02 / Building Your Vocabulary

Names and Titles

Just like English speakers, Germans address one another with first names on an informal basis and with a title and last name on a formal basis. The list of first and last names that follows contains many names already familiar to you.

Andreas (ahn-DRAY-us)	Bauer (BOW-uh)
Brandt (BRAHNT)	Brenner (BRENN-uh)
Gerhardt (GAIR-hart)	Gretchen (GRATE-chen)
Hans (HAHNS)	Herbert (HAIR-bayrt)
Müller (MUEL-luh)	Schmidt (SHMITT)

German has shortened first names or nicknames just as English does. In America, Robert can be called Bob, and John can be called Jack. Susie is just the shortened version of Susanne.

In Germany, the same thing happens. Johann is known to his friends as Hans. Margarethe is Gretchen or Gretel. Eduard becomes Edu. Geli comes from Angelika. And sometimes a double first name borrows a syllable from each name to form a nickname: Lieselotte becomes Lilo.

You should be aware of such shortened names or nicknames, but don’t try using them until you have more experience with the language. Although the English name Richard is also the German name Richard, you cannot refer to Richard as Dick. The German word dick means “fat”!

When using a last name, you should use the appropriate title of the person to whom you are speaking.

  Titles in German Names

German	Pronunciation	English Equivalent
Herr	HAIR	mister
Frau	FROW	Ms.
Doktor	DAWK-tuh	(academic) doctor
Professor	proh-FESS-uh	professor

Germany went through something of a women’s liberation movement about the same time the United States did. There were various outcomes of that movement, and one of them was a significant change in the language.

That change turned the word Fräulein into a taboo word. It’s a diminutive form of Frau that actually means “little lady” or “little woman.” It once was used as the title “Miss” to address a young or unmarried woman. Just as our word “Miss” has fallen out of grace, so, too, has the word Fräulein become a cultural no-no.

Nowadays, you should use Frau with all women— married, single, young, and old. As a foreigner, you’ll be forgiven if you forget and say Fräulein, but it’s only polite to strive to use the correct form.

Greetings and Goodbye’s

To say “hello” to someone, you use the phrase Guten Tag (GOO-ten TUCK). For example, when saying hello to Andreas, you would say, “Guten Tag, Andreas.” Guten Tag literally means “good day.” You have probably heard this common German greeting before. But it’s typically used to greet someone only during the afternoon. At other times of the day you have to say something else.

In the morning hours you should say Guten Morgen (MAWR-gen), which means “good morning.” In the afternoon you say Guten Tag. In the evening use Guten Abend (AH-bent), which means “good evening.” And late at night you say Gute Nacht (NAHCHT), or “good night,” which, just like in English, is a way of saying “good-bye.”

Did you know that Germans shake hands when they greet someone or say good-bye to someone? You may think that sounds just like what Americans do, and to some extent that’s true. But Germans consider it almost a rule.

Now for the farewell. Most English speakers already know that Germans say good-bye with the phrase auf Wiedersehen (OWF VEE-duh-zane). But it really doesn’t mean “good-bye.” A closer translation is “till I see you again.”

But there is another form of good-bye that is very commonly used, although mostly with good friends. It is very casual. It comes from a long time past when it was fashionable to use the French word when bidding farewell to friends: adieu. In the course of time, and with people from all over the German-speaking world pronouncing and mispronouncing the word, it somehow got an s attached to it. Then it lost its first syllable. And in time it became simply Tschüs (CHUESS).

You can’t go wrong by saying auf Wiedersehen, but it’s fun using Tschüs when the occasion allows for it: in casual circumstances or saying good-bye to friends.

When you say that someone is going home, use the following phrase:

 Andreas geht jetzt nach Hause. (Andreas is going home now.)

Any name can be substituted for Andreas. And when someone is going home, it’s an appropriate time to wish him or her auf Wiedersehen or Tschüs.

If you’re speaking on the phone, you don’t use auf Wiedersehen to say good-bye. That’s only for when you see someone face-to-face. When saying good-bye on the phone, use auf Wiederhören (OWF VEE-duh-her-ren). It means something like “till I hear your voice again.”

How Are You?

When asking how someone is doing, you first have to decide whether you’re on a casual or formal basis with the person. Usually, if you’re using someone’s first name, you have a casual or informal relationship with that person. If you’re using a title and last name, you have a formal relationship with that person.

Casual: “How are you?” “Wie geht’s, Andreas?” (VEE GATES)
Formal: “How are you?” “Wie geht es Ihnen, Herr Braun?” (VEE GATE ESS EE-nen)

Countries and Nationalities

Learning the names of countries, nationalities, and languages is a quick way to add an abundance of new words to your vocabulary. The following table shows the names of several countries, the names for citizens (male and female, respectively) of those countries, and the language spoken there. Notice how similar many of the words are to English words.

