greetings (Grüße)
Hello.
Hallo.
Grüß dich! casual
Grüß Gott! In southern Germany and Austria. Guten Tag. Hello/Good Day.
Guten Morgen/Guten Abend. Good morning/evening.
Bye!
Auf Wiedersehen.
Auf Wiederhören. Bye on the telephone. Tschüss! casual
Bis bald! See you soon! Bis später! See you later! How are you? Wie geht es Ihnen? formal
Wie geht es dir? casual I'm fine.
I'm so-so.
I'm not doing well. I'm doing better.
Es geht mir gut. Es geht.
Es geht mir schlecht. Es geht mir besser.
Excuse me! Entschuldigen Sie bitte! formal Entschuldigung! casual
Pardon me? Wie bitte?
Please. Bitte. See more on Thank you and You're Welcome in German. Thank you. Danke.
I'm sorry. Es tut mit leid.
Really? Wirklich?
Gladly! Gerne!
Nice to meet you. Sehr erfreut. Take care Mach's gut.
Unique Traits of the German Alphabet:
More than 26 letters in the alphabet - German has a so called extended latin alphabet The extra letters are ä, ö, ü and ß
The pronunciation of some of these letters do not exist in the English language
Several letters are pronounced more from the back of the throat: g, ch, r (though in Austria the r is trilled).
The W in German sounds like the V in English The V in German sounds like the F in English
Most of the time the S in German sounds like Z in English when placed at the beginning of a word followed by a vowel.
The letter ß is the only letter that will never be at the beginning of a word.
Das Deutsche Alphabet/ The German Alphabet
Buchstabe/ Letter Aussprache des Buchstabenamens/ Pronunciation of letter name Aussprache des Buchstaben - wie in/ Sound of Letter - as in Beispiele/ Examples
A a ah astronaut der Adler (eagle), Januar
(January)
B b approximate: bay baby der Bruder (brother), aber
(but) C c approximate: 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 d approximate: 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 Igor
der Igel (porcupine), der
Imbiss (snack), sieben
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: pay party die Polizei (police), der
Apfel
Q q koo coral
das 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 es zoo, 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 van
die 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 yellow
die Yucca, der Yeti
Note: There are hardly any German words that start with
Z z tset sounds like ts die Zeitung (newspaper), der
Zigeuner (gypsy)
Umlaut + ß
Aussprache des Buchstaben/ Pronunciation
of Letter Beispiele/ Examples
ä sounds similar to the e in melon ähnlich (similar), gähnen (to yawn)
ö sounds similar to the i in girl Österreich (Austria), der Löwe (lion)
ü no equivalent nor approximate sound in
English über (over),müde (tired)
ß
Diphthongs Diphthong
Double Vowels
Aussprache
Pronunciation Beispiele / Examples
ai / ei eye bei (at, near), das Ei (egg), der Mai (May) au ow auch (also), das Auge (eye), aus (out of) eu / äu oy Häuser (houses), Europa (Europe), neu
(new)
ie eeh bieten (offer), nie (never), Sie (you) Grouped Consonants
Buchstabe Consonant
Aussprache
Pronunciation 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 f
das Alphabet, phonetisch - Some words formerly spelled with ph are now spelled with f: das Telefon, das Foto
qu kv die 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 / sht
At 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!
PART 1b - From Essential German 2
Sprechen Sie Deutsch? - Sprechen Sie Englisch? Noch einmal, bittte.
Wie bitte?
Langsamer, bitte. Bitte Wiederholen Sie! Ich verstehe nicht. Ich habe eine Frage. Wie sagt man...?
Ich weiß nicht. Ich weiß es nicht Doch!
Wo ist...? Wo sind...? wann? - wer? - wie? warum? - was? Schon gut! Ich habe kein... Ich habe keine... Ich habe keinen... Ich habe kein Geld.
AUDIO SCRIPT 2 PART 1 - From Das Abc
The words in bold type are the words you will hear. Letters as they are pronounced in German words:
A - der Apparat, der Vater, ab, aktiv, alles
Ä - der Bär, der Jäger, die Fähre, die Ärzte, mächtig B - bei, das Buch, die Bibel, ob, halb
C - der Computer, die City, das Café, C-Dur, die CD D - durch, dunkel, das Ende, der Freund, das Land E - elf, er, wer, eben, Englisch
F - faul, Freunde, der Feind, das Fenster, der Fluss G - gleich, das Gehirn, gegeben, gern, das Image
H - haben, die Hand, gehen (silent h), (G - das Glas, das Gewicht) I - der Igel, immer, der Fisch, innerhalb, gibt
J - das Jahr, jung, jemand, der Joker, das Juwel K - kennen, der Koffer, der Spuk, die Lok, das Kilo L - langsam, die Leute, Griechenland, malen, locker M - mein, der Mann, die Lampe, Minuten, mal N - nein, die Nacht, die Nase, die Nuss, niemals O - das Ohr, die Oper, oft, das Obst, das Formular Ö - Österreich, öfters, schön, die Höhe, höchstens P - das Papier, positiv, der PC, der Papst, pur R - das Rathaus, rechts, unter, rund, die Reederei S - die Sache, so, das Salz, seit, der September ß/ss - groß, die Straße, muss, das, Wasser, dass T - der Tag, täglich, das Tier, die Tat, die Rente U - die U-Bahn, unser, der Rubel, um, der Jupiter Ü - über, die Tür, schwül, Düsseldorf, drücken V - der Vetter, vier, die Vase, aktiv, Nerven
W - wenn, die Woche, Treptow (silent w), das Wetter, wer X - x-mal, das Xylofon, Xanthen
Y - der Yen, der Typ, typisch, das System, die Hypothek Z - zahlen, die Pizza, die Zeit, zwei, der Kranz
Long and Short Vowels
long a/ä - Bahn, kam, Vater, Gas, kahl short a/ä - Bann, Kamm, Kraft, halb, Gärten long e - Beet, Meer, mehr, leer, Leben short e - Bett, Vetter, letzte
long i - mich, dich, Kilo, Klima, Limo short i - gibt, Mittel, Kind, Mist, Lippe long o/ö - hohl, Boot, stören, Höhle, Ton
short o/ö - (rot long o), Post, Hölle, Tonne, Koffer long u/ü - fühlen, Mut, Hut, Jugend, Kuh
short u/ü - füllen, Mutter, Hütte, Nutte, Puppe
AUDIO SCRIPT for this audio file.
