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Greetings in German
German greetings are an integral aspect of social interaction and can improve your relationships with other people. You should be familiar with the following frequent German greetings:
Hallo
This is a simple and informal way to say “hello” in German. It’s a great greeting to use when meeting someone for the first time or when speaking to a friend.
Guten Morgen
This translates to “good morning” in English and is a polite way to greet someone early in the day.
Guten Tag
This means “good day” and is a more formal way to greet someone in the middle of the day.
Guten Abend
This translates to “good evening” and is a polite way to greet someone in the evening.
Grüß Gott
This is a traditional German greeting that is often used in rural areas or among older generations. It roughly translates to “may God greet you.”
Servus
This is an informal greeting used in some German-speaking regions, particularly in Bavaria.
Introducing yourself in German
Here are some useful words and expressions you can use when introducing yourself in German:
- Ich heiße… – My name is…
- Ich komme aus… – I come from…
- Ich bin… – I am…
- Ich arbeite als… – I work as a…
- Ich bin hier, um… – I’m here to…
- Meine Hobbys sind… – My hobbies are…
- Ich spiele gerne… – I like to play…
- Ich lerne Deutsch, weil… – I’m learning German because…
- Ich bin Student/Schüler… – I’m a student…
- Ich bin sehr interessiert an… – I’m very interested in…
It’s also a good idea to remember some basic German phrases and expressions, such as “Guten Tag” (Good day), and “Wie geht es Ihnen/dir?” (How are you?), and “Es freut mich, Sie/dich kennenzulernen” (Nice to meet you). Using these phrases can help you establish a positive connection with the person you’re introducing yourself to.
How to introduce yourself in German?
Here’s an example of how you could introduce yourself in German:
- “Guten Tag, mein Name ist Sarah. Ich komme aus den USA und arbeite als Lehrerin. Ich bin hier, um ein paar Freunde zu treffen. Und Sie, wie heißen Sie?”
Translation:
- “Good day, my name is Sarah. I’m from the USA and I work as a teacher. I’m here to meet some friends. And you, what’s your name?”
The most common words in German
Here is a list of common German expressions and nouns that might be useful for having a basic conversation:
- Hallo! – Hello!
- Guten Morgen! – Good morning!
- Guten Abend! – Good evening!
- Wie geht es dir? – How are you?
- Mir geht es gut, danke. – I’m fine, thanks.
- Und dir? – And you?
- Ich heiße… – My name is…
- Ich komme aus… – I come from…
- Ich bin… – I am…
- Ich arbeite als… – I work as a…
- Ich studiere… – I study…
- Ich mag… – I like…
- Ich hasse… – I hate…
- Ich bin… Jahre alt. – I am… years old.
- Ich spiele gerne… – I like to play…
- Ich mag Musik – I like music
- Ich mag Filme – I like movies
- Ich mag Reisen – I like traveling
- Ich lerne Deutsch, weil… – I’m learning German because…
- Ich verstehe nicht. – I don’t understand.
- Kannst du das wiederholen? – Can you repeat that?
- Kannst du langsamer sprechen? – Can you speak slower?
- Bitte – Please
- Danke – Thank you
- Entschuldigung – Excuse me
- Ja – Yes
- Nein – No
- Vielleicht – Maybe
- Wie bitte? – I’m sorry.
- Wo ist… – Where is…
Here is a list of the most common German verbs:
- sein – to be
- haben – to have
- werden – to become
- können – can, to be able to
- möchten – to want
- sollen – should, ought to
- müssen – must have to
- dürfen – may be allowed to
- wollen – to want
- kommen – to come
- gehen – to go
- machen – to do, make
- sehen – to see
- hören – to hear
- sprechen – to speak
- denken – to think
- finden – to find
- geben – to give
- nehmen – to take
- lesen – to read
- schreiben – to write
- lernen – to learn
- arbeiten – to work
- leben – to live
- spielen – to play
- trinken – to drink
- essen – to eat
- fahren – to drive, go by car
- lieben – to love
- kennen – to know, to be familiar with
Common German idioms
Here are some common German idioms that you may find useful in your German language-learning journey:
- “Das ist mir Wurst” – This is all the same to me
- “Einen Stein im Brett haben” – To have influence
- “Eine Kuh von einer Glock sehen” – To be able to tell the difference
- “Das ist ein alter Hut” – That’s old news
- “Eine handbreit Wasser unter dem Kiel haben” – To be in a difficult situation
- “Eine Ampel umdrehen” – To change one’s mind
- “Über den Tellerrand hinaus schauen” – To think outside the box
- “Ein Hansdampf in allen Gassen” – A Jack-of-all-trades
- “Ein glatter Fuffi” – A no-brainer
- “Eine Frage des Geschmacks sein” – To be a matter of taste
Where to learn German vocabulary?
If you want to learn more about German vocabulary, we recommend checking out all of our lessons.
We also recommend our blog posts:
- German phrases
- German idioms
- Greetings
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