Basics to get started in German
Basics to get started in german
Beginning a new language is always a challenge. Where should I start? What is the first thing I should learn? In this post, I will guide you through the basics of german and the first thing you should learn.
Toolbox
Language is a "tool" that should help us to accomplish daily tasks. Most of you are not trying to become poets or linguists, but instead just want to "use" german like any other tool or skill.
This is the first lesson: Use german to learn german.
Memorize and push yourself to use these questions and sentences as much as possible when interacting with a german speaker. Just think about it...What question will you use more often? "How old are you?" or "How do you say '...'?"
| Was bedeutet das? | What does that mean? |
| Was heißt das? | What is that called? |
| Was bedeutet/heißt "..."? | What does ... mean? / What is ... called? |
| Wie spricht man das aus? | How do you pronounce that? |
| Wie spricht man "..." aus? | How do you pronounce ...? |
| "Wie sagt man ""...""" | How do you say ...? |
| Ich verstehe ... nicht | I don't understand ... |
| Ich verstehe dieses Wort nicht | I don't understand this/that word |
| Ich verstehe das Wort nicht | I don't understand the word |
| Kannst du das wiederholen? | Can you repeat that? |
| Kannst du das nochmal sagen? | Can you say that again? |
Introduction Phrases
| Wie alt bist du? | How old are you? |
| Wie heißt du? | How are you called? |
| Was ist dein Name? | What is your name? |
| Woher kommst du? | Where do you come from? |
| Wo wohnst du? | Where do you live? |
| Hast du Geschwister? | Do you have siblings? |
| Wie viele Geschwister hast du? | How many siblings do you have? |
| Was studierst du? | What do you study? |
| Studierst du? | Do you study? |
| Arbeitest du? | Do you work? |
| Was machen deine Eltern? | What do your parents do? |
| Was sind deine Interessen? | What are your interests? |
| Was sind deine Hobbies? | What are your hobbies? |
| Welche Sprachen sprichst du? | Which languages do you speak? |
| Wie viele Sprachen sprichst du? | How many languages to you speak? |
| Warum bist du in Deutschland? | Why are you in Germany? |
| Was machst du in Deutschland? | What are you doing in Germany? |
| Magst du es in Deutschland? | Do you like it in Germany? |
| Was gefällt dir an Deutschland? | What do you like about Germany? |
| Was gefällt dir nicht an Deutschland? | What do you not like about Germany? |
| Wie lange bist du schon in Deutschland? | Why do you want to go to Germany? |
| Warum willst du nach Deutschland gehen? | How long are you already in Germany? |
| Warum lernst du Deutsch? | Why are you learning german? |
| Warum willst du Deutsch lernen? | Why do you want to learn german? |
Question Words
| Was? | What? |
| Wie? | How? |
| Wer? | Who? |
| Wo? | Where? |
| Woher? | Where from? |
| Wohin? | Where to? |
| Wann? | Why? Because |
| Warum? Weil... | Why? Because ... |
| Wie viel(e)? | How many? How much? |
| Welche? | Which? |
| Wie oft? | How often? |
| Wem? | To whom? |
| Mit wem? | With whom? |
| Worüber? | About what? |
Conjugating Verbs
| ich | -e | wohne |
| du | -st | wohnst |
| er / sie / es | -t | wohnt |
| wir | -en | wohnen |
| ihr | -t | wohnt |
| sie | -en | wohnen |
Important Verbs
| sein | to be |
| haben | to have |
| bedeuten | to mean |
| heißen | to be called |
| sprechen | to talk |
| aussprechen | to pronounce |
| sagen | to say |
| verstehen | to understand |
| können | to can / to be able to do something |
| machen | to do / to make |
| mögen | to like |
| gehen | to go / to walk |
| fahren | to go / to drive |
Conversation Control
| Entschuldigung / Sorry | Excuse me / Sorry |
| Warte mal... / Ein moment bitte... | Wait a moment... / One moment please... |
| Das war zu schnell... | That was too fast... |
| Du redest zu schnell... | You talk too fast... |
| Du redest sehr schnell... | You talk very fast... |
| Kannst du ein bisschen langsamer reden? | Can you talk a bit slower? |
| Das war zu kompliziert | That was too complicated |
| Das ist interessant | That is interesting |
Resources
Conjugation of regular verbs: Sagen, Machen, Hören https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9h8p08qziG0&list=PLk1fjOl39-50WX8xiXwIBUcbdtMjlaZSj
Introduce yourself in German https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yaelm87PTvg&list=PLk1fjOl39-50WX8xiXwIBUcbdtMjlaZSj&index=2
Introduce yourself in German Part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r94aqLUO0wo&list=PLk1fjOl39-50WX8xiXwIBUcbdtMjlaZSj&index=3
Easy German Basic Phrases https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MiTl52EKd8&list=PLk1fjOl39-50WX8xiXwIBUcbdtMjlaZSj&index=4
20 Sentences with the Verb "gehen" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KnEdS8jYW8&list=PLk1fjOl39-50WX8xiXwIBUcbdtMjlaZSj&index=6