PART 2 - From Diphthongs & Consonant Pairs
Diphthongs
ai/ei - bei (at, near), das Ei (egg), die Polizei, der Mai (May), der Kaiser au - auch (also), das Auge (eye), aus (out of), klauen (steal), tauchen (dive)
äu/ eu - Häuser (houses), Europa (Europe), neu (new), heute (today), teuer (expensive) ie - bieten (offer), nie (never), Sie (you), bieten (offer), nie (never), Sie (you), mieten (rent),
Grouped Consonants
ck - dick (fat, thick), der Schock (shock), drucken (print), picken, sickern The ch letter combination is pronounced several different ways in German:
ch 1 - das Buch (book), auch (also), der Bauch (stomach), die Woche (week), noch (yet) ch 2 - ich, mich (me), welche (which), wirklich (really), nicht (not)
ch 3 - das Mädchen, ein bisschen
ch 4 - der Chor, das Chaos, der Chianti, der Charakter
ch 5a (ch) - China, die Chemie - manchmal auch: (sometimes also) ch 5b (sh) - China, die Chemie - und auch:
ch 5c (k) - China, die Chemie ch 6 - Chigago, der Chef, Chile -ig (-ich) - zwanzig, dreißig, mächtig -ig (-ik) - zwanzig, dreißig, mächtig
chs - sechs, das Wachs, der Lachs, Sachsen, wechseln dt - die Stadt
kn - der Knabe, das Knie, knusprig, der Knoblauch, die Kneipe
pf - das Pferd, pflanzen, der Pfennig, der Napf, das Pflaster, die Pflege
auch (also): das Pferd, der Pfennig, pflanzen, das Pflaster, die Pflege
ph/f - das Alphabet, phonetisch, die Pharmaindustrie, die Phase, die Philatelie qu - die Qual, quer, die Quelle, die Quittung, der Quark - aber der Quai (also spelled Kai)
sch - die Schule, schön, schade, der Schatz, schlafen
The German sch combination is never split, whereas sh usually is: Grashalme, Gras/Halme; but die Show (foreign word)
sp - sprechen, spalten, die Spannung, der Speck, die Speise st - stehen, die Stadt, der Standard, der Stein, stellen
final st - der Mist, hast, bist, ist, willst
tz - der Witz, der Blitz, der Rotz, letzte, sitzen
PART 3 - From Pronunciation Hazards
final b - das Lob (praise), der Job, der Lob (tennis)
be- prefix - beobachten, der Beobachter
final d - der Tod, der Feind, das Jod, der Wald
ei vs ie - Wien/der Wein, Sie/sei, schiessen/scheissen, der Riese/die Reise
final g - der Tag, genug, Berg, mag, lag
silent h - ohne, sehen, die Uhr, leihen, das Vieh German ng - der Finger, der Hunger
initial r - der Rabe, rund, Regular, regulär, der Ring, das Ross final r - vier, mehr, wunderbar, der Ring, der Ritter
German th, as in Theorie, der Thron, die Therapie - der Thriller (English) German v - viel, bevor, negativ, der Vater, der Volkswagen
In some foreign, non-Germanic words the v is pronounced as in English: Vase (vase), Villa (villa)
German w - die Wahl, was, wieder, Wien, der Wind
German z - schwarz, die Zeit, zum, der Geiz, zerbrechen, der Zimt
umlauts - schon/schön, drucken/drücken, schwul/schwül, Mutter/Mütter, Bar/Bär
Similar Words with Pronunciation Pitfalls
Words similar to English, but pronounced differently.
die Bank (bank) - die Bombe (bomb) - die Distanz (distance) der Finger (finger) - das Genie (genius) - die Hand (hand) der Hunger (hunger) - die Nation (nation)
olympisch (Olympic) - das Papier (paper) - die Pause (pause) die Pizza (pizza) - der Planet (planet)
das Restaurant (restaurant) - total (total)
Some more similar but different words.
der Berg (mountain) - die Burg (castle) die Post (post office)
die deutschen Pronomina German Pronouns Nominative Singular
Pronomen Pronoun Sample Phrases
ich I
Darf ich? (May I?)
Ich bin 16 Jahre alt. (I'm 16 years old.)
The pronoun ich is not capitalized except at the beginning of a sentence.
du you
(fam.) Kommst du mit? (Are you coming along?) er he Ist er da? (Is he here?)
sie she Ist sie da? (Is she here?) es it Hast du es? (Do you have it?)
Sie you
Kommen Sie heute? (Are you coming today?)
The pronoun Sie always takes a plural conjugation, but is also used for the formal "you" singular.
Nominative Plural
Pronomen Pronoun Sample Phrases
wir we Wir kommen am Dienstag. (We're coming on Tuesday.) ihr
you guys (fam.)
Habt ihr das Geld? (Do you guys have the money?)
sie they
Sie kommen heute. (They're coming today.)
The pronoun sie in this sentence could also mean "you" Sie. Only the context makes it clear which of the two is meant.
Sie you
(plur.)
Kommen Sie heute? (Are you [all] coming today?)
The pronoun Sie always takes a plural conjugation, but is also used for the formal "you" singular.
German nouns (a person, place or thing, Substantive) are very easy to spot: they always begin with a CAPITAL letter! German is the only world language that capitalizes all nouns.
NOUNS - Substantive
AUDIO Click on a linked word to hear it. (MP3) NOMINATIVE SINGULAR
Artikel Gender Sample Nouns
der
ein masc.
der Bahnhof (train station), Sohn (son), Vater (father), Wagen
(car), Zug (draft, parade, train)
AUDIO: Hear All the Masculine Nouns
die
eine fem.
die Anlage (installation, park), Dame (lady), Festung (fortress),
Gesundheit (health), Luft (air)
AUDIO: Hear All the Feminine Nouns
das
ein neut.
das Boot (boat), Dach (roof), Geld (money), Jahr (year), Kino
(cinema, movie theater), Radio AUDIO: Hear All the Neuter Nouns
NOMINATIVE PLURAL
Artikel Gender Sample Nouns (Plurals)
die keine meine
plur. die Bücher (books), Dächer (roofs), Fenster (windows), Jahre (years), Radios, Söhne (sons), Zeitungen (newspapers)
Note: All nouns, of any gender, become die in the plural. (Ein can't be plural, but other so-called ein-words can: keine [none], meine [my], seine [his], etc.) That's the good news. The bad news is that there are about a dozen ways to form the plural of German nouns, only one of which is to add an "s" - as in English. - See the lesson and quiz Gender Hints for more.
German Gender Hints
German Noun Gender: Masculine - DER
RULE NO. 1: When learning a German noun, always treat its article as an integral part of the word! Not Wasser, but das Wasser. Not Hund, but der Hund. However, it can be very helpful to know about the gender generalizations below.
These German gender hints are divided into two main categories: "Always" (no or few exceptions to the rule) and "Usually" (some exceptions). One more important gender rule to remember: in compound nouns, the last word determines the gender (as in die Geburt + der
Ort = der Geburtsort, birthplace).
MÄNNLICH - der
Always MASCULINE (der/ein):
Days, months, and seasons: Montag, Juli, Sommer (Monday, July, summer). The one exception is das Frühjahr, another word for der Frühling, spring.
Points of the compass, map locations and winds: Nordwest(en) (northwest), Süd(en) (south), der Föhn (warm wind out of the Alps), der Scirocco (sirocco, a hot desert wind).
Precipitation: Regen, Schnee, Nebel (rain, snow, fog/mist) - See Das Wetter (Lesson 20)
Names of cars and trains: der VW, der ICE, der Mercedes. (But motorbikes and aircraft are feminine.)
Words ending in -ismus: Journalismus, Kommunismus, Synchronismus (equal -ism words in English)
Words ending in -ner: Rentner, Schaffner, Zentner, Zöllner (pensioner, [train] conductor, hundred-weight, customs collector). The feminine form adds -in (die
Rentnerin).
