GermanPod101.com Blog

One common mistake made by beginning language learners is to assume that expressions can be translated word-for-word from one language into another (see German vs. English vocabulary). They’ll take an expression such as “to bite the dust” and render it into something like “zu beissen den Staub.” Besides its word order problems (the phrase would go “den Staub beissen” in German), this literal translation makes absolutely no sense to a German-speaker. In the German language, when one “bites the dust,” one actually “bites into the grass” (ins Gras beissen), perhaps because Germany is much greener than the wild West associated with this expression in English, although the German expression goes all the way back to the 16th century.

German has many interesting and colorful turns of phrase, some of which are obvious in their meaning, and some of which are not. There are several other interesting “grass” expressions in German that relate to a variety of situations. Das Gras wachsen hören means to “hear the grass grow” or, in other words, to think you’re so clever that you can even hear the grass grow. Über etwas Gras wachsen lassen (to let grass grow over something) means to leave something in the past, to allow something to be forgotten.

An innocent word like Pantoffel (slipper) can take on hidden meaning in German. A Pantoffelheld is literally a “slipper hero.” However, most Pantoffel expressions have to do with being “hen pecked” or a husband/man dominated by a wife/woman. A Pantoffelheld is a man under the foot of a woman, a hen-pecked husband. The Held or “hero” part of this word is meant ironically.

Vogel (bird), is another dangerous word in German. To say that someone has a bird (einen Vogel haben) means they are crazy. To show someone einen Vogel (a bird) in Germany is the same as showing someone the bird in America - meaning that someone is crazy.

While we’re on the topic of animals, the German word Schwein (swine, pig) is one to take care with, since it can be a very insulting term. But oddly enough, “Schwein haben” (lit., “to have pig”) is good. The expression is used to say someone was lucky or “came out smelling like a rose,” as in “Er hat Schwein gehabt.” (“He was in luck.” or “He was a lucky dog.” ).

A few short-but-meaningful expressions: Ein Glückspilz (a lucky mushroom) is a person who experiences unexpected good fortune. Vitamin B is good connections (gute Beziehungen) to influential people, an expression that came out of World War II and food rationing. Vitamin B2 is even better connections. A fairly recent term is Schickie-Mickies for “yuppies.” A Windel-Mercedes (Windel = diaper) is a fancy baby carriage. The list could go on and on. The essential fact is that even if you are familiar with the German language basics, if you don’t know German slang you will be lost in many casual German conversations. Ordinary Germans use plenty of colorful slang phrases and expressions when sharing day-to-day experiences, chatting over a coffee at work or over a beer at the local bar. German slang is an essential part of everyday German conversation that strangely is often overlooked by German learners.

English may have more vocabulary than any other language, but that doesn’t mean it has a word for everything. Every language has words and expressions that are unique and very difficult or impossible to translate into another language. The Eskimos, contrary to popular legend, do NOT really have fifty words for snow, but German gemütlich takes several words to explain in English: cozy, comfortable, warm, inviting, and hospitable. Sometimes these words or expressions are adopted wholesale into another language — Kindergarten and Gesundheit (health), for example, from German into English. But more often the word is just unknown in other languages. German is a rich language that has words and turns of phrases that have no equal in English. (The reverse is just as true, of course.)

German makes certain distinctions that English does not. For English “to know” German has two words, each reflecting the difference between knowing something through understanding (wissen) and knowing something through recognition (kennen). A German can also understand immediately from the use of one of two distinct verbs whether an object has been “put” on a surface in a standing (stellen) or a lying (legen) position. When it comes to eating, animals and humans in German have two different words: fressen is used for non-humans, while people essen.

Some German expressions, such as Schadenfreude (a malicious pleasure or gloating over another’s misfortune), don’t really have an English equivalent. (“Crocodile tears” — Krokodiltränen — aren’t really the same thing.) The adjective überfragt (lit., “over-asked,” as in “Da bin ich überfragt.” - You’ve got me there. I don’t have the answer.) has no one-word English equivalent either.

German language-learning tip

Try not to think in English when you are speaking or writing German. Especially with slang or idioms, but also in many other situations, this is the one thing that leads to the most trouble. If you are translating in order to write or speak, then something is wrong. Translation should only be used when you are learning or can’t make it on your own in German. You don’t really know German until you can hear it in your head.

When you start learning German, sooner or later you might get to the point where you ask yourself: Why am I learning German at all? Sure, there are thousands of rules to consider, many tongue twisters and an infinite number of discouraging vocabulary to learn. However, we want to show you that all the hard work pays off because:

- German is the most widely spoken language in Europe.

- German is one of the most commonly used languages on the Internet. In fact, Germany’s top-level country domain “.de” is second only to the extension .com.

- German is no harder to learn to speak and write than other languages.

 - in many countries, Germans account for the largest percentage of tourists. So, if you are working in the tourist industry, it is really important to have knowledge of German language.

- German is the second most frequently used language in which to write a work of scientific research, especially engineering, chemistry and physics.

- German is also important in music. The best schools of music are in Germany and Austria.

- you will improve business relationships. Germany has the 3rd strongest economy and is the #1 export nation in the world.

- learning German is important for higher education; it is the most commonly recommended language for most universities.

- by learning German you will also learn more about origin and meaning of many English words (see Language Borrowings).

