frighten erschrecken

from von

front Vorderseite, f

full voll

fundamental grundlegend

funny lustig

furniture Möbel, pl

further weiterer, -e, -es

future Zukunft, f

Bottom of Form

gain Gewinn, m

game Spiel, n

garden Garten, m

gas Gas, n

gasoline Benzin, n

general allgemein

get bekommen

girl Mädchen, n

give geben

glad fröhlich, froh

gladly gerne

glass Glas, n

glasses Brille, f

go gehen

goal Ziel, n

God Gott, n

gold Gold, n

goldfish Goldfisch, m

good gut

good-bye auf Wiedersehen

goods Waren, pl

goose Gans, f

government Regierung, f

gradually allmählich

grandfather Grossvater, m

grandmother Grossmutter, f

grass Gras, n

gray grau

green grün

green grün

greetings Wünsche, pl

grey grau

ground Boden, m

group Gruppe, f

grow wachsen

guess vermuten

guest Gast, m

gun Gewehr, n

guy Kerl, m

hair Haare, pl

half halb

hall Halle, f

ham Schinken, m

hammer Hammer, m

hamster Hamster, m

hand Hand, f

handbag Handtasche, f

handkerchief Taschentuch, n

handle umgehen mit

hang hängen

happen geschehen

happy glücklich

hard hard

hardly kaum

harvest Ernte, f

hat Hut, m

hate hassen

have haben

he er

head Kopf, m

health Gesundheit, f

healthy gesund

hear hören

heart Herz, n

heat Hitze, f

heavy schwer

hell Hölle, f

help (noun) Hilfe

help (verb) helfen

hen Huhn, n

here hier

hero Held, m

high hoch

highway Landstrasse, f

hill Hügel, m

him,her, it ihn, sie, es

his sein

history Geschichte, f

hit schlagen

hold halten

hole Loch, n

holiday Ferien, pl

home, at home zuhause

honor Ehre, f

hope Hoffnung, f

horrible schrecklich

horse Pferd, n

hospital Spital, n

hot heiss

hotel, inn Hotel, n

hour Stunde, f

house Haus, n

how wie

however wie auch immer

huge riesig

human menschlich

hundred hundert

hungry hungrig

hurry sich beeilen

hurt, injure verletzen

husband Ehemann, m

I ich

ice Eis, n

ice cream Eiskrem, Eis

idea Idee, f

ideal ideal

if wenn

image Bild, n

imagine sich vorstellen

immediately sofort

impact Einfluss, m

important wichtig

impossible unmöglich

improve verbessern

in in

in front of vor

in spite of trotz

inch Zoll, m

include beinhalten

increase zunehmen

indeed tatsächlich

independent unabhängig

index Inhaltsverzeichnis

index finger Zeigefinger

influence Einfluss, m

initial anfänglich

inner innerer, -e, -es

insect Insekt, n

inside drinnen

instead anstatt

interest Interesse

interesting interessant

interior Innere, f

into in.....hinein

invite einladen

involve verwickeln

iron Eisen, n

island Insel, f

issue Problem, n

it es

it's cold es ist kalt

it's foggy es ist neblig

it's freezing es friert Kälte ein

it's hot es ist heiß

it's nice es ist nett

it's rainy es ist regnerisch

it's snowy es ist schneebedeckt

it's sunny es ist sonnig

it's windy es ist windig

jacket Jacke, f

jam Marmelade, f

January Januar, m

job Job, m

join sich anschliessen

judge Richter, m

juice Saft, m

July Juli, m

jump springen

June Juni, m

just (only) nur

justice Gerechtigkeit, f

keep halten

key Schlüssel, m

kill töten

kind Art, f

king König, m

kiss Kuss, m

kitchen Küche, f

kitten Kätzchen, n

knee Knie, n

knife Messer, n

know (person) kennen

know to können

knowledge Wissen, n

labor Arbeit, f

lack mangeln

ladder Leiter, f

lady Dame, f

lake See, m

lamp Lampe, f

land Land, n

language Sprache, d

large breit

last letzter,-e,-es

last (previous) letzte

late spät

laugh lachen

law Recht, n

lay legen

lead führen

leader Anführer, d

learn lernen

leave weggehen

left links

leg Bein, n

legal gesetzlich

lemon Zitrone, f

length Länge, f

less weniger

let (allow) lassen

letter Brief, m

library Bibliothek, f

lie liegen

lie lügen

life Leben, f

lift (verb) heben

light (adjective) leicht

light (electr) Licht

lightning Blitz, m

like (as) wie

like (verb) mögen

likely wahrscheinlich

line Linie, f

lip Lippe, f

liquid flüssig

list Liste, f

listen hören, zuhören

literature Literatur, f

little (amount) wenig

little (size) klein

live leben

live, dwell wohnen

local lokal

located gelegen

location Standort, m

lock (noun) Schloss, n

long (object) lang

long (time) lange

look schauen

lose verlieren

loss Verlust, m

lot Haufen, m

loud laut

love (noun) Liebe, f

love (verb) lieben

low leise

luck Glück, n

lunch Mittagessen, n

machine Maschine, f

magazine Magazin, n

mail Post, f

maintain instandhalten

majority Mehrheit, f

make machen

man Mann, m, Mensch, m

manner Art, f

many viele

map Landkarte, f

March März, m

march marschieren

mark kennzeichnen

market Markt, m

marriage Hochzeit, f

married verheiratet

mass Messe, f

material Material, n

matter Gegenstand, m

maximum Maximum, n

May Mai, m

may dürfen

maybe vielleicht

me mich (accusative), mir (dative)

