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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Fremdsprachen
- Sprache: Englisch
It's easy to speak and understand German with the Dummies language method
German For Dummies is a clear and easy introduction to German that speeds up the process of speaking the language. The trusted Dummies language learning method is quick and practical, so you'll know what to say and do when traveling to a German-speaking country or interacting with German speakers in your community. You'll learn the basics of German grammar and pronunciation, and then you'll explore common phrases you'll need in everyday situations. Get ready to study, work, or travel abroad—integrate German into your everyday life. This essential resource helps you make small talk, understand common expressions, navigate business settings, ask for directions, go to the doctor, and beyond
- Learn how German works—grammar, pronunciation, and important constructions
- Build your vocabulary with an updated mini-dictionary and learn common expressions you'll hear while abroad
- Brush up your conversation skills with authentic dialogues, plus follow along with online audio
- Get practice reading, writing, and speaking German, so you're ready to communicate effectively
With German For Dummies, students, travelers, and business professionals can gain the confidence to converse in German.
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Introduction
About This Book
Conventions Used in This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Part 1: Getting Started with German
Chapter 1: You Already Know a Little German
The German You Know
Using Basic Expressions
Chapter 2: Pronunciation Basics
Mouthing Off: Basic Pronunciation
Chapter 3: Meeting and Greeting
Getting Formal or Informal
Saying “Hello,” “Goodbye,” and “How Are You?”
Introducing Yourself and Your Friends
Chapter 4: Getting Numbers, Time, and Measurements Straight
Juggling Numbers
Telling Time
Naming the Months
Measurements, Quantities, and Weights
Chapter 5: The Nitty-Gritty: Basic German Grammar
Getting a Handle on Parts of Speech
Constructing Simple Sentences
The Tenses: Past, Present, and Future
Putting the Language in the Proper Case
Chapter 6: Talking About Home and Family
Living in an Apartment or House
Talking About Your Family
Part 2: German in Action
Chapter 7: Getting to Know You: Making Small Talk
Talking About Yourself
Talking About Cities, Countries, and Nationalities
Making Small Talk About the Weather
Chapter 8: Asking for Directions
“Wo?” — Asking Where Something Is
“Wie weit?” How Far Is It?
Going Here and There
Asking “How Do I Get There?”
Describing a Position or Location in Relation to Some Other Place
Getting Your Bearings Straight with Left, Right, North, and South
Taking This or That Street
Using Ordinal Numbers: First, Second, Third, and More
Traveling by Car or Other Vehicle
Chapter 9: Guten Appetit! Dining Out and Going to the Market
Hast du Hunger? Hast du Durst?
All about Meals
Setting the Table for a Meal
Dining Out: Visiting a Restaurant
Shopping for Food
Chapter 10: Shopping Made Easy
Places to Shop around Town
Finding Out about Opening Hours
Navigating Your Way around a Store
Just Browsing: Taking a Look at Merchandise
Getting Assistance as You Shop
Shopping for Clothes
Paying for Your Shopping Items
Comparatively Speaking: Making Comparisons among Items
Chapter 11: Taking Care of Business and Telecommunications
Phoning Made Simple
Making Appointments
Sending Written Correspondence
Getting to Know the Office
Chapter 12: Recreation and the Great Outdoors
Playing Sports
Using Reflexive Verbs to Talk about Plans
Exploring the Outdoors
Part 3: German on the Go
Chapter 13: Going Out on the Town
What Would You Like to Do?
Going to the Movies
What Was That? The Simple Past Tense of “Sein”
Going to the Museum
Talking About Action in the Past
Going Out for Entertainment
How Was It? Talking About Entertainment
Going to a Party
Chapter 14: Planning a Trip
Getting Help from a Travel Agent
Planning Ahead: Using the Future Tense
Dealing with Passports and Visas
Chapter 15: Making Sense of Euros and Cents
Heading to the ATM
Getting Imperative
Changing Currency
Understanding the Euro and Other Currencies
Chapter 16: Getting Around: Planes, Trains, Taxis, and Buses
Using German at the Airport
Traveling by Car
Taking a Train
Knowing When to Separate Your Verbs
Navigating Buses, Subways, and Taxis
Chapter 17: Finding a Place to Stay
Finding a Hotel
Reserving Rooms
Checking In
Checking Out and Paying the Bill
Chapter 18: Handling Emergencies
Requesting Help
Getting Medical Attention
Talking to the Police
Part 4: The Part of Tens
Chapter 19: Ten Ways to Pick Up German Quickly
Labeling the World Around You
Organizing Useful Expressions
Writing Shopping Lists
Using What You Know
Thinking in German
Language Learning Online
Watching German TV Online
Experimenting with What Works Best
Eating German Cuisine
Setting Goals and Rewarding Yourself
Chapter 20: Ten Things Never to Say in German
Using the Right Form of Address
Addressing Service People Correctly
Hot or Cold?
I’m Not Loaded
Speaking of the Law with Respect
Using “Gymnasium” Correctly
Knowing the Appropriate Form of “Know”
Going to the Right Closet
Using Bekommen Properly
Using the Right Eating Verb
Chapter 21: Ten Favorite German Expressions
Alles klar!
Wirklich
Kein Problem
Vielleicht
Doch
Unglaublich!
Hoffentlich
Wie schön!
Genau!
Stimmt’s?
Chapter 22: Ten Phrases That Make You Sound German
Schönes Wochenende!
Gehen wir!
Was ist los?
Das klingt gut!
Keine Ahnung
Es zieht!
Nicht zu fassen!
Du hast Recht!/Sie haben Recht!
Lass es!
Nicht schlecht!
Part 5: Appendices
Appendix A: German-English Mini-Dictionary
German-English Mini-Dictionary
English-German Mini-Dictionary
Appendix B: Verb Tables
Regular Verbs (No Stem Vowel Change)
Special Conjugations
Irregular and Modal Verbs
Appendix C: Answer Key
Index
About the Author
Connect with Dummies
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Chapter 1
TABLE 1-1 Words Similar in Meaning, Slightly Different in Spelling
TABLE 1-2 Basic Expressions
Chapter 2
TABLE 2-1 Pronouncing the German Alphabet
TABLE 2-2 Pronouncing German Vowels
TABLE 2-3 Pronouncing Vowels with Umlauts
TABLE 2-4 Pronouncing German Diphthongs
TABLE 2-5 Pronouncing Selected German Consonants
TABLE 2-6 Pronouncing ch, ck, sch, sp, st, and tsch
Chapter 5
TABLE 5-1 Parts of Speech
TABLE 5-2 Personal Pronouns by Case
TABLE 5-3 Definite Articles by Case
TABLE 5-4 Endings of Ein by Case
TABLE 5-5 Possessive Endings by Case
TABLE 5-6 Examples of Adjective Endings Preceded by Indefinite Articles or Ein- ...