The basic "atmospheric" elements that end in -stoff: der Sauerstoff (oxygen), der
Stickstoff (nitrogen), der Wasserstoff (hydrogen), plus carbon (der Kohlenstoff). The
only other elements (out of 112) that are masculine are der Phosphor and der
Schwefel (sulphur). Note: All of the other chemical elements are neuter (das
Aluminium, Blei, Kupfer, Uran, Zink, usw.).
Usually MASCULINE (der/ein):
Agents (people who do something), most occupations and nationalities: der Architekt,
der Arzt, der Deutsche, der Fahrer, der Verkäufer, der Student, der Täter (architect,
physician, German [person], driver, salesman, student, perpetrator). Note that the feminine form of these terms almost always ends in -in (die Architektin, die Ärztin,
die Fahrerin, die Verkäuferin, die Studentin, Täterin, but die Deutsche). Nouns ending in -er, when referring to people (but die Jungfer, die Mutter, die
Schwester, die Tochter, das Fenster) - See German Noun Suffixes and Gender for more
Names of alcoholic drinks: der Wein, der Wodka (but das Bier)
Names of mountains and lakes: der Berg, der See (but Germany's highest peak, die
Zugspitze follows the rule for the feminine ending -e, and die See is the sea).
Most rivers outside of Europe: der Amazonas, der Kongo, der Mississippi (See World Rivers in German)
Most nouns ending in -ich, -ling, -ist: Rettich, Sittich, Schädling, Frühling, Pazifist (radish, parakeet, pest/parasite, spring, pacifist)
German Gender Hints
German Noun Gender: Feminine - DIE WEIBLICH - die (pron. DEE)
Always FEMININE (die/eine):
Nouns ending in the following suffixes: -heit, -keit, -tät, -ung, -schaft - Examples: die
Freiheit, Schnelligkeit, Universität, Zeitung, Freundschaft (freedom, quickness,
university, newspaper, friendship). Note that these suffixes usually have a
corresponding English suffix, such as -ness (-heit, -keit), -ty (-tät), -ship (-schaft).
Nouns ending in -ie: Drogerie, Geographie, Komödie, Industrie, Ironie (often equal to words ending in -y in English)
Names of aircraft, ships and motorbikes: die Boeing 747, die Titanic, die BMW (motorbike only; the car is der BMW). The die comes from die Maschine, which can mean plane, motorbike and engine. - Helpful reminder: Ships are often referred to as "she" in English.
Nouns ending in -ik: die Grammatik, Grafik, Klinik, Musik, Panik, Physik - But see
German Noun Suffixes and Gender for some exceptions!
Borrowed (foreign) nouns ending in: -ade, -age, -anz, -enz, -ette, -ine, -ion, -tur:
Parade, Blamage (shame), Bilanz, Distanz, Frequenz, Serviette (napkin), Limonade, Nation, Konjunktur (economic trend). Note: Such words often resemble their English
equivalent. A rare -ade exception: der Nomade.
Cardinal numbers: eine Eins, eine Drei (a one, a three) Usually FEMININE (die/eine):
Nouns ending in -in that pertain to female people, occupations, nationalities:
Amerikanerin, Studentin (female American, student), but der Harlekin and also many
non-people words: das Benzin, der Urin (gasoline/petrol, urine).
Most nouns ending in -e: Ecke, Ente, Grenze, Pistole, Seuche (corner, duck, border, pistol, epidemic), but der Deutsche, das Ensemble, der Friede, der Junge ([the] German, ensemble, peace, boy)
Nouns ending in -ei: Partei, Schweinerei (party [political], dirty trick/mess), but das
Ei, der Papagei (egg, parrot).
Most types of flowers and trees: Birke, Chrysantheme, Eiche, Rose (birch,
chrysanthemum, oak, rose), but der Ahorn, (maple), das Gänseblümchen (daisy), and the word for tree is der Baum
Borrowed (foreign) nouns ending in -isse, -itis, -ive: Hornisse, Initiative (hornet, initiative)
German Gender Hints
German Noun Gender: Neuter - DAS
SÄCHLICH - dasAlways NEUTER (das/ein):
Nouns ending in -chen or -lein: Fräulein, Häuschen, Kaninchen, Mädchen (unmarried woman, cottage, rabbit, girl/maiden)
Infinitives used as nouns (gerunds): das Essen, das Schreiben (eating/food, writing)
Almost all of the 112 known chemical elements (das Aluminium, Blei, Kupfer, Uran,
Zink, Zinn, Zirkonium, usw.) - except for six that are masculine: der Kohlenstoff
(carbon), der Sauerstoff (oxygen), der Stickstoff (nitrogen), der Wasserstoff
(hydrogen), der Phosphor and der Schwefel (sulphur). Note: Most of the elements end in -ium, a das ending.
Names of hotels, cafés and theaters
Names of colors used as nouns: das Blau, das Rot (blue, red) Usually NEUTER (das/ein):
Geographic place names (towns, countries, continents): das Berlin, Deutschland,
Brasilien, Afrika (but learn non-das countries, such as: der Irak, der Jemen, die Schweiz, die Türkei, die USA [plur.]) - See: Land und Leute, a German-English chart of countries, nationalities and languages.
Young animals and people: das Baby, das Küken (chick); but der Junge (boy).
Most metals: Aluminium, Blei, Kupfer, Messing, Zinn (aluminium, lead, copper, brass, tin/pewter; but die Bronze, der Stahl - bronze, steel)
Nouns ending in -o (often cognates from Latin): das Auto, Büro, Kasino, Konto (account), Radio, Veto, Video - Note: Exceptions: die Avocado, die Disko, der Euro,
der Scirocco, etc. - See German Noun Suffixes and Gender for more exceptions!
Fractions: das/ein Viertel (¼), das/ein Drittel (but die Hälfte, half)
Most nouns starting with Ge-: Genick, Gerät, Geschirr, Geschlecht, Gesetz, Gespräch (back of the neck, device, dishes, sex/gender, law, conversation), but there are many exceptions, such as der Gebrauch, der Gedanke, die Gefahr, der Gefallen, der
Genuss, der Geschmack, der Gewinn, die Gebühr, die Geburt, die Geduld, die Gemeinde, die Geschichte, and others)
Most borrowed (foreign) nouns ending in -ment: Ressentiment, Supplement (but der
Zement, der/das Moment [2 diff. meanings])
Most nouns ending in -nis: Versäumnis (neglect; but die Erlaubnis, die Erkenntnis,
die Finsternis)
Most nouns ending in -tum or -um: Christentum, Königtum (Christianity, kingship; but der Irrtum, der Reichtum - error, wealth)
Predicting German Noun Gender
Learning the gender of German nouns can be a problem for English-speakers. After all, we aren't used to nouns having any gender at all. ("She's a good ship" is a rare exception.) But as I explained previously in German Gender Hints, there are ways to predict the gender of a German noun. Not all nouns are truly predictable, but many are.