meadow Wiese, f

meal Mahlzeit, f

mean meinen, denken

meaning Bedeutung, f

means Mittel, n

meanwhile unterdessen

measure Mass, n

meat Fleisch, n

meet treffen

member Mitglied, n

memory Gedächtnis, n

mention erwähnen

merely kaum

message Botschaft, f

metal Metall, n

method Methode, f

midday, noon Mittag

middle mittlerer,-e,-es

midnight Mitternacht

mile Meile, f

milk Milch, f

million Million, f

mind Sinn, m, Geist, m

minimum Minimum, n

minister Minister, m

minute Minute, f

mirror Spiegel, m

Miss Fräulein

miss (verb) vermissen

mistake Fehler, m

modern modern

moment Augenblick, m, Moment, m

Monday Montag, m

money Geld, n

month Monat, m

moon Mond, m

more mehr

more... than mehr...als

morning Morgen, m

most die meisten

mother Mutter, f

motion Bewegung, f

motor Motor, m

mountain Berg, m

mouse Maus, f

mouth Mund, m

move bewegen

movement Bewegung, f

Mr. Herr

Mrs. Frau

much viel

murder Mord, m

music Musik, f

must müssen

my mein,-e

myself mich

nail Nagel, m

name Name, m

napkin Serviette, f

narrow eng

nasty böse, schlimm

natural natürlich

nature Natur, f

near nahe

necessary notwendig

neck Hals, m

need brauchen

needle Nadel, f

neighbor Nachbar, m

neighborhood Nachbarschaft, f

neither...nor weder...noch

never nie

nevertheless trotzdem

new neu

news Nachrichten, pl

newspaper Zeitung, f

next nächster,-e,-es

nice nett

night Nacht, f

nine neun

nineteen neunzehn

ninety neunzig

no nein

nobody niemand

nod nicken

noise Lärm, m

none niemand

nor weder

normal normal

north Norden

nose Nase, f

not nicht

note Notiz, f

nothing nichts

notice bemerken

novel Roman, m

November November, m

now jetzt

nowhere nirgendwo

number Zahl, f

nurse Krankenschwester, f

nut Nuss, f

oak Eiche, f

observe beobachten

obtain erhalten

obvious offensichtlich

occasion Gelegenheit, f

occur vorfallen

October Oktober, m

of von

of course natürlich, gewiss

off weg

offer anbieten

office Büro, n

officer Offizier, Beamter

official offiziell

often oft

oil Oel, n

old alt

on auf

on time,in time pünktlich

once ein mal

one ein, eine

one(impers.) man

oneself sich

onion Zwiebel, f

only nur

open öffnen

opinion Meinung, f

opportunity Gelegenheit, f

opposite gegenüberstehend

or oder

orange Orange, f

orange (color) orangegelb

orchestra Orchester, n

order bestellen

ordinary gewöhnlich

organization Organisation, f

original original

orning Morgen, m

other anderer,-e,-es

otherwise sonst

our unser, -e

outside draussen

oven Ofen

over über

overcoat Mantel, m

own eigener,-e,-es

page Seite, f

pain Schmerz, m

painting Gemälde, n

pair Paar, n

pale Bleich

paper Papier, n

parents Eltern, pl

park Park, m

parking Parkieren

part Teil, m

particular Besonders

partly teilweise

party Party, f

passport Pass, m

past Vergangenheit, f

patient geduldig

pattern Muster, n

pay zahlen

payment Zahlung, f

pea Erbe, f

peace Frieden, m

pear Birne, f

pen Kugelschreiber, m

people Leute, pl

performance Leistung,Vorstellung, f

perhaps vielleicht

period Punkt(Zeichen), m

permit erlauben

person Person, f

personal persönlich

pick pflücken

picture Bild, n

piece Stück, n

pig Schwein, n

pink blaßrot

place, spot Ort, m, Stelle, f

plan Plan, m