Young children attend a Kindergarten (children’s garden). Gesundheit doesn’t really mean “bless you,” it means “health” — the good variety being implied. Psychiatrists speak of Angst (fear) and Gestalt (form) psychology, and when something is broken, it’s kaputt. Although not every English-speaker knows that Fahrvergnügen is “driving pleasure,” most do know that Volkswagen means “people’s car.” Musical works can have a Leitmotiv. Our cultural view of the world is called a Weltanschauung by historians or philosophers. Such terms are commonly understood by most well-read English-speakers.

More English words borrowed from German:

(Notice how many have to do with food!) - blitz, blitzkrieg, cobalt, dachshund, delicatessen, ersatz, frankfurter, glockenspiel, hinterland, infobahn (for “information highway”), kaffeeklatsch, Munster and Limburger (cheeses named for German cities), pilsner (glass, beer), pretzel, quartz, rucksack, sauerkraut, schnaps, (apple) strudel, waltz, wiener.

Germanic cognate terms:

(Shared in common; mostly family-related words, parts of the body, and old basic words) - der Arm, der Ball, der Bruder, die Hand, das Haus, das Ende, das Gold, gut (good), der Finger, lang, der Mann, die Maus, Montag (Monday), die Mutter, der Vater, die Schwester (sister), der Sohn, die Tochter (daughter), das Wasser, das Wort (word).

English in German:

The following German words have been borrowed from English. Usually the only difference is the use of the German article (the - der, die, or das - masc., fem., neu.) and the capitalization used for all German nouns. The pronunciation is usually similar to English, but sometimes with a unique German twist. They are usually German’s more recent borrowings. English terms: das Baby, der Babysitter, babysitten (to babysit), das Bodybuilding, das Callgirl, der Clown, der Cocktail, der Computer, fit (in good shape), die Garage, das Golf (der Golf is “the gulf” or a VW model), das Hobby, der Job, joggen (to jog), der Killer, killen (to kill), der Lift (elevator), der Manager, managen (to manage), das Musical, der Playboy, der Pullover, der Rum, der Smog, der Snob, der Streik, das Team, der Teenager, das Ticket, der Tunnel, der Trainer (coach), der Waggon (train car).

Loan Words from French (Französisch):

The following German words look like English words, but they are actually words from French that both English and German have adopted. They are more recent than the Latin borrowings below. French borrowings include: das Abenteuer (adventure), die Armee, das Ballett, die Chance, fein (fine), galoppieren, der General, die Infanterie, die Kanone, die Lanze (lance), der Offizier, die Parade, die Parole (saying, motto), der Platz (place, square), der Preis (prize, price), der Prinz, die Prinzessin, der Tanz (dance), die Uniform.

Loan Words from Latin (Latein):

Both English and German have borrowed heavily from Latin. Latin was the language of the universities in Germany and the rest of Europe during the Middle Ages. Because such words are very old and have undergone changes over the centuries, some are not very obvious equivalents. For example, the German word Birne comes from Latin pirum which gave us the English word pear. Some other Latin loan words: aktiv, der Altar, der Atlas, die Disziplin, der Esel (ass, donkey), das Examen, die Feige (fig), das Fieber (fever), der Kaiser (Caesar, emperor), die Kammer (chamber), die Kamera, der Kanzler (chancellor), der Keller (cellar), das Klima, das Kloster (cloister), das Kreuz (cross), die Lilie (lily), der Markt (market), die Meile (mile), das Münster (minster, church), die Münze (money, coin), opfern (to offer, sacrifice), die Pforte (portal), das Pfund (pound), die Rose, der Student/die Studentin, die Tafel (tablet), der Wein (wine).

Reflecting the history of the area in which it is spoken, German is a language of great regional diversity. The area we now call Austria, Germany, and Switzerland was once a bewildering jungle of separate kingdoms, principalities and duchies. So too, the German language; even today it remains a jumble of dialects and linguistic variations stretching from the Danish border to northern Italy (the region of Südtirol in German or Alto Adige in Italian).

Even though the driving distance between them is only 365 miles, the German spoken by a Berliner is worlds apart from the German spoken by a Bavarian in Munich. Swiss German, Schwyzerdütsch, is Chinese to the ears of someone from Düsseldorf. The regional dialects of Austria, a country no larger than Maine, are like dozens of different languages, making it difficult for a Viennese to understand an Innsbrucker. The only way any of these various German-speakers are able to communicate is through a relatively standardized form of German known as Hochdeutsch, or High German. The hoch in Hochdeutsch refers to a topographically higher region, relative to the lower (nieder) or flat (platt) regions of northern Germany. The term “High German” does not imply any superiority to “Low German”—the only differences are geographic and linguistic. Plattdeutsch or Niederdeutsch come from the low lands.

Ironically, in the last 10 to 15 years there has been a conscious effort to preserve local and regional dialects in the German-speaking world. Many news publications and works of poetry and literature have sprung up in dialect form. Even some dialects that had no real written form can now be seen in print. Singers and musical groups, from rock to traditional, have also released albums and songs in various German dialects. Many Austrians, Swiss, and Germans have a renewed pride in their own unique dialect. They see Hochdeutsch as useful and necessary, but they don’t want to see their own regional cultural identity fade into a uniform, boring sameness.