But even when there is a rule to help determine the gender of a given noun category, there are almost always exceptions. For instance, certain noun endings or suffixes in German can tell you a noun's gender. Some, however, are more reliable than others. Take the example of German nouns ending in -o. Such words—often English cognates borrowed from Latin—are usually neuter: das Auto, Büro, Kasino, Konto, Radio, Veto, Video, usw. But in this o-suffix category about one in three of the nouns is an exception to the rule. Some of the exceptions are very common: die Avocado, der Euro, die Limo, der Zoo. A sharp observer will notice that most of the exceptions are either not from Latin (die Avocado) or are short forms of longer words that determine the gender (die Limo, short for die Limonade).
German nouns ending in -ik are usually feminine: die Grammatik, Grafik, Klinik,
Mathematik, Musik, Physik, Panik. This is a fairly reliable predictor, but again there are some
common exceptions, including der Atlantik, der Pazifik, der Katholik, and das Pik (spade,
cards). Most of the few -ik exceptions are logical, particularly the two oceans, since the
German word for ocean is der Ozean.
Another German feminine noun suffix that is very reliable for predicting gender is the -in ending. This suffix is the most common way to turn a German masculine "people" word or occupation into a feminine noun (der Architekt/die Architektin, der Lehrer/die Lehrerin). However, there are a few nouns ending in -in that are not feminine: das Aspirin, der
Harlekin, das Benzin, der Urin. But you'll notice that the -in exceptions are usually
non-people words.
An -er ending usually indicates a masculine noun. Such nouns are usually agents (people who do things), nationalities, and professions. However, some common nouns ending in -er are not masculine: das Fenster, die Mutter, die Schwester, die Tochter, das Wetter.
Nouns Ending in -er - Usually masculine
NOTE: Because there are so many masculine -er nouns, only exceptions are listed here.
e Butter butter
e Feder feather, quill, pen; spring s Fenster window
s Futter feed, food, fodder s Gewitter thunderstorm
e Jungfer spinster, old maid; virgin, young lady e Kiefer pine
but r Kiefer jawbone s Kupfer copper
s Lager camp, storeroom e Leiter ladder
but r Leiter leader, head, manager s Messer knife
but r Messer gauge e Mutter mother s Poker poker (game)
s Puder powder (also masc.) s Opfer victim, sacrifice e Schwester sister s Silber silver e Steuer tax
s Steuer rudder, helm s Theater theater e Tochter daughter s Wasser water s Wetter weather
s Wunder miracle, wonder s Zimmer room
Nouns Ending in -ik - Usually feminine NOTE: Gender exceptions are marked * r Atlantik* the Atlantic
e Belletristik fiction, belles-lettres e Dynamik dynamic(s)
e Ethik ethic(s) e Fabrik factory e Grammatik grammar e Grafik graphic(s)
e Hektik hectic pace, hustle and bustle e Karibik Caribbean
e Klassik classical (music, style, period) e Klinik hospital, clinic
e Komik comic effect e Logik logic e Lyrik poetry e Mathematik math e Musik music e Mystik mysticism e Panik grammar r Pazifik* the Pacific e Physik physics s Pik* spade (cards) e Politik politics; policy
e Romanik Romanesque (style, period) e Romantik Romantic (style, period) e Statistik statistics
e Trafik smoke shop (Austria) e Tragik tragedy
Nouns Ending in -in - Usually feminine
NOTE: Because there are so many feminine -in nouns, only exceptions are listed here.
s Aspirin aspirin r Harlekin clown s Benzin gasoline, petrol r Urin urine
Nouns Ending in -o - Usually neuter
NOTE: Gender exceptions are marked *
s Abo subscription (short for s Abonnement) s Auto auto, car
e Demo* (street) demo (short for e Demonstration) e Disco/Disko* disco (short for e Diskotheke) r Domino* domino (piece)
s Domino (game) r Dynamo* dynamo r Eskimo* Eskimo r Euro* euro s Fiasko fiasco r Flamingo* flamingo s Foto photograph s Kilo kilogram
s Kino cinema, movie theater s Klo toilet, loo
r Kongo* the Congo (river) s Konto account
e Kripo* cops, CID r Limbo limbo
e Limo* soft drink, lemonade (short for e Limonade) s Logo logo
s Lotto lottery s Manko deficit s Motto motto
r Öko Green (party member), tree-hugger e Polio* polio, poliomyeltis
s Polo polo
r Popo* bottom, butt, heinie s Porto postage
s Radio radio
r Realo* political realist s Risiko risk, odds
s Rokoko Rococo (style, period) r Saldo* balance (finan.)
r Salto* somersault, turn (gymn.) r Scirocco* scirocco, a hot desert wind e Soko* special police commission/unit
r Tacho* speedometer (short for r/s Tachometer) r Techno* techno (music)
s Tempo speed
r/s Toto* soccer/football pool, sports book r Trafo* transformer (elec.)
s Tremolo tremolo s Trio trio
s Ufo UFO (unidentified flying object) e UNO* the UN (United Nations) s Veto veto
s Video video r Voodoo* voodoo
r Vopo* policeman (East Germany) r Zoo* zoo
Two Important Verbs: haben and sein
haben - to haveDeutsch English Sample Sentences
SINGULAR
ich habe I have Ich habe einen roten Wagen. (...a red car.) du hast you (fam.)
have Du hast mein Buch. (...my book.) er hat he has Er hat ein blaues Auge. (...a black eye.) sie hat she has Sie hat blaue Augen. (...blue eyes.)
es hat it has Es hat keine Fehler. (...no flaws.) PLURAL
wir haben we have Wir haben keine Zeit. (...no time.) ihr habt you (guys)
have Habt ihr euer Geld? (...your money?)
sie haben they have Sie haben kein Geld. (They have no money.) Sie haben you have Haben Sie das Geld? (Sie, formal "you," is both
singular and plural.)
See more verbs on our German Strong Verbs and
50 Common German Verbs pages. To be or not to be...
Sein oder nicht sein...
sein - to be
Deutsch English Sample Sentences
SINGULAR ich bin I am Ich bin's. (It's me.) du bist you (fam.)
are Du bist mein Schatz. (...my darling/treasure.) er ist he is Er ist ein netter Kerl. (...a nice guy.)
sie ist she is Ist sie da? (Is she here?)
es ist it is Es ist mein Buch. (...my book.) PLURAL
wir sind we are "Wir sind das Volk!" ("We are the people/nation!" - Slogan of 1989 East German protests in Leipzig.) ihr seid you (guys)
sie sind they are Sie sind unsere Freunde. (..our friends.)
Sie sind you are Sind Sie Herr Meier? (Sie, formal "you," is both singular and plural.)
German Verbs in the Present Tense
The BasicsEach verb has a basic "infinitive" ("to") form. This is the form of the verb you find in a German dictionary. The verb "to play" in English is the infinitive form. ("He plays" is a conjugated form.) The German equivalent of "to play" is spielen. Each verb has a "stem" form, the basic part of the verb left after you remove the -en ending. For spielen the stem is spiel- (spielen - en). To conjugate the verb—that is, use it in a sentence—you must add the correct ending to the stem. If you want to say "I play" you add an -e ending: "ich spiele" (which can also be translated into English as "I am playing"). Each "person" (he, you, they, etc.) requires its own ending on the verb. This is called "conjugating the verb." If you don't know how to conjugate verbs correctly it means your German will sound strange to people who understand the language. German verbs require more different endings than English verbs. In English we use only an s ending or no ending for most verbs: "I/they/we/you play" or "he/she plays." In the present tense, German has a different ending for almost all of those verb situations: ich spiele, sie spielen, du spielst, er spielt, etc. Observe that the verb spielen has a different ending in each of the examples. If you want to sound intelligent in German, you need to learn when to use which ending. That's why we have this chart for you! German has no present progressive tense ("am going"/"are buying"). The German Präsens "ich kaufe" can be translated into English as "I buy" or "I am buying," depending on the context.