plant Pflanze, f

plate Teller, m

play spielen

pleasant angenehm

please bitte

pleasure Vergnügen, n

plenty sehr viel

point Punkt, m

police Polizei, f

pool Schwimmbecken, n

poor arm

popular beliebt

population Bevölkerung, f

pork Schweinefleisch, n

portion Teil, m

position Lage, f

possible möglich

post office Postbüro, n

postcard Postkarte, f

pot Topf, m

potato Kartoffel, f

power Macht, f,Kraft, f

powerful mächtig

practice Uebung, f

pray beten, bitten

prepare vorbereiten

present Geschenk, n

president Präsident, m

pressure Druck, m

pretty hübsch

prevent vorbeugen

previous vorheriger,-e,-es

price Preis, m

probably wahrscheinlich

problem Problem, n

product Produkt, n

program Programm, n

progress Fortschritt, m

promise versprechen

property Eigentum, n

proposal Vorschlag

propose vorschlagen

protection Schutz, m

proud stolz

prove beweisen

provide liefern

prune Zwetschge, f

public öffentlich

publish veröffentlichen

pull ziehen

pure rein

purple purpurfarbig

purpose Zweck, m

push stossen

put legen, stellen

quality Qualität, f

queen Königin, f

question Frage, f

quickly schnell

quiet ruhig

quite ganz

rabbit Kaninchen, n

race Rasse, f

radio Radio, n

railroad Eisenbahn, f

rain Regen, m

rain (verb) regnen

raise aufziehen

range Bereich, m

rapidly schnell

rare selten

rate Kurs, m,Preis, m

rather eher

raw roh

reach, manage erreichen

read lesen

ready bereit

real wirklich

reality Wirklichkeit, f

realize erkennen,ausführen

really wirklich

rear Hinterseite, f

reason Grund, m

reasonable vernünftig

receive erhalten, bekommen

recently kürzlich

recognize erkennen

record Schallplatte, f

recover sich erholen

red rot

reduce verringern

refrigerator Kühlschrank, m

refuse ablehnen

regard Hinblick, m

region Gegend

regular regelmässig, üblich

relation Verhältnis, n

relatively verhältnismässig

relief Erleichterung, f

religion Religion, f

remain zurückbleiben

remark Bemerkung, f

remember sich erinnern

remove entfernen

repeat wiedeerholen

reply antworten

report berichten

represent darstellen

require erfordern

research (do ~) Forschen

research (noun) Forschung, f

responsible verantwortlich

rest sich ausruhen

restaurant Restaurant, n

result Ergebnis, n

return zurückkehren

rice Reis, m

rich reich

right (direction) rechts

right (fair) rechtig

right (noun) Recht, n

ring läuten

rise aufstehen

risk Risiko, n

river Fluss

road Landstrasse, f

rock Fels, m

role Rolle, f

roof Dach, n

room Zimmer, n

round rund

rule Regel, f

run laufen, rennen

sad traurig

safe sicher

salad Salat, m

salt Salz, n

same gleicher,-e,-es

sample Probe, f

satisfied zufrieden

Saturday Samstag, m

sausage Wurst, f

save retten, sichern

say sagen

scarcely kaum

scene Szene

school Schule, f

science Wissenschaft, f

scissors Schere, f

screw Schraube, f

sea Meer, n

search suchen

season Jahreszeit, f

seat Sitz, m

second zweiter,-e,-es

secret Geheimnis, n

secretary Sekretärin, f

see sehen

seek suchen

seem scheinen

seldom selten

select auswählen

sell verkaufen

send senden, schicken

sense Sinn, m, Gefühl, n

September September, m

serious ernsthaft

serve as dienen als

service Dienst, m

settled abgemacht

seven sieben