  Countries, Nationalities, and Languages

Das Land (country)	Die Nationalität (nationality)	Die Sprache (language)
Belgien (Belgium)	der Belgier, die Belgierin	Französisch (French)
China	der Chinese, die Chinesin	Chinesisch
Deutschland	der Deutsche, die Deutsche	Deutsch
England	der Engländer, die Engländerin	Englisch
Frankreich (France)	der Franzose, die Französin	Französisch
Italien	der Italiener, die Italienerin	Italienisch
Japan	der Japaner, die Japanerin	Japanisch
Niederlande (The Netherlands)	der Holländer, die Holländerin	Holländisch
Österreich (Austria)	der Österreicher, die Österreicherin	Deutsch
Russland	der Russe, die Russin	Russisch
Schweden (Sweden)	der Schwede, die Schwedin	Schwedisch
die Schweiz (Switzerland)	der Schweizer, die Schweizerin	Deutsch Französisch, Italienisch
Spanien (Spain)	der Spanier, die Spanierin	Spanisch
die Türkei	der Türke, die Türkin	Türkisch
die USA (OO ESS AH) or die Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika (The United States [of America])	der Amerikaner, die Amerikanerin	Englisch

Some examples of how these words can be used in sentences are given below.

 Sie kommen aus Deutschland. They come from Germany.

 Sie sind Deutsche. They are Germans.

 Sie sprechen Deutsch. They speak German.

 Verstehen Sie Deutsch? Do you understand German?

 Sind Sie Amerikaner? Nein, ich bin Deutscher. Are you an American? No, I am German.

 Er ist in Österreich. He is in Austria.

 Ich komme aus den Vereinigten Staaten. I come from the United States.

When describing a nationality, you do not use the definite article: Ich bin Amerikaner. Sie sind Spanierin.

Days and Dates

The days of the week are all masculine nouns because they are compound words formed with the word der Tag (except for the word for Wednesday).

  Days of the Week

German	English
Sonntag	Sunday
Montag	Monday
Dienstag	Tuesday
Mittwoch	Wednesday
Donnerstag	Thursday
Freitag	Friday
Sonnabend/Samstag	Saturday

If you ask Was ist heute? (What is today?), the answer is one of the days of the week.

Was ist heute? Heute ist Montag.

Was ist heute? Heute ist Freitag.

Ist heute Montag oder Dienstag? Heute ist Montag.*

Ist heute Mittwoch oder Donnerstag? Heute ist Donnerstag.*

*oder = or

The days of the week are used in an adverbial phrase when preceded by the preposition am (contraction of an dem). Then they tell “when” something occurs.

Wann ist das Konzert (concert)? Das Konzert ist am Montag.

Wann ist die Party? Die Party ist am Sonnabend.

Wann kommt Herr Meyer? Herr Meyer kommt am Freitag.*

Wann gehst du nach Hause? Ich gehe am Donnerstag nach Hause.*

*kommt = comes; gehst, gehe = go

The Seasons of the Year

The German words for the seasons of the year are partially similar to the English words.

  Seasons of the Year

German	English
Sommer	summer
Herbst	fall
Winter	winter
Frühling	spring

And, like English, they are used very frequently with the preposition in. But in German, you have to say “in the” season and use the contraction im: im Sommer, im Herbst, im Winter, im Frühling.

If you begin a sentence with one of the seasons, remember to place the verb before the subject: Im Winter sind wir in Florida.

Glückwunsch

It’s a mouthful, but that’s how you say “happy birthday” in German. Naturally, it will be helpful to know the German months if you’re going to talk about birthdays.

German months are very similar to their English counterparts.

  Months of the Year

German	English
Januar	January
Februar	February
März	March
April	April
Mai	May
Juni	June
Juli	July
August	August
September	September
Oktober	October
November	November
Dezember	December

They are used in exactly the same way as the English months: in January (im Januar), in May (im Mai), in September (im September). Notice, however, that German uses im (the contraction of in dem) in place of in.

To tell what month you were born in, just say: Ich bin im Februar geboren. (I was born in February.) Ich bin im Juni geboren. (I was born in June.) You can change the verb sein (to be) appropriately to say what month others were born in: Vater ist im Oktober geboren. (Father was born in October.) Die Zwillinge sind im März geboren. (The twins were born in March.) Wann bist du geboren? (When were you born?)

And if you want to say that something occurred in a certain year, you say im Jahre: im Jahre 1776, im Jahre 2002. Ich bin im Jahre 1985 geboren. (I was born in 1985.)

German years are said like this: 1985 = neunzehnhundertfünfundachtzig.