The chart below lists two sample German verbs—one an example of a "normal" verb, the other an example of verbs that require a "connecting e" in the 2nd person singular and plural, and the 3rd person singular (du/ihr, er/sie/es)—as in er arbeitet.
We have also included a helpful list of some representative common stem-changing verbs. These are verbs that follow the normal pattern of endings, but have a vowel change in their stem or base form (hence the name "stem-changing"). In the chart below, the verb endings for each pronoun (person) are indicated in bold type.
spielen - to play
Deutsch English Sample Sentences
SINGULAR
ich spiele I play Ich spiele gern Basketball. du spielst you (fam.)
play Spielst du Schach? (chess) er spielt he plays Er spielt mit mir. (with me)
sie spielt she plays Sie spielt Karten. (cards) es spielt it plays Es spielt keine Rolle.
It doesn't matter.
PLURAL
wir spielen we play Wir spielen Basketball. ihr spielt you (guys) play Spielt ihr Monopoly? sie spielen they play Sie spielen Golf.
Sie spielen you play Spielen Sie heute? (Sie, formal "you," is both singular and plural.)
Now let's look at another German verb. This one is only slightly different from the others. The verb arbeiten (to work) belongs to a category of verbs that add a "connecting" e in the 2nd person singular and plural, and the 3rd person singular (du/ihr, er/sie/es) in the present tense: er arbeitet. Verbs whose stem ends in d or t do this. The following are examples of verbs in this category: antworten (answer), bedeuten (mean), enden (end), senden (send). (The more common verbs in this group are included on our 50 Common German Verbs
page.) In the chart below we have marked the 2nd and 3rd person conjugations with *. arbeiten - to work
Deutsch English Sample Sentences
SINGULAR
ich arbeite I work Ich arbeite am Samstag. du arbeitest * you (fam.) work Arbeitest du in der Stadt?
er arbeitet * he works Er arbeitet mit mir. (with me) sie arbeitet * she works Sie arbeitet nicht.
es arbeitet * it works --
PLURAL wir arbeiten we work Wir arbeiten zu viel. ihr arbeitet * you (guys) work Arbeitet ihr am Montag?
sie arbeiten they work Sie arbeiten bei BMW.
Sie arbeiten you work Arbeiten Sie heute? (Sie, formal "you," is both singular and plural.)
Sample Stem-Changing Verbs
Deutsch English Sample Sentence
In the examples below, er stands for all three third-person pronouns (er, sie, es). Stem-changing verbs only change in the singular (except for ich). Their plural forms are completely regular.
fahren er fährt du fährst to travel he travels you travel Er fährt nach Berlin.
He's traveling/going to Berlin.
Ich fahre nach Berlin.
I'm traveling/going to Berlin.
lesen er liest du liest to read he reads you read
Maria liest die Zeitung.
Maria's reading the newspaper.
Wir lesen die Zeitung.
We read the newspaper.
nehmen er nimmt du nimmst to take he takes you take
Karl nimmt sein Geld.
Karl's taking his money.
Ich nehme mein Geld.
I'm taking my money.
vergessen er vergisst du vergisst to forget he forgets you forget Er vergisst immer. He always forgets.
Vergiss es! / Vergessen Sie es!
Forget it!
50 Common German Verbs
Click on any linked verb for a full conjugation
Deutsch English 2nd/3rd Per. Sing.
Sample Sentence antworten to answer Er antwortet nicht.
arbeiten to work Er arbeitet heute.
bedeuten to mean, signify Was bedeutet dieses Wort? beginnen to begin Wann beginnt der Film? bekommen to get, receive Was bekommen Sie?
What can I get for you?
bestellen to order Er bestellt es online.
besuchen to visit Wir besuchen meine Tante in Berlin. bezahlen to pay Bezahlen wir jetzt?
bleiben to stay, remain Wir bleiben hier.
bringen to bring, take Ich bringe Sie zum Flughafen.
I'll take you to the airport.
danken to thank Ich danke Ihnen. (dative verb) Danke! > 10 Ways to Say 'Thank You' in German
denken to think Was denken Sie darüber?
What do you think about that?
Wann isst du zu Mittag?
When do you eat lunch?
fahren to travel,
drive, go
du fährst/er fährt
Ich fahre morgen nach Dresden.
I'm going/traveling to Dresden tomorrow.
finden to find Wie finden Sie den Film?
What do you think of the movie?
fliegen to fly Er fliegt nach Boston.
fragen to ask Fragst du mich?
geben to give
du gibst/er gibt
Wann gibst du ihm das Buch? es gibt = there is/there are
gehen to go Wir gehen ins Kino.
helfen to help du hilfst/er hilft
Helfen Sie mir! (dative verb) hören to hear, listen Hörst du die Musik?
kaufen to buy Ich kaufe die Postkarte. Also see: Present Tense Quiz 1
A self-scoring quiz on the German regular verbs. kommen to come Wann kommt er nach Hause?
kosten to cost Was kostet das Buch?
lesen to read du/er liest
Ich lese die Zeitung.
lieben to love Ich liebe dich.
machen to make, do Was macht er?
nehmen to take du nimmst/er nimmt
Nehmt ihr das Geld? öffnen to open Sie öffnet die Tür.
MORE > Verb-Lexikon - 500+ German verbs
probieren to try (out) Probieren geht über Studieren. (saying)The proof's in the pudding.
regnen to rain Es regnet heute.
reisen to travel Er reist nach Teneriffa. sagen to say, tell Er sagt nein.
schlafen to sleep du schläfst/er schläft Wir schlafen gut. schmecken to taste, be tasty Das schmeckt!
That tastes good!
schwimmen to swim Er schwimmt gern.
He likes to swim.
sehen to see du siehst/er sieht
Ich sehe ihn nicht. senden to send, transmit Er sendet eine E-Mail.
setzen to put, set Er setzt sich.
He sits down.
singen to sing Sie singt sehr schön. spielen to play, act Hans spielt Fußball. sprechen to speak du sprichst/er spricht
Ich spreche Deutsch. suchen to seek, search
look for
Was suchst du?
What are you looking for?
trinken to drink Ich trinke lieber Kaffee.
I'd rather drink coffee.
vergessen to forget du vergisst/er vergisst Ich vergesse den Namen. verstehen to understand Er versteht Deutsch.
warten to wait Sie wartet auf den Bus.
She's waiting for the bus.
wohnen to reside, live (in) Mein Vater wohnt in Hamburg. zeigen to show, indicate Ich zeige Ihnen, wo das ist.
The Top 20 Most-Used German Verbs Ranked by Frequency of Use
Infinitiv Common Forms Examples
1 sein to be
ich bin I am du bist you are er war he was
er ist gewesen he was/has been es wäre it would be
COMMANDS Sei still! Be quiet!