seventeen siebzehn

seventy siebzig

several mehrere

sex Geschlecht, n

sexual sexuell

shadow Schatten, m

shall sollen

shape Form, f

share teilen

sharp scharf

shave sich rasieren

she sie

sheep Schaf, n

shelter Obdach, n

ship Schiff, n

shirt Hemd, n

shoes Schuhe, pl

shoot schiessen

shop Laden, m

shore Strand, m

short kurz

shot Schuss

shoulder Schulter, f

show zeigen

sick, ill krank

side Seite, f

sign (noun) Zeichen, n

sign (verb) unterschreiben

signal Signal, n

signify bedeuten

silence Ruhe, f

silver Silber, n

similar gleich

simple einfach

sin Sünde, f

since seit

sing singen

sister Schwester, f

sit sich setzen

situation Lage, f

six sechs

sixteen sechzehn

sixty sechzig

size Grösse, f

skin Haut, f

skirt Rock, m

sky Himmel, m

sleep schlafen

slight geringfügig

slow langsam

small klein

smell riechen

smile lächeln

smith Schmied, m

smoke rauchen

smooth weich, glatt

snail Schnecke, f

snake Schlange, f

snow Schnee, m

so so

soap Seife, f

society Gesellschaft, f

soft weich

soil Boden(Erde), m

soldier Soldat, m

solid fest

solution Lösung, f

some (object) einige

somebody jemand

someone jemand

sometimes manchmal

somewhere irgendwo

son Sohn, m

song Lied, n

soon bald

sound Klang, m

soup Suppe, f

sour sauer

source Quelle, f

south Süden

space Raum, m

speak sprechen

speed Geschwindigkeit, f

spend ausgeben

spider Stall, m

spirit Geist, m

splendid prächtig

spoon Löffel, m

spot Stelle, f, Ort, m

spread ausbreiten

spring Frühling, m

square Platz, m

staff Personal, n

stage Bühne, f

stairs Treppe, f

stamp Briefmarke, f

stand stehen

star Stern, m

stare starren, blicken

start beginnen

state Staat, m

station Bahnhof, m

stay bleiben

steel Stahl, m

step Schritt, m

still immer noch

stir rühren

stock Aktie, f

stomach Magen, m

stone Stein, m

stop Haltestelle, f

stop (verb) anhalten

store Laden, m

storm Sturm, m

story Geschichte, f

stove Ofen, m

straight geradeaus

strange fremd, seltsam

strawberry Erdbeere, f

stream Strom, m, Fluss, m

street Strasse

strength Kraft, f , Stärke, f

strong stark

struggle streiten,kämpfen

student Student, m,-in, f

study studieren

success Erfolg, m

successful erfolgreich

such solcher,-e,-es

suddenly plötzlich

sufficient genügend

sugar Zucker, m

suggest empfehlen

suit Anzug, m

suit (verb) passen

suitable passend

summer Sommer, m

sun Sonne, f

Sunday Sonntag, m

supper Abendessen, n

supply liefern

support unterstützen

suppose annehmen

supreme höchster,-e,-es

sure sicher

surface Oberfläche, f

surprise Ueberraschung, f

sweet süss

swim schwimmen

Table Tisch, f

take nehmen

talk reden

tall gross

task Aufgabe, f

taste (noun) Geschmack, m

taste (verb) abschmecken

taxes Steuern, pl

tea Tee, m

teach lehren

teacher Lehrer, m, Lehrerin, f

tear (verb) reissen

tears Tränen, pl

technique Technik, f

telephone Telefon, n

television Fernsehen, n

tell erzählen

temperature Temperatur, f

ten zehn

tension Spannung, f

term Semester, n

test testen

than als

thank danken

thank you danke

that das

that (which) welcher,-e,-es

the der, die, das

the( plural) die

theater Theater, n

their ihre

then dann

there dort

therefore deswegen

these diese

they sie

thick dick