TABLE 5-7 Examples of Adjective Endings Preceded by Definite Articles
Chapter 7
TABLE 7-1 Forms of mein by Case
TABLE 7-2 Country Names, Nouns, and Adjectives
Chapter 8
TABLE 8-1 Prepositions that Express Locations
TABLE 8-2 Sample Cardinal and Ordinal Numbers
TABLE 8-3 Declining a Sample Ordinal Number: Erste (êrs-te) (first)
Chapter 12
TABLE 12-1 Accusative and Dative Reflexive Pronouns
Chapter 13
TABLE 13-1 Verbs That Use Haben in the Perfect Tense
TABLE 13-2 Verbs That Use “sein” in the Perfect Tense
List of Illustrations
Chapter 6
FIGURE 6-1: Who’s who in the family.
Chapter 9
FIGURE 9-1: German restaurants typically post a menu near the door.
Chapter 10
FIGURE 10-1: Common clothing items.
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Begin Reading
Index
About the Author
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German For Dummies®, 3rd Edition
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Library of Congress Control Number is available from the publisher.
ISBN 978-1-394-32126-1 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-394-32128-5 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-394-32130-8 (ebk)
Introduction
We are the players in a fascinating era, one that interconnects us with others all around the world. With globalization and technology as the driving forces, we find ourselves getting in closer and closer contact with more and more people. As a result, knowing how to say at least a few words in a language such as German is becoming an ever-more-vital tool.
Our natural curiosity to find out about other cultures motivates us to hop on a plane and find out firsthand what everyday life is like in the German-speaking regions: Germany, Austria, Switzerland, South Tyrol in northern Italy, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein. Conducting international business in an increasingly globalized market necessitates personal contact; hence, more businesspeople find the need to establish connections with partners in countries like Germany, which has the largest economy in the European Union. On a more personal level, you may have friends, relatives, and neighbors who speak German, or you may want to get in touch with your heritage by learning a little bit of the language that your ancestors spoke.
Whatever your reasons for wanting to learn some German, German For Dummies, 3rd Edition, is a terrific choice because it gives you the skills you need for basic communication in German. I’m not promising super fluency here, but if you want to know how to greet someone, purchase a train ticket, or order food from a menu in German, you need look no further than this book.
About This Book
German For Dummies, 3rd Edition, is set up so that you can use it any way you want to — as a reference to dip into for specific questions you have about German, as a means of gaining knowledge of German in a systematic way, or just for the fun of getting the feel for another language. Perhaps your goal is to learn some words and phrases to help you get around when you travel to a German-speaking country. Maybe you simply want to be able to say “Hello, how are you?” to your German-speaking neighbor. At any rate, you can go through this book at your own pace, reading as much or as little at a time as you like. You don’t need to plod through the chapters in order, either; you’re welcome to read the sections that interest you most.
Conventions Used in This Book
To make this book easy for you to navigate, we’ve set up a few conventions:
German terms are set in
boldface
to make them stand out.
Pronunciation is set in parentheses following the German terms, and the stressed syllables are italicized.
English translations are italicized. You’ll find them set in parentheses following the pronunciation of German terms or sentences.
In some cases, German speakers use the same pronunciation as English speakers for words, many of which are borrowed from English or other languages. When such words are pronounced the same way in German as in English, you’ll see the English word in the pronunciation followed by the notation “as in English” rather than the usual phonetic pronunciation. Of course, if the pronunciation differs between the English and German, I include the German pronunciation as usual.
Verb conjugations (lists that show you the forms of a verb) are given in tables in the following order, starting with ich, which is the German equivalent of “I,” followed by du, the German equivalent “you,” and so on.
ich
— This is the “I” form.
du
— This is the “you” (singular, informal [or sing. inf.]) form.
er/sie/es
— This is the “he, she, it” form.
wir
— This is the “we” form.
ihr
— This is the “you” (plural, informal [or pl. inf.]) form.
sie/Sie
— This is the “they” form/the “you” (formal [or form.]) form.
The first column (see below) shows the German equivalent of “I am, you are,” and so on. Pronunciations follow in the second column.
Conjugation
Pronunciation
ich bin
iH bin
du bist
dooh bist
er, sie, es ist
êr, zee, ês ist
wir sind
veer zint
ihr seid
eer zayt
sie/Sie sind
zee zint
To help you make fast progress in German, this book includes a few elements to help you along:
Talkin’ the Talk dialogues:
The best way to learn a language is to see and hear how it’s used in conversation, so I include dialogues throughout the book. The dialogues come under the heading “Talkin’ the Talk” and show you the German words, their pronunciations, and the English translations.
Words to Know blackboards:
Acquiring key words and phrases is also important in language learning, so I collect these important words in sections that resemble chalkboards, with the heading “Words to Know.”
Note:
In the pronunciations given in these sections, the stressed syllables are italicized.
Fun & Games activities:
If you want to flex your new language muscles, you can use the Fun & Games activities to reinforce what you learn. These activities are fun ways to check your progress.
Also note that, because each language has its own ways of expressing ideas, the English translations that I provide for the German terms may not be exactly literal. I want you to know the essence of what’s being said, not just the meanings of single words. For example, the phrase Es geht (ês geyt) can be translated literally as It goes, but the phrase is actually the equivalent of so-so or Okay, which is what you see as the translation.
Foolish Assumptions
To write this book, I made some assumptions about who you are and what you hope to gain from this book:
You know no German — or if you took German somewhere in your deep, dark past, you don’t remember much more than
Ja, nein, Kindergarten, Guten Tag,
and
auf Wiedersehen
.
You’re primarily interested in communicating verbally in German, not in reading or writing German.
