German Language Beginners Guide

This guide was written for German beginners that don’t know where to start learning the German language. Take the time to learn with this German language guide and let these points soak in, then build on them as you continue your German studies.

Good luck, and have fun learning German.

Why Learn the German Language?

The German language is known by an estimated 140 Million across Europe and around the world.

German is tied with French as the most learned second language in the European Union.

The importance of German as playing a crucial role for centuries in Europe and on the world stage.

German Language Beginners Outline

German Dialect Map

German Dialets Map

Within any language or language group, there may be significant changes in speech, vocabulary, and pronunciation. The term used to describe these changes is called a dialect.

Some words or phrases that exist in one dialect may exist or be absent from different German dialects. A Few German Dialects exist today because of various German dialects merging together through German history. German Dialects

Low German

Frisian German

Middle German

Frankish German

Alemannic German

Bavarian-Austrian German

Different German dialects of the German language are spoken in many different nations and regions around the world, most commonly throughout Europe.

German Language Alphabet

Learning to read the German Alphabet should be the first stop for German beginners.

The German Alphabet has four more letters than the English Alphabet and different pronunciation too.

The German alphabet is part of Germanic language that’s origins trace back to early 700s. German contains the twenty-six letters of the English alphabet and adds the extra letters ä, ö, ü and ß. All German letter have upper and lowercase version except for ß. The letter ß will never be at the start of a word.

German is sometime viewed by non-native German speakers as a harsh sounding language. The German language is a more consistent phonetically language than English.

Learn German Alphabet Pronunciation

Some German Letters are pronounce way different then their English counterparts. For example, the German W sounds like English V, and German V sounds like the English F. 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. Learn German Alphabet letters g, ch, and r are pronounce mostly in the back of the throat. The pronunciation of some of these German letters does not have an English counterpart (Like “ü” for example”).

German Alphabet Table

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German Number System

German numbers are easy to understand because they are written exactly like English Numbers but are pronounced differently. Understanding how to write German numbers should take very little time and effort to learn.

It’s actually pretty straightforward when it comes to learning how to use the German number system. Pronouncing German numbers on the other hands get a little bit tricky. German numbers 1 to 10 should be your primary focus when you begin. German numbers after gain a suffix added to the base number. To illustrate what I mean, here are German numbers 1 to 100.

German Numbers 1 to 100 Table

German Numbers 1 to 100

German Vocabulary for Numbers Zero Null One ein Two zwei Three drei Four vier Five fünf Six sechs Seven sieben Eight acht Nine neun Ten zehn

German Numbers Table

German Numbers beginning at ten through nineteen gain the suffix “zehn” added to the base number. German numbers from 13-19 work like this. However, the number twenty adds und- to the mix. So it goes base number + und + the appropriate suffix. Example of how to write the pronunciation of German numbers below.

Pronunciation of German Numbers

Understanding how to write German numbers is really that simple to learn. Only takes an hour or two to fully memorizes the German number system.

German numbers are just alike English numbers except for different pronunciation

German Vocabulary and Phrases

Logical next step for German beginners after learning the German Alphabet would be to start developing your German vocabulary with German words and phrases.

Learning German grammar rules can be considered the cornerstone of the language and will take some time to learn but creates a sturdy foundation to help you completely learn German in no time.

German Grammar

The German grammar rules you must follow and understand to properly speak the German language.

German Grammer Rules:

German sentence structure follows a Subject-Verb-Object pattern.

German Nouns can be either masculine, feminine, and neuter.

German Nouns and Pronouns are always capitalized.

German Verbs have different endings to the words depending on which tense of the word is used.

German Adjectives vary depending on which gender and case of the noun they are describing.

More German Grammar Rules

The fun part of learning any language.. learning Grammar!

German Grammar Rules: Sentence Structure

German Sentence structure as 4 distinct cases that can potentially follow.

Nominative case

Identifies the subject (who or what is doing the action).

Identifies the subject (who or what is doing the action). Accusative case

Identifies the direct object (whom or what the subject “verbs”).

Identifies the direct object (whom or what the subject “verbs”). Genitive case

Indicates that this noun belongs to someone or something.

Indicates that this noun belongs to someone or something. Dative case

identifies the indirect object (the receiver of the object or an action.)

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German Grammar Rules: Nouns and Pronouns

German Masculine Feminine Examples

• German Nouns can be either masculine, feminine, and neuter. German Nouns and Pronouns are always capitalizes.

• Masculine and Feminine don’t always apply to how “manly” or how “female” the subject is.

• Masculine nouns usually include male people and animals, the seasons, and months of the year.

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German Grammar Rules: Verbs

• German Verbs have different endings to the words depending on which tense of the word is used.

Examples of German Verbs

German Grammar Rules: Adjectives

• German Adjectives vary depending on which gender and case of the noun they are describing.

German Adjective Example

Learn Common German Phrases

Help you Around German Countries

If you ever play to visit a country where the primary spoken language is German, then knowing and being able to use common German phrases. Even though English is gradually becoming the most used language in international business in some situations. Speaking the language of the locals and talking to the people. It shows respect and an effort to their culture by just knowing a few common German phrases.