thin dünn

thing Sache, f, Ding, n

think denken

thirst Durst, m

thirteen dreizehn

thirty dreissig

this dieser,-e,-es

this morning heute morgen

though obwohl

thought Gedanke, m

thousand tausend

thread Faden, m

three drei

throat Hals, m

through durch

throw werfen

thumb Daumen, m

thunder Donner, m

Thursday Donnerstag, m

thus so, darum

ticket Fahrkarte, f

tie Kravatte, f

tiger Tiger, m

till bis

time Zeit, f

times (many) mal

tiny winzig

tire Reifen, m

tired müde

title Titel, m

to zu

to you dir

today heute

toe Zehe, f

together zusammen

toilet Toilette, f

tomato Tomate, f

tomorrow morgen

tone Ton, m,Klang, m

tongs Zange, f

tongue Zunge, f

too auch

too much zu viel

tooth Zahn, m

toothbrush Zahnbürste, f

tortoise Schildkröte, f

total total

touch berühren

tower Turm, m

town Stadt, f

trade Handel, m

traffic Verkehr, m

train Zug, m

translate übersetzen

travel (verb) reisen

treatment Behandlung, f

tree Baum, m

trip Reise, f

trouble Schwierigkeiten

trousers Hose, f

truck Lastwagen, m

true, wahr

trust Vertrauen, n, Trust, m

truth Wahrheit, f

try versuchen

Tuesday Dienstag, m

turn Kurve, f, Reihe, f

twelve zwölf

twenty zwanzig

twice zwei mal

two zwei

ugly hässlich

umbrella Schirm, m

uncle Onkel, m

under unter

underground U-Bahn

understand verstehen

unique einmalig

universe Weltall, n

university Universität, f

unless falls nicht

until bis

unusual unüblich

up auf, nach oben

up to now bis jetzt

us uns

use gebrauchen

vacuum cleaner Staubsauger, m

valley Tal, n

value Wert, m

various verschieden

vast weit, ausgedehnt

veal Kalbfleisch, n

vegetable Gemüse, n

very sehr

victory Sieg, m

view Sicht, f , Ansicht, f

village Dorf, n

visit besuchen

voice Stimme, f

volume Lautstärke, f

vote wählen, abstimmen

wage Lohn, m

wagon Lastwagen, m

wait warten

waiter Kellner, m

walk (go) gehen

wall Mauer, f

want wollen

war Krieg, m

warm warm

wash waschen

watch (noun) Uhr, f

watch (verb) betrachten

water Wasser, n

way Weg, m

we wir

weapons Waffen, pl

wear (clothes) tragen

weather Wetter, n

Wednesday Mittwoch, m

week Woche, f

weight Gewicht, n

welcome willkommen

welfare Fürsorge, f

well gut

west Westen

wet nass

what was

wheel Rad, n

when wann

where wo

whether ob

which welcher,-e,-es

while während

white weiß

who wer, welcher

whole ganz

whom welchen,-e,-es

whose wessen

why warum

wide weit

wife Ehefrau, f

wild wild

win gewinnen

wind Wind, m

window Fenster, n

wine Wein, m

winter Winter, m

wish (verb) wünschen

with mit

with that damit

within darin

without ohne

woman Frau, f

wonder (verb) sich fragen

wonderful wunderbar

wood Holz, n

wool Wolle, f

word Wort, n

work (noun) Arbeit, f

work (verb) arbeiten

worker Arbeiter

world Welt, f

worse schlimmer

worthless wertlos

write schreiben

wrong falsch

yard Hof, m,Yard, m

year Jahr, n

yellow gelb

yellow gelb

yes ja

yesterday gestern

yet noch

you dich, dir

you (plural) ihr

you(singular) du, Sie

young jung

your (plural) euer, Ihr

your (singular) dein, Ihr

youth Jugend, f

zero null

Adjectives proceeded by the indefinite articles (ein/ eine/ ein) or the pronouns such as mein (my, mine), sein (his)… kein (no) have an irregular declension:

 

Adjetives in Germansingular  masculine         feminine         neuternominative ein guter Mann eine schöne Rose ein altes Buchaccusative einen guten Mann eine schöne Rose ein altes Buchdative einem guten Mann einer schönen Rose einem alten Buchgenitive eines guten Mannes einer schönen Rose eines alten Buches

 

The plural endings for strong adjectives are the same for all three genders:

 

Plural adjectivesnominative keine guten Männeraccusative keine guten Männerdative keinen guten Männerngenitive keiner guten Männer

Below is a list of some common adjectives in German, they’re in their original form, so they’re not yet influenced by any other cases like (accusative, dative, and genitive), so take that into consideration when you put these adjectives in a non nominative case.

For example: Er ist schnell (he is fast). (but) Er ist ein schneller Mann.(note how in the first setences the adjective schnell wasn’t influenced by anything and therefore stayed in its original form, but in the second example “ein” made it take “er” at the end). The same thing may occur to the adjectives below:

 

List of German Adjectives

ambitious ehrgeizig

American Amerikaner

annoying ärgerlich

bad schlecht

beautiful schön

big, large groß

blonde blondine

boring langweilig

brave tapfer

careless unbesonnen

cautious vorsichtig

certain bestimmt

charming charmant

cheerful fröhlich

Chinese Chinesisch

conceited eingebildet

conventional herkömmlich

coward feigling

crazy, nuts verrückt, Nüsse

cruel grausam

difficult schwierig

disagreeable unangenehm

dull, boring dumm, langweilig

easy leicht

English Englisch

fake unecht

fat Fett

few, a little wenige, ein wenig

French Französisch

frequent häufig

friendly freundlich

fun, amusing lustig, amüsant

funny komisch, komisch

general General

generous großzügig

German Deutsch

good gut

handsome hübsch

hard-working fleißig

high, tall hoch, hoch

honest ehrlich

intelligent intelligent

interesting interessant

kind Art

laid-back entspannend

lazy faul

little, small wenig, klein

low, short niedrig, kurz

mean niedrig

modest bescheiden

moody launisch

naive naiv

narrow-minded engstirnig

new neu

nice (person) nett

old alt

perfect vollkommen

personal Persönlicher

pious fromm

polite höflich

poor schlecht

possible möglich

pretty ziemlich

proud stolz

rapid, fast schnell, schnell

realistic realistisch

recent neu

reliable zuverlässig

rich reich

sad jämmerlich

selfish egoistisch

sensitive empfindlich

shy schüchtern

silly, dumb dumm, stumm

skinny dünn

slender, slim schlank

slow langsam

small klein

Spanish Spanisch

strict streng

strong stark

stubborn störrisch

talkative gesprächig

trustworthy vertrauenswürdig

ugly hässlich

various verschieden

weak schwach

weird unheimlich

white weiß

young jung

Top 1,000 Words in GermanComputer analysis of word frequency

with single word variations

1-20 21-40 41-60 61-80 81-100

derdieundindenvonzudasmitsichdesauffüristimdemnichteinDieeine

alsauchesanwerdenauserhatdaß*sienachwirdbeieinerDerumamsindnochwie

einemübereinenDassoSiezumwarhabennuroderabervorzurbismehrdurchmanseinwurde

seiInProzenthattekanngegenvomkönnenschonwennhabeseineMark**ihredannunterwirsollicheines

EsJahrzweiJahrendiesedieserwiederkeineUhrseinerwordenUndwillzwischenImimmerMillionenEinwassagte

101-120 121-140 141-160 161-180 181-200

Ergibtalle

Auchihrseinen

Deutschlandanderenwerde

StadtgehtDoch

diesesstehtdabei

DM*diesemseitmußwurdenbeimdochjetztwarendreiJahreMitneueneuendamitbereitsda

müssenabihrerNachohnesondernselbsterstennunetwaBeiheuteihrenweilihmseienMenschen

IchsagtWirEinerundFürAberihnEndejedochZeitsolleninsWennSoseinemuns

sehrhierganzerstwollenBerlinvor allemsowiehattenkeindeutschenmachenlassenAlsUnternehmenandereob

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201-220 221-240 241-260 261-280 281-300

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