You’re definitely not looking for a ho-hum textbook that puts you to sleep, nor do you want to plod through monotonous language exercises that drill German into your brain. You just want to know some practical words, phrases, and sentence constructions so that you can communicate basic information in German — with confidence.
You have no interest in memorizing long lists of bookish-sounding vocabulary words or a bunch of boring grammar rules.
You’re excited about German and are looking forward to having some fun as you pick up a bit of the language.
If any or all of these statements apply to you, you’ve found the right book!
Icons Used in This Book
You may be looking for particular information while reading this book. To make certain types of information easier for you to find, the following icons have been placed in the left-hand margins throughout the book:
This icon highlights tips that can make learning German easier.
This icon points out interesting information that you won’t want to forget.
Languages are full of quirks that may trip you up if you’re not prepared for them. This icon points to discussions of important grammar points.
If you’re looking for information and advice about culture and travel, look for these icons. They draw your attention to interesting tidbits about the countries in which German is spoken.
The online audio tracks that accompany this book give you the opportunity to listen to real German speakers so that you can get a better understanding of what German sounds like. This icon marks the Talkin’ the Talk dialogues that you can listen to online. To listen to the online audio tracks, go to www.dummies.com/go/germanfd3e.
Beyond the Book
In addition to what you’re reading right now, this book comes with a free, access-anywhere Cheat Sheet containing tips and techniques for learning German faster. To get this Cheat Sheet, simply go to www.dummies.com and type German For Dummies Cheat Sheet in the search box.
Where to Go from Here
Learning a language is all about jumping in and giving it a try (no matter how bad your pronunciation is at first). So, take the plunge! Start at the beginning, pick a chapter that interests you, or listen to a few dialogues online. Before long, you’ll be able to respond, “Ja!” (yah) (yes) when someone asks you Sprechen Sie Deutsch? (shprêH-en zee doych?) (Do you speak German?)
Note: If you’ve never been exposed to German before, you may want to read the chapters in Part I before you tackle the later chapters. Part I gives you some of the basics that you need to know about the language, such as how to pronounce the various sounds, some basic expressions and words, and the fundamentals of German sentence structure.
Part 1
Getting Started with German
IN THIS PART …
Identify what you already know.
Use basic expressions.
Understand German pronunciation.
Meet and greet people.
Deal with numbers.
Get introduced to basic grammar.
Talk about home and family.
Chapter 1
You Already Know a Little German
IN THIS CHAPTER
Recognizing the German you already know
Spotting words that aren’t what they seem
Using basic German expressions
The best way to learn a new language is to jump right in — no pussyfooting around. In this chapter, you get a head start in German by seeing some of the language you’re already familiar with. You also find out some popular German expressions, and you get the hang of why you need to be careful with what are called “false friends” — words that seem to be the same in both languages but actually have different meanings.
The German You Know
Because both German and English belong to the group of Germanic languages, quite a few words are either identical or similar in both languages. Words that share a common source are called cognates. Another group of words common to German and English stem from Latin-based words with which English speakers are familiar. Many of these have direct equivalents in German, for example, nouns that end in “-tion.”
Friendly allies (perfect cognates)
The following words are spelled the same way and have the same meaning in German and in English. The only differences are the pronunciation, as shown in parentheses, as well as the fact that in German, nouns are always capitalized. In addition, German nouns have one of three genders, as seen on this list by the words der (masculine), die (feminine), and das (neuter) in front of each noun. See Chapter 5 for details on what gender is all about and go to Chapter 2 for information on the pronunciation key for each word presented in this book. In a few instances, the German and English pronunciation for the word is the same, so you’ll see the English word in the pronunciation (followed by the notation “as in English”).
der Arm
(dêr ârm)
der Bandit
(dêr bân-
deet
)
die Bank
(dee bânk)
die Basis
(dee
bah
-zis)
bitter
(
bit
-er)
blind
(blint)
die Butter
(dee
boot
-er)
digital
(di-gi-
tâl
)
elegant
(êl-ê-
gânt
)
die Emotion
(dee ê-moh-tsee-
ohn
)
emotional
(ê-moh-tsee-oh-
nahl
)
fair
(fair [as in English])
der Finger
(dêr
fing
-er)
die Hand
(dee hânt)
das Hotel
(dâs hotel [as in English])
die Information
(dee in-for-mâ-tsee-
ohn
)
die Inspiration
(dee in-spi-râ-tsee-
ohn
)
die Integration
(dee in-tê-grâ-tsee-
ohn
)
international
(in-ter-nâ-tsee-oh-
nahl
)
irrational
(ir-râ-tsee-oh-
nahl
)
legal
(ley-
gahl
)
liberal
(lee-bêr-
ahl
)
der Mast
(dêr mast)
die Mine
(dee
meen-
e)
modern
(moh-
dêrn
)
der Moment
(dêr moh-
mênt
)
die Motivation
(dee moh-ti-vâ-tsee-
ohn
)
das Museum
(dâs mooh-
zey
-oohm)
der Name
(dêr
nah
-me)
die Nation
(dee nâ-tsee-
ohn
)
normal
(nor-
mahl
)
die Olive
(dee oh-
lee
-ve)
parallel
(pâr-â
-leyl
)
das Problem
(dâs proh-
bleym
)
der Professor
(dêr professor [as in English])
das Radio
(dâs
rah
-dee-oh)
die Religion
(dee rey-li-gee-
ohn
)
das Restaurant (
dâs rês-tuh
-ron
)
die Rose
(dee
roh
-ze)
der Service
(dêr
ser
-vis)
das Signal
(dâs zig-
nahl
)
der Sport
(dêr shport)
die Statue
(dee
shtah
-tooh-e)
der Stress
(dêr shtrês)
das System
(dâs zers-
teym
)
das Taxi
(dâs
tâx
-ee)
der Tiger
(dêr
tee
-ger)
tolerant
(to-lêr-
ânt
)
total
(toh-
tahl
)
die Tradition
(dee trâ-di-tsee-
ohn
)
der Tunnel
(dêr
toohn
-el)
warm
(vahrm)
wild
(vilt)
der Wind
(dêr vint)
Kissing cousins (near cognates)
Many words, like the ones shown in Table 1-1, are spelled almost the same in German as in English and have the same meaning. Table 1-1 also shows you something about German spelling conventions, which include the following:
The English
c
is a
k
in most German words.