Seien Sie bitte so freundlich! Would you be so kind!
OTHER
Ich bin's. It's me.
Wie wär's mit einem Bier? How about a beer?
2 haben to have
ich habe I have du hast you have er hat he has
Sie haben gehabt You had/have had wir hätten we would have
COMMANDS
Hab dich nicht so! Don't make such a fuss!
OTHER
Er hat keine Zeit. He has no time. Wenn ich nur das Geld hätte. If I only had the money.
3 werden to become Also used to form the future tense and the passive voice.
ich werde I become du wirst you become er ist geworden he became es wurde it became
es würde.. it would...
COMMANDS werde! become! werden Sie! become! OTHER
Es wird dunkel. It's getting dark. Sie wird uns schreiben. She will write us. (future)
Der Brief wurde geschrieben. The letter was written. (passive)
4 können to be able, can
ich kann I can du kannst you can er konnte he could Sie können you can
COMMANDS No imperative OTHER
Er kann Deutsch. He knows German. Ich habe es nicht sagen können. I couldn't say it.
5 müssen
to have to, must
ich muss I must/have to du musst you must er muss he must sie musste she had to wir müssen we have to
COMMANDS No imperative OTHER
Ich muss nicht. I don't have to. Er muss nach Berlin. He has to go to
Berlin.
6 wollen to want (to)
ich will I want (to) du willst you want (to) er will he wants (to) er wollte he wanted to sie hat gewollt she wanted to
COMMANDS Imperative rare OTHER
Er will nichts trinken. He doesn't want to drink anything.
Das habe ich nicht gewollt. I didn't mean to (do that).
Wir wollen morgen abfahren. We want to leave tomorrow.
7 mögen to like (to)
ich mag I like
ich möchte I would like du magst you like er mochte he liked Sie mögen you like
COMMANDS No imperative OTHER
Er mag die Suppe. He likes the soup. Was möchten Sie? What would you like?
8 wissen to know
ich weiß I know du weißt you know wir wissen we know er wusste he knew
ich habe gewusst I knew, have known
COMMANDS wisse! know! wisset! know! OTHER
Er weiß es nicht. He doesn't know. Sie wusste weder ein noch aus. She didn't know which way was up. Wissen Sie, wann sie ankommen? Do you know when they arrive?
9 machen to make, do
ich mache I do, make du machst you make er macht he does
wir machten we did, made er hat gemacht he did, has done ich werde machen I will do, make
COMMANDS
Machen Sie sich keine Gedanken! Don't worry about it!
OTHER
Das macht nichts. It doesn't matter. Was macht das? What does it come to? (How much?)
Was machen wir jetzt? Now what do we do?
10 sollen should, ought to,
ich soll I should du sollst you should er soll he should
sie sollte she was supposed to
COMMANDS No imperative OTHER
Ich sollte dort bleiben. I ought to stay there.
Infinitiv Common Forms Examples 11 Tie heißen to be called, named (my/his) name is
ich heiße my name is sie heißt her name is du heißt your name is er hieß his name was
er hat geheißen he was named wir heißen our name is
Heißen Sie…? Is your name…?
COMMANDS N/A OTHER
Wie heißen Sie? What's your name? (last name)
Ich heiße Jones. My name is Jones. Er heißt Braun. His name is Braun. Wie heißt du? What's your name? (child)
Ich heiße Karl. My name is Karl. (child) Was soll das heißen? What's that supposed to mean?/What do you mean by that?
11 Tie sagen to say, tell
ich sage I say du sagst you say er sagte he said
er hat gesagt he said/has said wir sagen we say
sagen Sie? do you say?/are you saying?
COMMANDS
Sag das nicht! Don't say it! Sagen Sie mir! Tell me! OTHER
Er sagt, was er denkt. He says what he means/thinks.
Das sagt mir nichts. That doesn't mean anything to me.
Du hast nichts zu sagen. You have no say (in the matter).
12 gehen to go
ich gehe I go, am going du gehst you go er geht he goes
sie ist gegangen she went/has gone er ging he went
COMMANDS gehe! go! geht! go! gehen Sie! go! OTHER
Das geht nicht. That won't do/work. Wie geht es Ihnen? How are you? Meine Uhr geht nach.
My watch is slow. Sie geht zu Fuß
She goes on foot./She walks. supposed to wir sollen we ought to Es soll schön sein. It's said to
be/supposed to be nice.
Was soll das? What's that supposed to mean?
13 sehen to see
ich sehe I see du siehst you see er sieht he sees
er hat gesehen he saw/has seen sie sah she saw
wir sahen we saw
COMMANDS sehe! see! sehen Sie! see! OTHER
Sie sieht nicht gut. She doesn't see well.
Wo hast du ihn gesehen? Where did you see him?
14 geben to give
ich gebe I give du gibst you give er gab he gave Sie geben you give es gibt there is/are
COMMANDS
gebt! give! gib! give! geben Sie! give! OTHER
Geben Sie mir den Bleistift! Give me the pencil.
Es gibt kein Geld. There is no money. Ich gab ihr das Buch. I gave her the book.
Er hat mir das Geld gegeben. He gave me the money.
15 kommen to come
ich komme I come, am coming du kommst you come
er kam he came
sie ist gekommen she came
COMMANDS komm! come! kommt! come! kommen Sie! come! OTHER
Ich komme nicht nach Hause. I'm not coming home.
Er ist nach Berlin gekommen. He came to Berlin.Woher kommt sie? Where does she come from?Es kam ganz anders, als erwartet. It turned out very differently than we expected.
16 lassen to let, allow, leave
ich lasse I let du lässt you let er lässt he lets
Sie haben gelassen You have let er ließ he let
COMMANDS
Lassen Sie das! Stop that! Leave that alone!
OTHER
Er ließ sich keine Zeit. He didn't allow himself any time.
Das lasse ich mir nicht gefallen. I won't put up with that.
getting a haircut.
17 finden to find
ich finde I find ich fand I found du findest you find er fand he found
Sie haben gefunden you found/have found
COMMANDS
finde! find! findet! find! finden Sie! find!
OTHER
Er fand die Suppe gut. He liked the soup.
Wir finden keinen Platz. We can't find a seat.
18 bleiben to stay, remain
ich bleibe I stay du bleibst you stay wir bleiben we stay er blieb he stayed
ich bin geblieben I stayed, have stayed
COMMANDS bleib! stay! bleibt! stay!
Bitte, bleiben Sie sitzen! Please remain seated!
OTHER
Er bleibt in Köln. He's staying in Cologne.
Alles blieb beim Alten. Everything stayed the same./Nothing changed. Es bleibt dabei. Agreed. It's a deal.
19 nehmen to take
ich nehme I take du nimmst you take er nimmt he takes wir nehmen we take
er hat genommen he took, has taken ich werde nehmen I will take
COMMANDS
nimm! take! nehmt! take! nehmen Sie! take!
Nehmen Sie Platz! Have a seat! OTHER
Er nahm das Geld. He took the money. Sie nahm es auf sich, das zu machen. She took it upon herself to do that. Wir haben den Tag freigenommen. We took the day off.