And if you want to tell in what month your birthday is, you say, Ich habe im April Geburtstag. (I have a birthday in April.) Er hat im Juli Geburtstag. (He has a birthday in July.)

Telling Time

The term der Morgen is a noun that means “morning.” It is used in many expressions on telling time. Here are some important words to know to talk about time of day:

 der Abend (evening)

 der Morgen (morning)

 die Nacht (night)

 der Tag (day)

  The Times of Day in German

German Expression	English Expression
gestern Abend	yesterday evening
gestern Morgen	yesterday morning
gestern Nachmittag	yesterday afternoon
gestern Nacht	last night
heute Abend	this evening
heute Morgen	this morning
heute Nachmittag	this afternoon
heute Nacht	tonight
morgen Abend	tomorrow evening
morgen früh	tomorrow morning
morgen Nachmittag	tomorrow afternoon
morgen Nacht	tomorrow night
übermorgen	the day after tomorrow
vorgestern	the day before yesterday

*Don’t confuse Morgen, the noun that means “morning,” with morgen, the adverb that means “tomorrow.”

Hours and Minutes

What if you need to be more specific than just “yesterday evening” or “this afternoon”? You’ll need to use the clock to indicate a specific time. The word die Uhr means “the clock.” But the same word is placed after time to mean “o’clock.” There are a few kinds of clocks and watches in German, and they typically end with Uhr (note the exception in this list):

 die Armbanduhr (wristwatch)

 die Taschenuhr (pocket watch)

 die Wanduhr (wall clock)

 der Wecker (the alarm clock)

When time is on the hour, you merely say the number and follow it by Uhr: ein Uhr (one o’clock), zwei Uhr (two o’clock), drei Uhr (three o’clock), sieben Uhr (seven o’clock), zwölf Uhr (twelve o’clock), dreizehn Uhr (thirteen o’clock, or one o’clock p.m.), achtzehn Uhr (six o’clock p.m.), zwanzig Uhr (eight o’clock p.m.), einundzwanzig Uhr (nine o’clock p.m.), zweiundzwanzig Uhr (ten o’clock p.m.), dreiundzwanzig Uhr (eleven o’clock p.m.), vierundzwanzig Uhr (twelve midnight).

The times that occur between the top of the hour and the half hour all come nach (after):

1:10 zehn nach eins (ten past one)

4:20 zwanzig nach vier (twenty past four)

6:15 Viertel nach sechs (a quarter past six)

If the time is thirty minutes after the hour, use the word halb (half) and the next hour. Think of it as being “halfway” to the next hour.

2:30 halb drei (two-thirty)

9:30 halb zehn (nine-thirty)

And if the times occur between the half hour and the three-quarter hour, use nach followed by the expression for the half hour:

3:35 fünf Minuten nach halb vier (five minutes past three-thirty, three thirty-five)

7:40 zehn Minuten nach halb acht (ten minutes past seven-thirty, six forty)

Germans often leave out the word Minuten: zehn nach halb acht (ten past seven-thirty. six forty).

From a quarter before the hour to the top of the next hour, use vor (before):

12:45 Viertel vor eins (a quarter to one)

4:50 zehn Minuten vor fünf / zehn vor fünf (ten to five)

Asking for the Time

To ask what time it is, use one of these expressions: Wieviel Uhr ist es? (What time is it?) or Wie spät ist es? (How late is it?). Some possible responses are:

 Es ist halb zehn. (It’s nine-thirty.)

 Es ist neunzehn Uhr. (It’s seven o’clock p.m.)

 Es ist Viertel vor sieben. (It’s a quarter until seven.)

 Es ist zwei Uhr. (It’s two o’clock.)

To ask “at” what time something occurs, precede the time by the preposition um. Note the use of um in these questions and answers.

  Using um When Telling Time

Question	Answer
Um wie viel Uhr kommt der Zug? (At what time does the train come?)	Der Zug kommt um vierzehn Uhr. (The train comes at two o’clock p.m.)
Um wie viel Uhr ist die Prüfung? (At what time is the exam?)	Die Prüfung ist um halb neun. (The exam is at eight-thirty.)
Um wie viel Uhr gehen Sie nach Hause? (At what time are you going home?)	Ich gehe um elf Uhr nach Hause. (I am going home at eleven o’clock.)

And just like English, German has special words for “noon” and “midnight”: Mittag (literally: “midday”) and Mitternacht. They are used in place of twelve o’clock:

 Es ist jetzt zwölf Uhr. (It is now twelve o’clock.)

 Es ist jetzt Mittag. (It is now noon.)

 Er kommt um Mitternacht. (He comes at midnight.)