The
ou
in English words like
house
or
mouse
is often equivalent to
au
in German words.
Many English adjectives ending in
-ic
or -
ical
have an -
isch
ending in German.
Some English adjectives ending in -
y
are spelled with -
ig
in German.
Some English nouns ending in -
y
have an -
ie
ending in German.
TABLE 1-1 Words Similar in Meaning, Slightly Different in Spelling
German
English
die Adresse (dee ah-drês-e)
address
der Aspekt (dêr âs-pêkt)
aspect
der Bär (dêr bear [as in English])
bear
blond (blont)
blond(e)
die Bluse (dee blooh-ze)
blouse
braun (brown [as in English])
brown
die Demokratie (dee dê-moh-krâ-tee)
democracy
direkt (di-rêkt)
direct
der Doktor (dêr dok-tohr)
doctor
exzellent (êx-tsel-ênt)
excellent
fantastisch (fân-tâs-tish)
fantastic
das Glas (dâs glahs)
glass
das Haus (dâs hous)
house
hungrig (hoong-riH)
hungry
die Industrie (dee in-dooh-stree)
industry
der Kaffee (dêr kâf-ey)
coffee
die Komödie (dee koh-mer-dee-e)
comedy
die Kondition (dee kon-di-tsee-ohn)
condition
das Konzert (dâs kon-tsêrt)
concert
die Kultur (dee kool-toohr)
culture
logisch (loh-gish)
logical
das Mandat (dâs mân-daht)
mandate
der Mann (dêr mân)
man
die Maschine (dee mâ-sheen-e)
machine
die Maus (dee mouse [as in English])
mouse
die Methode (dee mê-toh-de)
method
die Mobilität (dee moh-bi-li-tait)
mobility
die Musik (dee mooh-zeek)
music
die Nationalität (dee nât-see-oh-nahl-i-tait)
nationality
die Natur (dee nâ-toohr)
nature
offiziell (oh-fits-ee-êl)
official (adjective)
der Ozean (dêr oh-tsê-ân)
ocean
das Papier (dâs pâ-peer)
paper
das Parlament (dâs pâr-lâ-mênt)
parliament
perfekt (pêr-fêkt)
perfect
politisch (poh-li-tish)
political
potenziell (po-tên-tsee-êl)
potential (adjective)
praktisch (prâk-tish)
practical
das Programm (dâs proh-grâm)
program
das Salz (dâs zâlts)
salt
der Scheck (dêr shêk)
check
sonnig (zon-iH)
sunny
der Supermarkt (dêr zooh-pêr-mârkt)
supermarket
das Telefon (dâs tê-le-fohn)
telephone
die Theorie (dee tey-ohr-ee)
theory
die Tragödie (dee trâ-ger-dee-e)
tragedy
die Walnuss (dee vahl-noohs)
walnut
False friends
As does every language, German contains some false friends — those words that look very similar to English but have a completely different meaning. As you read the following list, you can see why you should treat any new German word with kid gloves, especially if it looks like an English word, until, that is, you find out for sure what it means in English.
After
(
ahf
-ter): If you want to avoid embarrassment, remember the meaning of this word. Its German meaning is
anus
and not
after.
The German word for
after
is
nach
(nahH) or
nachdem
(nahH-
deym
).
aktuell
(âk-tooh-
êl
): This word means
up-to-date
and
current,
not
actual.
The German translation for
actual
is
tatsächlich
(tât-
sêH
-liH).
also
(
âl
-zoh): This one means
so, therefore,
or
thus;
not
also.
The German word for
also
is
auch
(ouH).
bald
(bâlt): This word means
soon
and is not a description for someone with little or no hair. The German word for
bald
is
kahl
(kahl) or
glatzköpfig
(
glâts-
kerpf-iH).
bekommen
(be-
kom
-en): This verb is an important one to remember. It means
to get
and not
to become.
The German word for
to become
is
werden
(
vêr
-den).
Boot
(boht): This is a
boat
and not a
boot,
which is
Stiefel
(
shteef
-el) in German. A
sailboat
is called a
Segelboot
(
zey-
gêl-boht).
brav
(brahf): This word means
well-behaved
and not
brave.
The German word for
brave
is
tapfer
(
tâp
-fer).
Brief
(breef): This is a noun and means
letter,
not
brief.
The German translation for the English adjective
brief
is
kurz
(koorts), and, for the English noun,
Auftrag
(
ouf
-trahk) or
Unterlagen
(
oon
-ter-lah-gen).
Chef
(shêf): This is the German word for a person you take orders from, your
boss
or
supervisor,
not someone who’s in charge of the cooking. The German word for
chef
is
Küchenchef
(
kueH
-ên-shêf) or
Chefkoch
(
shêf
-koH). Otherwise, a plain
cook
is called a
Koch
(koH) in German.
eventuell
(ey-vên-tooh-
êl
): This one means
possible
or
possibly,
not
eventual
or
eventually,
both of which would be
schließlich
(
shlees
-liH) in German.
fast
(fâst): This is an adjective that means
almost
— not the speeds at which Formula One drivers race. The German word for
fast
is
schnell
(shnêl) or
rasch
(râsh).
genial
(gê-nee-
ahl
): This adjective describes an idea or person
of genius
and has nothing to do with
genial.
The German word for
genial
is
heiter
(
hay
-ter).
Gift
(gift [as in English]): The German meaning is
poison,
so when you’re giving your German-speaking host a
present,
you should say you have a
Geschenk
(gê-
shênk
), that is, unless you really are giving something like weed killer or a green mamba.
Kind
(kint): This is the German word for
child.
It has nothing to do with the English
kind,
which is
nett
(nêt) or
liebenswürdig
(
lee
-bens-vuerd-iH) in German.
Komfort
(kom-
fohr
): This word means
amenity,
for example, the amenities you expect in a five-star hotel, not
comfort.
The German verb meaning
to comfort
[someone] is
trösten
(
trers
-ten).
kurios
(koohr-ee-
ohs
): This word means
strange
, not
curious.
The German word for
curious
is
neugierig
(
noy
-geer-iH).
Mist
(mist [as in English]): Be careful not to misuse this word that actually means
manure
in German! It doesn’t describe heavy moisture resembling a fine rain, which is called
Nebel
(
ney-
bel) or
Dunst
(doonst).