20 bringen to bring
ich bringe I bring du bringst you bring er brachte he brought
sie hat gebracht she brought, has brought
COMMANDS
bring! bring bringt! bring bringen Sie! bring OTHER
Ich bringe Sie dorthin. I'll take you there.
Er hat es weit gebracht. He has been very successful./He has come far. Was bringt das? What will that accomplish?
Das hat mich zum Lachen gebracht. That made me laugh.
Adjective Endings
German adjectives, like English ones, usually go in front of the noun they modify: "der gute Mann" (the good man), "das große Haus" (the big house/building), "die schöne Dame" (the pretty lady). Unlike English adjectives, a German adjective in front of a noun has to have an ending (-e in the examples above). Just what that ending will be depends on several factors, including gender (der, die, das) and case (nominative, accusative, dative). But most of the time the ending is an -e or an -en (in the plural). With ein-words, the ending varies according to the modified noun's gender (see below).
Look at the following table for the adjective endings in the nominative (subject) case: With definite article (der, die, das) - Nominative case
AUDIO Click on a phrase to hear it spoken. Masculine der Feminine die Neuter das Plural die
der neue Wagen
the new car
die schöne Stadt
the beautiful city
das alte Auto
the old car
die neuen Bücher
the new books
AUDIO: HEAR ALL FOUR PHRASES (MP3)
Hear all four phrases (MP3)
With indefinite article (eine, kein, mein) - Nom. case
AUDIO Click on a phrase to hear it spoken. Masculine ein Feminine eine Neuter ein Plural keine
ein neuer Wagen
a new car
eine schöne Stadt
a beautiful city
ein altes Auto
an old car
keine neuen Bücher
no new books
AUDIO: HEAR ALL FOUR PHRASES (MP3)
Hear all four phrases (MP3)
Note that with ein-words, since the article may not tell us the gender of the following noun, the adjective ending often does this instead (-es = das, -er = der; see above).
As in English, a German adjective can also come after the verb (predicate adjective): "Das Haus ist groß." (The house is large.) In such cases the adjective will have NO ending.
German Verb Prefixes
Separable and Inseparable Verb Prefixes
Part 1: Inseparable Prefixes
Verb Prefixes
There are three kinds of verb prefixes in German: (1) separable (trennbar), (2) inseparable (untrennbar), and (3) dual prefixes (usually a preposition) that can be both. Separable prefixes are stressed (betont) in their pronunciation; inseparable prefixes are unstressed (unbetont). In this verb prefix chart, we have divided the prefixes into their three categories. By adding various prefixes to a base verb, German can produce new meanings: kommen > abkommen (digress), ankommen (arrive), bekommen (get), entkommen (escape). (English does the same thing, using Greek and Latin prefixes: form > deform, inform, perform, etc.) Knowing the basic meaning of a verb prefix can be helpful in learning German vocabulary, but not all prefixes have a specific meaning, nor does each prefix always have the same meaning. For instance, knowing the meaning of the prefix ver- may or may not help you understand the meaning of verbs like verschlafen (to oversleep) or versprechen (to promise). The prefix meanings can be interesting and helpful, but they are no substitute for learning vocabulary.
If you are not already familiar with how separable and inseparable verbs are used in a sentence, see Lesson 19 and our Sample Sentences page for examples.
Also see additional comments at the end of each section of the prefix chart.
Inseparable Prefixes
Untrennbare Präfixe
Prefix Meaning Examples
be-
like English be- makes verb take a direct object (acc.)
s. befinden (be located) befolgen (follow) befreunden (befriend) begegnen (meet) bekommen (get)
bemerken (notice, remark)
emp- sense, receive
empfangen (receive) empfehlen (recommend) empfinden (feel) ent- away from English de-/dis- entarten (degenerate)
entbehren (miss, do without) entdecken (discover)
entfallen (elude, slip)
entfernen (remove, take out) entkalken (decalcify)
entkleiden (disrobe, undress) entkommen (escape, get away) entlassen (discharge, release)
entstehen (originate, be formed/created) entwerten (devalue, cancel)
er-
fatal, dead
erhängen (hang, execute) erschiessen (shoot dead) ertrinken (drown)
like English re-
s. erinnern (remember) erkennen (recognize) erholen (recover, relax)
ge- - -
gebrauchen (use, make use of) gedenken (commemorate, intend) gefallen (like)
gehören (belong to) gelangen (arrive at) geloben (vow)
genesen (recover, recuperate) gestalten (shape, form) gestehen (confess)
gewähren (grant, give, offer)
miss- English mis-
missachten (disregard, disdain) missbrauchen (abuse, misuse) misstrauen (mistrust) missverstehen (misunderstand) ver- bad, awry English mis- verachten (despise) verbilden (miseducate) verderben (go bad, spoil) s. verfahren (go astray, get lost)
verkommen (go to ruin, become run down) verschlafen (oversleep)
lose, away/out
verdrängen (drive out) verduften (lose its aroma) verlassen (leave, abandon) verlieren (lose) English for- verbieten (forbid) vergeben (forgive) vergessen (forget) ???
verbinden (bandage, link, tie) vergrößern (enlarge)
verhaften (arrest) versprechen (promise)
voll-* full, complete
vollenden (complete, finish) vollführen (execute, perform) vollstrecken (enforce, execute)
*NOTE: Some verbal expressions with voll treat voll as an adverb rather than a prefix, and are spelled with the adverb voll separated from the verb, even in the infinitive form.
Examples include: voll dröhnen (dope/tank up), voll essen (gorge oneself), voll machen (fill [up]).
zer- collapse, shatter, shred
zerbrechen (shatter) zerreissen (rip up, shred) zerstören (destroy)
NOTE: Inseparable-prefix verbs do not add the normal past participle prefix ge- in the perfect tenses. See the examples below.
Comments: Inseparable Prefix Verbs
There are verbs in English that are constructed and used much like German inseparable-prefix verbs: contend, extend, pretend, and intend are all based on the verb "tend." A similar example in German is the verb finden (find). By adding various inseparable prefixes, German alters the meaning of finden to create new meanings: sich befinden (be located), empfinden (feel), or erfinden (invent). As you can see, many common German verbs are inseparable-prefix verbs.
German verbs with inseparable prefixes do not add the normal past participle prefix ge- in the perfect tenses. Examples: bekommen (to get) hat/hatte bekommen; erwarten (to expect, await) hat/hatte erwartet; verstehen (to understand) hat/hatte verstanden. For more about German verb tenses, see our German Verbs section.
Part 2: Separable Verb Prefixes
Verbalpräfixe - Vorsilben bei Zeitwörtern
This verb prefix guide, with a prefix chart, is part of Lesson 19 of our of free German for Beginners course. To learn more about German verbs, also see our German Verbs section and the Verb-Lexikon.
Also see: Verb Prefixes and Rechtschreibreform
Separable Prefixes 1
Below we have listed the most common separable prefixes in German. For more of the separable prefixes, including less common ones (fehl-, statt-, etc.), see Separable Prefixes 2.
