How do you say hello in German?

"Hallo" works everywhere, and "Guten Tag" (GOO-ten TAHK) is the polite daytime greeting. In southern Germany and Austria you'll also hear "Grüß Gott".

Is German hard to learn for English speakers?

German shares a lot of vocabulary with English, so the words come quickly; the cases and word order take longer. Practising whole sentences instead of isolated words is the fastest way past that.

How many German words do I need to hold a conversation?

Around 40 well-chosen words — 10 pronouns, 10 verbs, 10 adjectives and 10 nouns — already combine into thousands of everyday sentences. LingoMatrix builds that set around your own situation.

Does the German translation come with audio?

Yes. Every translation shows a phonetic respelling and has a read-aloud button so you can hear the German before you say it.

English → German

English to German translation, with audio

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Common German phrases

Hello, how are you?
Hallo, wie geht's?
HA-lo, vee GAYTS
I'd like a coffee, please.
Ich hätte gern einen Kaffee, bitte.
ikh HET-uh gairn EYE-nen KA-fay, BIT-uh
Where is the train station?
Wo ist der Bahnhof?
vo ist dair BAHN-hofe
I don't understand.
Ich verstehe nicht.
ikh fair-SHTAY-uh nikht
How much does it cost?
Wie viel kostet das?
vee FEEL KOS-tet dass

Greetings and polite German

Good morning.
Guten Morgen.
GOO-ten MOR-gen
Please.
Bitte.
BIT-uh
Thank you very much.
Vielen Dank.
FEE-len DANK
Excuse me, sorry.
Entschuldigung.
ent-SHOOL-di-goong
See you later.
Bis später.
biss SHPAY-ter

Ordering food and drink in German

A table for two, please.
Einen Tisch für zwei, bitte.
EYE-nen TISH foor tsvai, BIT-uh
The menu, please.
Die Speisekarte, bitte.
dee SHPY-zuh-kar-tuh, BIT-uh
I'll have a beer.
Ich nehme ein Bier.
ikh NAY-muh ine BEER
Is this vegetarian?
Ist das vegetarisch?
ist das veh-geh-TAH-rish
The bill, please.
Die Rechnung, bitte.
dee REKH-noong, BIT-uh

Getting around in German

Where is the toilet?
Wo ist die Toilette?
vo ist dee toy-LET-uh
Does this train go to Berlin?
Fährt dieser Zug nach Berlin?
fairt DEE-zer tsook nakh bair-LEEN
Can you help me?
Können Sie mir helfen?
KUR-nen zee meer HEL-fen
I'm looking for the hotel.
Ich suche das Hotel.
ikh ZOO-khuh dass ho-TEL
Do you speak English?
Sprechen Sie Englisch?
SHPREKH-en zee ENG-lish

English to German: common questions

How do you say hello in German?: "Hallo" works everywhere, and "Guten Tag" (GOO-ten TAHK) is the polite daytime greeting. In southern Germany and Austria you'll also hear "Grüß Gott".
Is German hard to learn for English speakers?: German shares a lot of vocabulary with English, so the words come quickly; the cases and word order take longer. Practising whole sentences instead of isolated words is the fastest way past that.
How many German words do I need to hold a conversation?: Around 40 well-chosen words — 10 pronouns, 10 verbs, 10 adjectives and 10 nouns — already combine into thousands of everyday sentences. LingoMatrix builds that set around your own situation.
Does the German translation come with audio?: Yes. Every translation shows a phonetic respelling and has a read-aloud button so you can hear the German before you say it.

Numbers 1–10 in German

1 eins
2 zwei
3 drei
4 vier
5 fünf
6 sechs
7 sieben
8 acht
9 neun
10 zehn

More counting help: numbers in other languages.

Go beyond translation

Translating is a great start, but you remember words you use. The LingoMatrix sentence builder gives you 10 pronouns, 10 verbs, 10 adjectives and 10 nouns in German chosen for your own situation — 10,000 sentence combinations you can shuffle, read and hear.

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