Most
(most): This is the German word for unfermented fruit juice, and in southern German-speaking regions, a young fruit wine. The German word for the English
most
is
das meiste
(dâs
mays
-te); for example,
die meisten Leute
(dee
mays
-ten
loy
-te) (
most people
).
Menü
(mên-
ue
): This word means
the daily special
that you find in some restaurants. The German word for menu is
Speisekarte
(shpayz-e-
kârt
-e).
ordinär
(or-di-
nair
): This word means
vulgar
rather than
ordinary.
The German word for
ordinary
is
normal
(nor-
mahl
) or
gewöhnlich
(ge-
vern
-liH).
pathetisch
(pâ-
tey
-tish): This one means
overly emotional
, not
pathetic,
which, in German, is
jämmerlich
(
yêm
-er-liH) or
armselig
(
ârm
-zey-liH).
plump
(ploomp): The German meaning is
clumsy
or
tactless,
not
roundish,
which in German is
rundlich
(
roont
-liH).
Präservativ
(prê-zêr-vah-
teef
): Another embarrassing moment can be avoided when you know that this word means
condom
in German. The German equivalent of
preservative
is
Konservierungsmittel
(kon-sêr-
yeer-
oongs-mit-el).
Provision
(proh-vi-zee-
ohn
): The meaning of this word is
commission,
not
provision.
The German word for
provision
is
Vorsorge
(
fohr
-zor-ge) or
Versorgung
(fêr-
zohrg
-oong).
Rat
(rât): This one means
advice,
not the rodent you never want to see in your house
.
The German word for
rat
is
Ratte
(r
ât
-e).
See
(zey): This word means
lake
or
sea.
In German, the verb
to see
is
sehen
(
zey
-en).
sensibel
(zen-
zee
-bel): The meaning of this word is
sensitive
rather than
sensible,
which translates as
vernünftig
(fêr-
nuenf
-tiH).
sympathisch
(zerm-
pah
-tish): This word means
likeable
or
congenial
, not
sympathetic.
The German word for
sympathetic
is
mitfühlend
(
mit
-fuel-ent).
Lenders and borrowers
A few German words have been adopted by the English language and have retained their meaning, such as Kindergarten (kin-der-gâr-ten), Angst (ânkst), kaputt (kâ-poot), Ersatz (êr-zats), Sauerkraut (zou-er-krout), Zeitgeist (tsayt-gayst), and Wanderlust (vân-der-loost).
However, the number of these German words is minimal compared to the English words that have made their way into the German language. At times, the combination of English and German makes for somewhat curious linguistic oddities. For example, you may hear das ist total in/out (dâs ist toh-tahl in/out [as in English]) (that’s totally in/out) or Sie können den File downloaden (zee kern-en deyn file [as in English] doun-lohd-en) (You can download the file).
The following is a list of German words that have been borrowed from the English language. Note that they all retain their English pronunciations, with a slight exception: The borrowed verbs are “Germanified,” which simply means they combine the English verb, such as kill or jog, with -en, the German suffix that creates the infinitive form (to kill and to jog). Go to Chapter 5 for more on German infinitives:
der Blog
der Boss
das Business
das Catering
die City
(German meaning:
downtown
)
der Computer
cool
das Design
das Event
Fashion
(used without article)
das Fast Food
das Feeling
die Fitness
flirten
(
to flirt
)
der Headhunter
Hi
hip
der Hit
das Hotel
der Influencer
das Internet
das Interview
der Jetlag
der Job
jobben
(
to do temp jobs
)
joggen
(
to jog
)
killen
(
to kill
)
der Lifestyle
managen
(
to manage
)
der Manager
das Marketing
das Meeting
Okay
online
outsourcen
(
to outsource
)
die Party
pink
das Shopping
die Shorts
die Show/Talkshow
skateboarden
(
to skateboard
)
das Steak
surfen
(
to surf waves or the Internet
)
das Team
der Thriller
das Ticket
der Tourist
trendy
das T-Shirt
das Weekend
der Workshop
Wow
Finally, a few English terms have different meanings in the German language. For example, the word Evergreen refers to a golden oldie,Handy means a cellphone,Mobbing means bullying or harassing,Oldtimer refers to a vintage car, and Wellness-Center means spa.
Talkin’ the Talk
Read the following conversation with a grain of salt — and a smile. It gives you an idea of how many words have slid into German. However, you’re not likely to overhear this many examples of mixed language in a single conversation. In this scenario, two friends, Claudia and Jana, meet on the street. Notice how some terms have a slightly different meaning in German.
Claudia:
Hi Jana, wie geht’s? Wie ist der neue Job?
Hi [as in English] yâ-nâ, vee geyts? vee ist dêr noy-e job [as in English]?
Hi Jana, how are you? How’s the new job?
Jana:
Super! Heute war meine erste Presentation vor meinem big Boss, und er war total cool.
super [as in English]! hoy-te vahr mayn-e êrs-te pre-zen-tât-see-ohn fohr mayn-êm big boss [as in English], oont êr vahr toh-tahl cool [as in English].
Super! Today was my first presentation in front of my big boss, and he was totally cool.
Claudia:
Wow! In meinem Office gibt es nur Stress. Mein Boss kann nichts managen. Mein Kollege checkt nichts, und denkt, er ist ein Sonnyboy, und alle anderen spinnen.
wow [as in English]! in mayn-êm office [as in English] gipt ês noohr shtrês. mayn boss kân niHts mân-â-gen [g as in English]. mayn kol-ey-ge checkt niHts oont dênkt êr ist ayn sonny boy [as in English], oont âl-e ân-der-en spin-en.
Wow! In my office there’s nothing but stress. My boss can’t manage anything. My colleague isn’t “with it,” and thinks he’s a hot shot , and all the others are crazy.
Jana:
Ich gehe shoppen. Kommst du mit?
iH gey-e shop-en. Komst dooh mit?
I’m going shopping. Do you want to come along?
Claudia:
Nein, danke. Gestern war ich in einem Outlet und habe ein T-Shirt in pink und eine Jeans im Boyfriend-Look gekauft. Ich gehe jetzt joggen. Bye-bye!
nayn, dân-ke. gês-têrn vahr iH in ayn-em outlet [as in English] oont hah-be ayn T-shirt [as in English] in pink [as in English] oont ayn-e jeans [as in English] im boyfriend-look [as in English] ge-kouft. iH gey-e yêtst jog-en [jog as in English]. bye-bye [as in English]!