Verb Prefixes: Inseparable > Separable 1 > Separable 2 > Dual > Rechtschreibreform > Sample Sentences with verb prefixes
Separable Prefixes 1
Trennbare Präfixe 1
Prefix Meaning Examples
ab- from
abblenden (screen, fade out, dim [lights]) abdanken (abdicate, resign)
abkommem (get away)
abnehmen (pick up; decrease, reduce) abschaffen (abolish, do away with)
abziehen (deduct, withdraw, print [photos])
an- at, to
anbauen (cultivate, grow, plant) anbringen (fasten, install, display) anfangen (begin, start)
anhängen (attach) ankommen (arrive)
anschauen (look at, examine)
auf- on, out, up,
un-aufbauen (build up, put up, add on) aufdrehen (turn on, unscrew, wind up) auffallen (stand out, be noticeable) aufgeben (give up; check [luggage]) aufkommen (arise, spring up; bear [costs]) aufschließen (unlock; develop [land])
aus- out, from
ausbilden (educate, train) ausbreiten (extend, spread out) ausfallen (fail, fall out, be canceled) ausgehen (go out)
ausmachen (10 meanings!) aussehen (appear, look [like])
auswechseln (exchange, replace [parts]) See The 10 Meanings of the German Verb 'ausmachen'.
bei- along, with
beibringen (teach; inflict)
beikommen (get hold of, deal with) beischlafen (have sexual relations with) beisetzen (bury, inter)
beitragen (contribute [to]) beitreten (join)
durch-* through durchhalten (withstand, endure; hold out) durchfahren (drive through)
*The prefix durch- is usually separable, but it can also be inseparable. See Dual Prefixes.
ein- in, into, inward, down
einatmen (inhale)
einberufen (conscript, draft; convene, summon) einbrechen (break in; break down/through, cave in) eindringen (force entry into, penetrate, besiege) einfallen (collapse; occur to, remind)
eingehen (enter, sink in, be received)
fort- away, forth, onward
fortbilden (continue education)
fortbringen (take away [for repair], post)
fortpflanzen (propagate, reproduce; be transmitted) fortsetzen (continue)
forttreiben (drive away)
mit- along, with,
co-mitarbeiten (cooperate, collaborate)
mitbestimmen (co-determine, have a say in) mitbringen (bring along)
mitfahren (go/travel with, get a lift) mitmachen (join in, go along with) mitteilen (inform, communicate)
nach- after, copy,
re-nachahmen (imitate, emulate, copy) nachbessern (retouch)
nachdrucken (reprint) nachfüllen (refill, top up/off)
nachgehen (follow, go after; run slow [clock]) nachlassen (slacken, loosen)
vor- before, forward, pre-,
pro-vorbereiten (prepare)
vorbeugen (prevent; bend forward)
vorbringen (propose, bring up; bring forward, produce) vorführen (present, perform)
vorgehen (proceed, go on, go first) vorlegen (present, submit)
weg- away, off
wegbleiben (stay away)
wegfahren (leave, drive off, sail away)
wegfallen (be discontinued, cease to apply, be omitted) weghaben (have got done, have got done)
wegnehmen (take away) wegtauchen (disappear)
Comments: Separable Prefix Verbs
German separable prefix verbs can be compared to English verbs like "call up," "clear out" or "fill in." While in English you can say either "Clear out your drawers" or "Clear your drawers out," in German the separable prefix is almost always at the end, as in the second English example. A German example with anrufen: Heute ruft er seine Freundin an. = Today he's calling his girlfriend (up). This applies to most "normal" German sentences, but in some cases (infinitive forms or in dependent clauses) the "separable" prefix does not separate. See
Lesson 19 and the Sample Sentences page for more about this. In spoken German, separable verb prefixes are stressed.
All of the separable-prefix verbs form their past participle with ge-. Examples: Sie hat gestern angerufen, She called/telephoned yesterday. Er war schon zurückgegangen, He had already gone back. - For more about German verb tenses, see our German Verbs section. Separable Prefixes 2
In Part 1 we listed the most common separable prefixes in German. For many other, less frequently used separable prefixes, see the chart below. While some of the separable prefixes below, such as fehl- or statt-, are used in only two or three German verbs, they often turn out to be important, useful verbs that one should know.
Verb Prefixes > Inseparable | Separable 1 | Separable 2 | Dual > Sample Sentences with verb prefixes
zu- shut/closed, to, towards, upon
zubringen (bring/take to) zudecken (cover up, tuck in) zuerkennen (bestow, confer [on]) zufahren (drive/ride towards) zufassen (make a grab for) zulassen (authorize, license)
zunehmen (increase, gain, add weight)
zurück- back,
re-zurückblenden (flash back [to]) zurückgehen (go back, return) zurückschlagen (hit/strike back)
zurückschrecken (shrink back/from, recoil, shy away) zurücksetzen (reverse, mark down, put back)
zurückweisen (refuse, repulse, turn back/away)
zusammen- together
zusammenbauen (assemble) zusammenfassen (summarize) zusammenklappen (fold up, shut)
zusammenkommen (meet, come together) zusammensetzen (seat/put together) zusammenstoßen (collide, clash)
NOTE: All of the separable verbs form their past participle with ge-, as in zurückgegangen (zurückgehen).
Separable Prefixes 2
Trennbare Präfixe 2
Prefix Meaning Examples
da- there dableiben (stay behind)
dalassen (leave there)
dabei- there dabeibleiben (stay/stick with it) dabeisitzen (sit in on)
daran- on/to it darangeben (sacrifice)
daranmachen (set about it, get down to it)
empor- up, upward, over
emporarbeiten (work one's way up) emporblicken (raise one's eyes up, look up) emporragen (tower, rise above/over)
entgegen- against, towards entgegenarbeiten (oppose, work against) entgegenkommen (approach, come towards)
entlang- along entlanggehen (go/walk along) entlangschrammen (scrape by)
fehl- awry, wrong fehlgehen (go astray, err)
fehlschlagen (go wrong, come to nothing)
fest- firm, fixed
festlaufen (run aground) festlegen (establish, fix) festsitzen (be stuck, cling)
gegenüber- across from, opposite,
con-gegenüberliegen (face, be opposite) gegenüberstellen (confront, compare)
gleich- equal gleichkommen (equal, match)
gleichsetzen (equate, treat as equivalent)
her- from, here herfahren (come/get here)
herauf- up from, out of heraufarbeiten (work one's way up) heraufbeschwören (evoke, give rise to)
heraus- from, out of herauskriegen (get out of, find out) herausfordern (challenge, provoke)
hin- to, towards, there hinarbeiten (work towards) hinfahren (go/drive there)
hinweg- away, over hinweggehen (disregard, pass over) hinwegkommen (dismiss, get over)
hinzu- in addition hinbekommen (get in addition) hinzufügen (add, enclose)
los- away, start losbellen (start barking) losfahren (set/drive off)
statt- - - stattfinden (take place, be held [event]) stattgeben (grant)
zusammen- together, to pieces
zusammenarbeiten (co-operate, collaborate) zusammengeben (mix [ingredients])
zusammenhauen (smash to pieces) zusammenheften (staple together) zusammenkrachen (crash [down]) zusammenreißen (pull oneself together)
zwischen- between zwischenblenden (blend in; insert [film, music]) zwischenlanden (stop over [flying])