Family Members

Did you know that German families have specialized words for family members just like American families do? You don’t want to use the wrong word for a specific relationship. It would be just as much of a mistake in Germany as it would be in the United States to introduce your wife’s mother as your “grandmother” instead of as your “mother-in-law.”

So here’s a German family tree. You’ll see that it follows the same lines as an American family tree.

  Members of a German Family

German	English
der Urgroßvater	great-grandfather
die Urgroßmutter	great-grandmother
der Großvater	grandfather
der Opa	grandpa
die Großmutter	grandmother
die Oma	grandma
der Vater	father
der Vati	dad, daddy
die Mutter	mother
die Mutti	mom, mommy
der Stiefvater	stepfather
die Stiefmutter	stepmother
der Ehemann or Mann	husband
die Ehefrau or Frau	wife
der Sohn	son
die Tochter	daughter
der Stiefsohn	stepson
die Stieftochter	stepdaughter
der Stiefbruder	stepbrother
die Stiefschwester	stepsister
der Bruder	brother
die Schwester	sister
die Geschwister	brothers and sisters
der Enkel	grandson
die Enkelin	granddaughter
der Vetter (also: Cousin)	male cousin
die Kusine (also: Cousine)	female cousin
der Neffe	nephew
die Nichte	niece
der Onkel	uncle
German	English
die Tante	aunt
der Schwiegervater	father-in-law
die Schwiegermutter	mother-in-law
der Schwiegersohn	son-in-law
die Schwiegertochter	daughter-in-law
der Schwager	brother-in-law
die Schwägerin	sister-in-law
der Verlobte	fiancé
die Verlobte	fiancée
die Großeltern	grandparents
die Eltern	parents
die Schwiegereltern	in-laws
die Verwandten	relatives

Basic Food and Eating Terms

If you’re visiting Germany or another German-speaking country, you’re going to have to eat eventually. You need some information for getting around a restaurant and its menu.

First, you have to identify what’s a restaurant and what isn’t. There are many words that tell you that you’ve found an eatery:

  Places to Eat

German	English
der Biergarten	beer garden
die Bierhalle	beer hall
das Café	café
das Gasthaus	inn, tavern
der Gasthof	inn, tavern
die Gaststätte	inn, tavern
German	English
die Imbisshalle	snackbar
die Konditorei	pastry shop that serves snacks and beverages
die Mensa	cafeteria in a university
die Raststätte	roadside café
der Ratskeller	restaurant in the cellar of the town hall
das Restaurant	restaurant
der Schnellimbiss	snackbar
die Weinstube	wine café, serving light food

If you’re looking for just a bite to eat, look for a name with Café or Gaststätte in it. For a full meal, you’ll probably want a Restaurant or Ratskeller.

Der Ratskeller is usually found in the cellar of the town hall, called das Rathaus. You can get full meals there and a wide selection of wines.

Just as in the United States, ethnic food is very popular in Germany. There are many American-style fast-food places, including some that are actually transplants from the United States: McDonald’s, Burger King, KFC, and so on.

Restaurant names vary as much in Germany as here. The owner’s name might identify the place. Or a city. Or an animal. Or some trendy phrase. When you see a name like Café Madrid, it’s not hard to figure out where the name came from. But it’s common to begin the name of an inn or other eating establishment with zu. The preposition zu, if you look it up in a dictionary, basically means “to.” But when it’s used with the name of an inn, you should think of it as meaning The Inn of . . . : Zum roten Löwen (The Inn of the Red Lion), Zur alten Mühle (The Old Mill Inn).

You can easily learn the German names of food, beverages, and utensils. Some of the primary ones are given below.

  Food

German	English Foods
die Birne	pear
die Bratwurst	roasted sausage
der Brokkoli	broccoli
die Erbsen	peas
die Erdbeeren	strawberries
der Fisch	fish
das Hähnchen	chicken
die Kartoffeln	potatoes
der Käse	cheese
der Kohl	cabbage
die Möhren	carrots
das Obst	fruit
die Pilze	mushrooms
der Reis	rice
das Rindfleisch	beef
das Sauerkraut	sauerkraut
der Schinken	ham
das Schweinefleisch	pork
der Speck	bacon
der Spinat	spinach
die Zwiebeln	onions

  Beverages

German	English
das Bier	beer
der Kaffee	coffee
die Milch	milk
das Pils	lager beer
der Rotwein, Weißwein	red wine, white wine
der Tee	tea
das Wasser	water
der Wein	wine

  Utensils

German	English
die Flasche	bottle
die Gabel	fork
das Glas	glass
der Löffel	spoon
das Messer	knife
die Serviette	napkin
der Suppenteller	soup bowl (plate)
die Tasse	cup
der Teller	plate