No, thanks. Yesterday I went to an outlet and bought a pink T-shirt and a pair of boyfriend-style jeans. I’m going jogging now. Bye!
Jana:
Schade. Bye-bye!
shah-de. bye-bye!
Too bad. Bye!
Using Basic Expressions
Your first steps speaking German might be similar to the way you take a shower: you turn on the water gently, wait for it to warm up, check the temperature, then slowly step under the showerhead. This section warms you up so that you feel comfortable as you start out speaking German.
As you delve into the following chapters of this book, you find these basic expressions in context. They appear in conversations and situations that you may find yourself in when you go to a German speaking country.
Table 1-2 shows you the basic words and expressions to start you out on your German-speaking journey:
TABLE 1-2 Basic Expressions
German
English
ja (jâh)
yes
nein (nayn)
no
danke (dân-ke)
thank you
bitte (bi-te)
please / you’re welcome (as a response to danke)
danke schön (dân-ke shern)
Thank you very much
vielen Dank (fee-len dânk)
Thank you very much
Entschuldigung! (ênt-shool-dee-goong!)
Excuse me / pardon
Entschuldigen Sie, bitte! (ênt-shool-dee-gen zee bi-te!)
I beg your pardon
Guten Tag! (gooh-ten tahk!)
Hello! (standard greeting)
Hallo! (hâ-loh!)
Hello! (informal greeting)
Auf Wiedersehen! (ouf-vee-der-zey-en!)
goodbye!
Tschüs! (chues!)
Bye!
Ich heiße … (iH hay-se…)
My name is , , ,
Mein Name ist… (mayn nah-me ist…)
My name is…
Sprechen Sie Englisch? (sprêH-en zee êng-lish?)
Do you speak English?
Können Sie mir helfen? (kern-en zee mir hêlf-en?)
Can you help me?
Ich suche … (iH zooH-e…)
I’m looking for …
Wo ist der nächste Geldautomat? (voh ist dêr naiH-ste gêlt-ou-toh-maht?)
Where is the nearest ATM?
Gibt es WLAN hier? (gipt es vey-lân heer?)
Is there Wi-Fi here?
Wo sind die Toiletten? (voh zint dee toy-lêt-en?)
Where are the restrooms?
Die Speisekarte, bitte. (dee sphayz-e kâr-te bi-te.)
The menu, please.
Ich möchte gern … (iH merH-te gêrn…)
I’d like … (when ordering in a restaurant)
Ich hätte gern … (iH hêt-e gêrn…)
I’d like … (when ordering in a restaurant)
Die Rechnung, bitte. (dee rêH-noong bi-te.)
The check, please.
Apart from such basic expressions, many handy and frequently used German expressions are easy to learn. You hear them often in casual conversation. Here are some of them:
Prima!/Klasse!/Toll!
(
pree
-mah!/
klâs
-e!/tôl!) (
Great!
)
Fertig.
(
fêrt-
iH.) (
Ready./Finished.
) This can be either a question or a statement.
Quatsch!
(qvâch!) (
Nonsense!/How silly of me!
)
Einverstanden.
(
ayn
-fêr-shtând-en.) (
Agreed./Okay.
)
Vielleicht.
(fee-
layHt.
) (
Maybe./Perhaps.
)
Mach’s gut.
(vîrt ge-
mâHt.
) (
Take it easy.
) This is a casual way of saying
good-bye
.
Wie, bitte?
(vee
bi-
te?) (
[I beg your] pardon?/What did you say?
)
Macht nichts.
(mâHt niHts.) (
Never mind./That’s okay.
)
Nicht der Rede wert.
(niHt dêr
rey
-de vêrt.) (
Don’t mention it.
)
Schade!
(
shah
-de!) (
Too bad!/What a pity!
)
So ein Pech!
(zoh ayn pêH!) (
Bad luck!
)
Viel Glück!
(feel gluek!) (
Good luck!
)
Oder?
(
oh-
der?) (
Isn’t that true?/Don’t you think so?
)
Bis dann!
(bis dân!) (
See you then!
)
Bis bald!
(bis bâlt!) (
See you soon!
)
Chapter 2
Pronunciation Basics
IN THIS CHAPTER
Building alphabet blocks
Pronouncing individual letters
Pronouncing combinations of letters
In this chapter I introduce you to the basics of German pronunciation. To get you started, you need to know how to pronounce German letters, many of which are not pronounced the same as they are in English. For that reason, this chapter begins with the information you need to be able to pronounce German words, if not exactly like a native speaker, at least close enough to be clearly understood. As with anything else, practice makes perfect. Read on for specifics.
As you read through the parts of this chapter, check out the audio files as you go along. Practice the pronunciation of the letters and words you hear. Feel free to practice several times until you feel confident that your pronunciation sounds reasonably good enough to be understood.
Mouthing Off: Basic Pronunciation
Speaking a foreign language correctly is all about mastering the basics of pronunciation. And the key to decent pronunciation is to start small by knowing how the individual letters sound and then expand to syllables, words, and finally sentences. The rest is practice, practice, practice.
Dealing with stress in German
This type of stress doesn’t have anything to do with meeting deadlines or having a BMW tailgate you at 110 miles per hour on the Autobahn. Instead, it’s about stressed syllables in German words. In the pronunciation key that you see in parentheses following each German word presented in this book, the syllables you should stress are in italics.
Building the alphabet blocks
The German alphabet has all the letters that English does — 26 of ’em — plus four special letters: ä, ö, ü, and ß. The good news is that German words are generally pronounced just as they are spelled. This means there’s no confusion, as we have in English with the likes of bow (tie), (take a) bow, and tree bough. The bad news is many of the normal-looking letters are pronounced differently from their English counterparts.
Table 2-1 shows you the sound of each letter of the alphabet when it’s pronounced alone. Knowing how to say each individual letter may come in very handy; for example, if you need to spell your name when you make a table reservation at a German restaurant, tell a hotel receptionist how to spell your name, or compete in a German spelling bee with a grand prize of 500,000 euros.