In any language, you should be able to greet people and introduce yourself or simply ask for help or directions. German greeting and phrases to start or end conversations. Being able to introduce yourself in German. Being able to say your “Sorry” or ask politely for someone to repeat themselves. Common German words and phrases like saying “yes’ and “no”

Most of the sentences below can be used for travel and daily life conversations. So they might come handy if you memorize and practice then. The following is a list of common German phrases that you may need to know in the German language:

Common German phases

German Compliments Flirting Phases

German Compliments/Flirting You're so handsome! Du bist so schön! You're very beautiful. Du bist sehr schön. I love your smile. Ich liebe dein Lächeln. You have beautiful eyes. Du hast schöne Augen.

Learn Common German Words

I hope you find this page of common German phrases useful in your travels. Memorizes them and try to incorporate them into your daily conversation

German Vocabulary Words for Weather Rain Regen Snow Schnee Fog Nebel Cloudy bewölkt Sunshine Sonnenschein Cold Kälte Warm warm Windy windig

German words for Weather

German Vocabular Words for Vehieles Car Auto Truck LKW Plane Flugzeug Boat Boot Van Lieferwagen

German Words for Vehicles

German Vocabulary for Tmes/Day Today heute Tomorrow morgen Vesterday gestern Tonight heute Abend Morning Morgen Afternoon Nachmittag

German Words for Times & Day

German Vocabulary for Seasons/Year Spring Frühjahr Summer Sommer Autumn Herbst Winter Winter

German words for Seasons Year

German Vocabulary for Professions Doctor Arzt Lawyer Anwalt Dentist Zahnarzt Writer Schriftsteller Banker Banker Secretary Sekretär Engineer Ingenieur Farmer Bauer Carpenter Zimmermann Architect Architekt Postman Briefträger Pilot Pilot Teacher Lehrer Cook kochen Mechanic Mechaniker Bartender Barmann

German words for Professions

German Vocabulary for Months/Year January Januar February Februar March März April April May Mai June Juni July Juli August August September September October Oktober November November December Dezember

German words for Months Years

German Vocabulary for Meal times/Food Breakfast Frühstück Lunch Mittagessen binner Abendessen Coffee Kaffee Fish Fisch Milk Milch Onion Zwiebel 5alad Salat Beverage Getränk Tea Tee Cake Kuchen Sausage Wurst Cheese Käse

German words for Meal times Food

German Vocabulary Words for Anatomy Head Kopf Heart Herz Brain Gehirn Lungs Lunge Hands Hände Legs Legs Arms Waffen Chest Brust Fingers Fingers Toes Toes Eyes Blick

German words for Anatomy

German Vocabulary for Animals Dog Hund Cat Katze Fish Fisch Bird Vogel Pig Schwein Cow Kuh Monkey Affe Deer Hirsch

German words for Animals

German Vocabulary for Colors Black schwarz White weiß Yellow gelb Orange orange Blue blau Brown braun Green grün Purple lila Violet violett Red rot Gray grau

German words for Colors

German Vocabulary Nords for Continents Aftica Afrika Antarctica Antarktika Asia Asien Australia Australien Eurasia Eurasien Europe Europa North America Nordamerika South America Südamerika

German words for Continents

German Vocabulary Nords for Countries China China France Frankreich Italy Italien North Korea Nordkorea South Korea Südkorea USA Vereinigte Staaten Britain Großbritannien Russia Russland Japan Japan Canada Kanada Iraq Irak Egypt Ägypten Germany Deutschland India Indien Spain Spanien Mexico Mexiko

German Words for Countries

German Vocabulary for Emotions/Feelings Love lieben Worried besorgt Angry wütend sad traurig Embarassed peinlich Afraid ängstlich Kind Art Happy glücklich Impolite unhöflich Painful empfindlich Bored gelangweilt Tired müde Sensitive schmerzhaft Beautiful schön Delighted erfreut Amazed erstaunt Hate hassen

German words for Emotions Feelings

German Vocabulary for Family Members Family Familie Father Vater Mother Mutter Grandfather Großvater Grandmother Großmutter Grandson Enkel Granddaughter Enkelin Grandparents Großeltern Grandchildren Enkelkinder Brother Bruder Sister Schwester Son Sohn Daughter Tochter Uncle Onkel Aunt Tante Nephew Neffe Niece Nichte

German words for Family Members

GermanVocabularyWords for Homes/Rooms Home Zuhause House Haus Apartment Wohnung Dining Room Dining Room Bedroom Schlafzimmer Bathroom Bad Basement Keller Living Room Wohnzimmer Attic Dachboden Kitchen Küche

German words for Homes & Rooms

German Vocabulary for Days/ Week Sunday Sonntag Monday Montag Tuesday Dienstag Wednesday Mittwoch Thursday Donnerstag Friday Freitag Saturday Samstag

German words Days Week

Consider Using an Online German Language Course

Try Language Software

If you are really serious about learning German and want to maximize your time then you should consider using a German language course to further aid you in your quest to learn German. There are several great programs out there that deliver a great language learning experience. The advantages of a language learning program are the organization and having a next step already lined up.

Most break down the lessons into 30-minute intervals that can fit into any type of schedule. Flexible to retry a lesson to make sure you understand what you are learning and give you confidence in succeeding.

Examples of great Online German language programs can be found below.

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