Being fluent in German may be the end goal but if you’re heading off to Germany soon and you’re not quite there with your conversational skills then you may want to consider taking a look at some of these useful German words and phrases to get you started. Even if you can’t speak the language yet it always goes a long way if you make an effort with the locals and try to use some words in their language. You may find that they smile and reply to you in English but at least you’re making the effort and you’ll probably set yourself up for better service in the process.
Greeting people
The best way to start you off with some useful German phrases is to learn how to greet people. That way you can open up the possibility of making some German friends and you will seem polite when you’re getting someone’s attention to ask for their help. In Germany when you meet someone for the first time it’s common to shake their hand. If you’re from northern Europe or the USA this may seem like a relief compared to the confusion you feel when someone from southern Europe tries to kiss you.
Hello – hallo
Good morning – Guten Morgen
Good afternoon – Guten Tag
Good evening – Guten Abend
Goodbye – Auf Wiedersehn
What is your name? – Wie heißen Sie?
My name is… – Ich heiße
How are you? – Wie geht es dir?
I’m fine thank you – es geht mir gut, danke
I’m not so good – ich bin nicht so gut
Nice to meet you – Schön, Sie kennen zu lernen.
Being polite
Being polite is important in everywhere you go and this is no different in Germany. Each country has it’s own etiquette that it expects people to follow and you’ll be forgiven if you make some errors but it’s definitely going to help you out if you make the effort to learn your pleases and thank yous.
Please – Bitte
Thanks – Danke
Thank you very much – Vielen Dank
No thank you – Nein danke
I would like… – Ich würde gern
Yes – ja
No – nein
Excuse me – Entschuldigung
I am sorry – Es tut mir Leid
Out and about
Hopefully this section will be useful for those of you who are going to Germany on holiday soon and need some key phrases to get you around. Anyone can get lost and learning these phrases will help you out a lot. We’ve included some common places you might be trying to find and some phrases you can use in a restaurant or a shop.
Where is the….. – Wo ist…..?
Hospital – das Krankenhaus
School – die Schule
Bank – die Bank
Bakery – die Bäckerei
Supermarket – der Supermarkt
Hotel – das Hotel
Park – der Park
How much is this? – Wieviel kostet das?
The bill – Die Rechnung
A table for two please – Ein Tisch für zwei, bitte
Numbers
Numbers are one of the most useful things to learn but can be quite time consuming. You’ll need numbers for lots of different things, for bus numbers, train numbers, telling the time, asking how much something is. The quicker you learn your numbers the easier your time in Germany will be.
A good way to learn your numbers quickly is to try and learn them through song. It might feel a bit silly but it will help them stick in your head a lot quicker.
One – eins
Two – zwei
Three – drei
Four – vier
Five -fünf
Six – sechs
Seven – sieben
Eight – acht
Nine – neun
Ten – zehn
Eleven – elf
Twelve – zwölf
Thirteen – dreizehn
Fourteen – vierzehn
Fifteen – fünfzehn
Sixteen – sechzehn
Seventeen – siebzehn
Eighteen – achtzehn
Nineteen – neunzehn
Twenty – zwanzig
Twenty one – einundzwanzig
Twenty two – zweiundzwanzig
Thirty – dreißig
Forty – vierzig
Fifty – fünfzig
Sixty – sechzig
Seventy – siebzig
Eighty – achtzig
Ninety – neunzig
One hundred – (ein) hundert
Two hundred – zweihundert
Three hundred – dreihundert
Four hundred – vierhundert
Five hundred – fünfhundert
Six hundred – sechshundert
Seven hundred – siebenhundert
Eight hundred – achthundert
Nine hundred – neunhundert
One thousand – eintausend
At the doctors
Hopefully you won’t have to use the doctors while your in Germany, but if you do it’s always best to be prepared. Although I would be surprised if the doctor didn’t have a decent level of English, pharmacy workers may not, so it’s a good idea to brush up on your medical vocabulary to help you out in case of emergencies while you’re abroad. (And make sure you’re travel insurance is up to date!)
I’m sick – Ich bin krank
Help – Hilfe
I need an appointment – Ich brauche bitte einen Termin
It’s urgent – Es ist dringend
Call an ambulance – Rufen Sie einen Krankenwagen
I have a stomachache – Ich habe Bauchschmerzen
I have toothache – Ich habe Zahnschmerzen
I have a headache – Ich habe Kopfschmerzen
My back aches – Ich habe Rückenschmerzen
I have a cold – Ich habe eine Erkältung
I have a fever – Ich habe Fieber
I’m having a heart attack – Ich habe einen Herzinfarkt
Final thoughts
We hope you’re found our German phrases to get you started useful. If you think there are any phrases or topics that we’ve missed out then please let us know in the comments below. Or if you would like us to go useful phrases for another language then let us know that too. Here you can find our useful phrases for French and Spanish to get you started.
These should be enough to start you out with a holiday to Germany but if you’re on the fence about learning German then read our why to learn German article here, our check out some of our best films to learn German.
German is a fantastic language with some very complex with very logical grammar. We would highly recommend learning it but for now you should try and learn some of these useful phrases in German to get you started. That way you won’t be at a loss when you arrive in Germany and someone tries to talk to you. Though saying that, the Germans are usually pretty good at English so we’re sure you’ll be able to manage with some Gerglish mix.
Good luck and enjoy your trip to Germany!
Leave a Reply