The Alphabet audio file on the website associated with this book gives you the sounds of the letters in the German alphabet as shown in Table 2-1. Note that the German pronunciation of a single letter may be different from the way it’s pronounced within a German word.
TABLE 2-1 Pronouncing the German Alphabet
Letter
German Pronunciation
German Word
a
ah
Ahnen (ahn-en) (ancestors)
b
bey
Bild (bilt) (image, picture)
c
tsey
Café (kâ-fey) (café)
d
dey
durstig (doohrs-tiH) (thirsty)
e
ey
Ehe (ey-e) (marriage)
f
êf
Feuer (foy-er) (fire)
g
gey
geben (gey-ben) (give)
h
hah
Haus (house [as in English]) (house)
i
ee
ihn (een) (him)
j
yot
Januar (yahn-oo-âr) (January)
k
kah
Kilometer (ki-loh-mey-ter) (kilometer)
l
êl
Liebe (lee-be) (love)
m
êm
Manager (as in English) (manager)
n
ên
Name (nah-me) (name)
o
oh
ohne (oh-ne) (without)
p
pey
Pause (pou-ze) (break, intermission)
q
kooh
Quatsch (kvâch) (nonsense)
r
êr
rot (roht) (red)
s
ês
S-Bahn (es-bahn) (suburban train)
t
tey
Taxi (tâx-ee) (taxi)
u
ooh
U-Boot (ooh-boht) (submarine)
v
fou
Vogel (foh-gel) (bird)
w
veh
Wald (vâlt) (forest)
x
iks
Fax (fâx) (fax)
y
uep-si-lon
System (zers-teym) (system)
z
tset
Zeit (tsayt) (time)
ä
ah-oom-lout (Umlaut)
Bäcker (bêk-er) (baker)
ö
oh-oom-lout (Umlaut)
schön (shern) (pretty)
ü
ooh-oom-lout (Umlaut)
Tür (tuer) (system)
ß
ês-tsêt
Straße (strah-se) (street)
Pronouncing vowels
In German, vowels (a, e, i, o, and u) can generally be pronounced in two ways — as short or long vowel sounds. The short vowel sounds are “clipped,” and they’re pronounced shorter than their English equivalents. Long vowel sounds are “steady-state” or “pure,” meaning that the sound quality doesn’t change even though it’s a long sound. Here are the general rules:
A vowel is long when it’s followed by the letter h, as in
Stahl
(shtahl) (steel).
A vowel is generally long when it’s followed by a single consonant, as in Tag (tahk) (day).
A vowel is long when it’s doubled, as in
Teer
(teyr) (tar) or
Aal
(ahl) (eel).
In general, a vowel is short when followed by two or more consonants, as in
Tanne
(
tân
-e) (fir tree).
Table 2-2 shows you how to pronounce German vowels by providing you with examples and a kind of phonetic script, the letter combinations that serve as the English equivalent of the German letter’s pronunciation.
In this book’s phonetic script, two short vowel sounds have a little “hat” over the letter, so they look like this: â and ê. Note that the phonetic spelling of ê in Table 2-2 is the same as that of the German short umlaut sound ä in Table 2-3. Check out the German Vowels file on the website associated with this book to hear how to pronounce these German vowels.
TABLE 2-2 Pronouncing German Vowels
German Letter
Symbol
As in English
German Word
a (long)
ah
father
Bahnhof (bahn-hohf) (station)
a (short)
â
adore (clipped “a”)
Banner (bân-er) (banner)
e (long)
ey
vein
Leben (ley-ben) (life)
e (short/stressed)
ê
bet (clipped “e”)
Bett (bêt) (bed)
e (short/unstressed)
e
Lachen (lâH-en) (laughter)
i (long)
ee
see
ihn (een) (him)
i (short)
i
winter
Mitte (mit-e) (middle)
o (long)
oh
mope
Lob (lohp) (praise)
o (short)
o
gonna
Sonne (zon-e) (sun)
u (long)
ooh
moon
Tube (tooh-be) (tube)
u (short)
oo
push (clipped “u”)
muss (moos) (have to/must)
Pronouncing ä, ö, and ü
German has three extra vowels: ä, ö, and ü. The German word for those curious double dots over the vowels is Umlaut (oom-lout) (umlaut). Umlauts slightly alter the sound of the vowels a, o, and u, as outlined in Table 2-3. These sounds have no equivalent in English, so try listening to the Umlauts file on the website associated with this book, which demonstrates how to pronounce the German umlauts.
TABLE 2-3 Pronouncing Vowels with Umlauts
German Letter
Symbol
As in English
German Word
ä (long)
ai
say (“ay” in “say” with spread lips)
nächste (naiH-ste) (next)
ä (short)
ê
bet (clipped “e”)
fällen (fêl-en) (to fell [a tree])
ö
er
her (without the “r” sound)
schön (shern) (pretty) (remember: no “r” sound)
ü
ue
lure (“ooh” with pursed lips)
Tür (tuer) (door)
To make your German vowels ä, ö, and ü sound a bit more authentic, try progressing through the ä, ö, and ü sounds, pronouncing the vowels as though you’re getting ready to kiss someone — in other words, when you make the ä sound, your lips are pursed in an oval shape, and when you make the ö sound, you round your lips into an O. For the ü sound, you pucker up, baby! The ü sound is pronounced with very pursed lips.
Pronouncing diphthongs
Diphthongs are combinations of two vowels in one syllable (as in the English “lie”). One way to think about how diphthongs are pronounced in contrast to single vowel sounds is that diphthong sounds are drawn out; they take a little bit longer to pronounce. German has a few of them, as shown in Table 2-4. (The Diphthongs file on the website associated with this book clues you in on how to pronounce them.)
Both the long German vowel i and the German vowel combination ie are pronounced like the English letter e in see, but the German ei, ai, and ay are pronounced like the English letter y in cry.
TABLE 2-4 Pronouncing German Diphthongs
German Diphthong
Symbol
As in English
German Word
ai/ei/ay
ay
cry
Mais (mays) (corn)
ein (ayn) (a)/
Bayern (bay-ern) (Bavaria)
au
ou
loud
laut (lout) (noisy)
au (in words of foreign origin)
uh
restaurant
Restaurant (res-tuh-ron) (restaurant)
äu/eu
oy
boy
Häuser (hoy-zer) (houses)
Leute (loy-te) (people)
ie
ee
see
Miete (meet-e) (rent)
Pronouncing consonants
Ahh, relief! The sounds of German consonants are easier to master than the German vowel sounds. In fact, they’re pronounced either almost the same as their English equivalents or like other English consonants. (Okay, you will find a couple of oddities and exceptions, which I show you later.)
Pronouncing “f,” “h,” “k,” “m,” “n,” “p,” “t,” “x,” and “ß”
As part of a word, the letters f, h, k, m, n, p, t, and x are pronounced the same in German as they are in English. The letter ß, on the other hand, doesn’t exist in English. It’s kind of cool looking, though, don’t you think? But even if you don’t care about looks, you’ll be glad to know that you pronounce it just like ss or s.
As far as the written language goes, whether a given German word is spelled with ss or ß depends on a couple of rules. Here’s the scoop:
After a long vowel or a diphthong, the s sound is spelled
ß
— for example,
Fuß
(foohs) (
foot
).
After a short vowel, the s sound is spelled
ss
— for example,
Fass
(fâs) (
barrel
).
Note: In Switzerland, the ß is not used at all. Instead, the Swiss always spell words with the double ss.
Table 2-5 tells you how to pronounce the rest of the German consonants by providing you with examples and a phonetic script. To hear them all, listen to the Consonants file on the website associated with this book.
TABLE 2-5 Pronouncing Selected German Consonants
German Letter
Symbol
As in English
German Word
b (see note)
p
up
Abfahrt (âp-fahrt) (departure)
b
b
bright
Bild (bilt) (image, picture)
c (beginning of word)
k
cat
Café (kâ-fey) (café)
c (mostly words of foreign origin)
ts
tsar
Celsius (tsêl-zee-oos) (Celsius)
c (mostly words of foreign origin)
ch
cello
Cello (chêl-oh) (cello)
d (see note)
t
moot
blind (blint) (blind)
d
d
do
Dunst (doonst) (mist, haze)
g
g
go
geben (gey-ben) (give)
g (see note)
k
lag
Tag (tahk) (day)
j
y
yes
ja (yah) (yes)
qu
kv
kv (pronounced together)
Quatsch (kvâch) (nonsense)
s (beginning of word)
z
zoo
sieben (zee-ben) (seven)
s (middle/end of word)
s
sit
Haus (house [as in English]) (house)
v
f
f as in fire
Vogel (foh-gel) (bird)
v (words of foreign origin)
v
velvet
Vase (vah-ze) (vase)
w
v
vice
Wald (vâlt) (forest)
y (mostly words of foreign origin)
y
yes
Yoga (yoh-gâ) (yoga)
y (mostly middle of word)
er
her (without the “r” sound)
System (zers-teym) (system)
z
ts
ts as in tsar
Zahl (tsahl) (number)
ß
s
guess
Straße (shtrah-se) (street)
Note:Table 2-5 shows you that when the letters b, d, and g are at the end of a word or syllable, or before voiceless consonants like s or t, they change sounds. The “b” changes to a “p” sound, “d” changes to “t,” and “g” changes to “k.”
Pronouncing the German “r” and “l”
The letters r and l are pronounced differently in German than they are in English. To replicate the “gargled” pronunciation of the German r, try making a gargling sound before saying aahh, so that you’re saying ra. Also, don’t roll the tip of your tongue or use it to pronounce the German r. To correctly pronounce the German letter l, you have to position your tongue differently than you do when you pronounce the English letter l. In English, you pronounce the l with your tongue in a spoon shape, hollowed out in the middle. To make the German l, you press the tip of your tongue against your gum ridge (just as you do in English), but you keep it flat instead of spoon-shaped. The German l sound is clipped, not drawled. The German R and L file on the website associated with this book shows you how to pronounce these letters. Here are some sample words:
l
as in
Bild
(bilt) (
picture
)
r
as in
richtig
(
riH
-tiH) (
correct
)
Pronouncing combinations of consonants
The German language has a few consonant sounds that are either different or don’t occur in English. Most of them are easy to pronounce, except for the ch, which is unfamiliar to the English tongue.
Pronouncing “ch,” “ck,” “sch,” “sp,” “st,” and “tsch”
The German letter combination ch is the trickiest one for English speakers to pronounce. There’s absolutely no equivalent for it in English. (That’s why it’s represented by a capital H in this book’s phonetic script), and you actually have to learn a new sound — a kind of gentle “dry” gargling sound — in order to say it. The sound is a bit like trying to pronounce “hch,” and not a “k” sound. The sound is similar to the guttural “ch” in Scottish, like in Loch Ness.
The good news is that in a few words, the ch is simply pronounced as an x sound, for example in Wachs (vâks) (wax) or Fuchs (fooks) (fox). And in a few other words, generally foreign words, the ch is pronounced like the sound “sh” in English, for example in Champignon (shâm-peen-yon) (mushroom) or Champagner (shâm-pân-yer) (champagne).
Table 2-6 shows you how to pronounce these common consonant combinations. The German CH CK SCH SP ST TSCH file on the website associated with this book demonstrates how to pronounce these combinations.
TABLE 2-6 Pronouncing ch, ck, sch, sp, st, and tsch
German Letter
Symbol
As in English
German Word
ch
H
Loch(Ness)
mich (miH) (me)
ck
k
check
Dreck (drêk) (dirt)
sch
sh
shut
Tisch (tish) (table)
sp
shp
sh as in shut, p as in people
spät (shpait) (late)
st (beginning of a word)
sht
sh as in shut, t as in table
Stadt (shtât) (city)
st (middle/end of a word)
st
stable
fast (fâst) (almost, nearly)
tsch
ch
switch
Deutsch (doych) (German)
The English “th” sound doesn’t exist in the German language. The th combination is pronounced one of two ways in German:
The
h
is silent, as in the words
Theorie
(tey-oh-
ree
) (
theory
) and
Theologie
(tey-oh-loh-
gee
) (
theology
).
The
t
and
h
are pronounced separately, because they actually belong to different components of a compound noun, as in the words
Gasthaus
(
gâst
-hous) (inn), which is a combination of the German words for guest and house, or
Basthut
(
bâst
-hooht) (
straw hat
), a combo of the German for raffia and hat.
