Common German Phrases for Beginners (50 Everyday Expressions)
🇩🇪 German · 50 cards · A1 · by Annika Vogel
This is the German I hear at the bakery counter and on the U-Bahn, not chapter one of a textbook. Fifty blocks you can say exactly as they are: greetings for each part of the day, the polite formulas for shops and restaurants, the questions you need when you have lost the thread of a conversation, and the little fillers (genau, alles klar, keine Ahnung) that make you sound like a person instead of a phrasebook.
Two things trip everyone up: du versus Sie — I mark which form each phrase belongs to — and bitte, which covers "please", "you're welcome" and "here you go". Learn each phrase whole; take the grammar apart later.
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How to use this deck
Flip through the cards, then switch to Quiz. Tap the play button on any row to hear it. The full table below is there to read, print or copy into your own flashcard app.
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All 50 cards
| # | German | English | Example | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hallo Works at any time of day, with almost anyone. Neutral to informal. | hello, hi | Hallo, schön dich zu sehen! Hi, good to see you! | |
| 2 | Moin Northern Germany (Hamburg, Bremen, Schleswig-Holstein). Used all day long, also doubled: Moin, moin! | hi, hello | Moin, alles gut bei dir? Hi, everything good with you? | |
| 3 | Guten Morgen Until about 10 or 11 a.m. Short informal version: Morgen! | good morning | Guten Morgen, hast du gut geschlafen? Good morning, did you sleep well? | |
| 4 | Guten Tag Polite and slightly formal; typical in offices and shops from late morning until early evening. | good day, hello | Guten Tag, ich habe einen Termin. Hello, I have an appointment. | |
| 5 | Guten Abend From roughly 6 p.m. onwards, when arriving somewhere. | good evening | Guten Abend, ist hier noch frei? Good evening, is this seat still free? | |
| 6 | Gute Nacht Only when someone is off to bed or when parting very late – not as a normal goodbye in the early evening. | good night | Gute Nacht, bis morgen früh! Good night, see you tomorrow morning! | |
| 7 | Tschüss The standard everyday goodbye, fine with shop staff too. | bye | Tschüss, wir telefonieren später! Bye, we'll talk on the phone later! | |
| 8 | Auf Wiedersehen Formal. On the phone Germans say Auf Wiederhören instead. | goodbye | Auf Wiedersehen und danke für alles! Goodbye and thank you for everything! | |
| 9 | Bis bald Same family: bis später (later today), bis morgen (tomorrow), bis dann. | see you soon | War schön, bis bald! That was nice, see you soon! | |
| 10 | Mach's gut Informal, to one person. To a group: Macht's gut! | take care | Ich fahre jetzt, mach's gut! I'm off now, take care! | |
| 11 | Schönen Tag noch Said when parting; you hear it constantly at tills and counters. Reply: Danke, gleichfalls! | have a nice day | Hier ist Ihr Kaffee, schönen Tag noch! Here's your coffee, have a nice day! | |
| 12 | Wie geht's? Informal, short for Wie geht es dir? Formal version: Wie geht es Ihnen? | how are you? | Hey, wie geht's? Hey, how are you? | |
| 13 | Mir geht's gut Literally "to me it goes well" – the person stands in the dative: mir. | I'm fine, I'm doing well | Danke, mir geht's gut. Thanks, I'm fine. | |
| 14 | Und dir? Informal dative form, so never und du. Formal: Und Ihnen? | and you? | Alles gut bei mir. Und dir? Everything's fine with me. And you? | |
| 15 | Danke With offers, be explicit: Ja, bitte to accept, Nein, danke to decline – Danke on its own is often understood as "no thanks". | thanks, thank you | Danke für deine Hilfe! Thanks for your help! | |
| 16 | Vielen Dank A step warmer than Danke, good in emails and with strangers. | many thanks, thank you very much | Vielen Dank für das Geschenk! Thank you very much for the present! | |
| 17 | Bitte Three jobs in one word: request, reply to Danke, and handing something over (often Bitte schön). | please; you're welcome; here you go | Kannst du bitte das Fenster zumachen? Can you close the window, please? | |
| 18 | Gern geschehen A bit warmer and more careful than Kein Problem. Short everyday version: Gerne! | you're welcome, my pleasure | Gern geschehen, ich hatte sowieso Zeit. You're welcome, I had time anyway. | |
| 19 | Entschuldigung Use it both to apologise and to get someone's attention. | sorry; excuse me | Entschuldigung, darf ich mal vorbei? Excuse me, may I get past? | |
| 20 | Es tut mir leid For real apologies and for sympathy; stronger than Entschuldigung. | I'm sorry | Es tut mir leid, ich habe es vergessen. I'm sorry, I forgot it. | |
| 21 | Kein Problem Informal; very common reply to a thank-you or a small apology. | no problem | Kein Problem, ich mache das gern. No problem, I'm happy to do it. | |
| 22 | Wie heißt du? Informal. Formal: Wie heißen Sie? | what's your name? | Wie heißt du denn? So what's your name? | |
| 23 | Ich heiße … Literally "I am called". Also possible: Mein Name ist … (more formal). | my name is … | Ich heiße Nina und wohne in Köln. My name is Nina and I live in Cologne. | |
| 24 | Freut mich Short for Es freut mich, dich/Sie kennenzulernen. | nice to meet you | Freut mich, ich habe schon viel von dir gehört! Nice to meet you, I've heard a lot about you already! | |
| 25 | Woher kommst du? Informal. Formal: Woher kommen Sie? | where are you from? | Du hast einen Akzent – woher kommst du? You have an accent – where are you from? | |
| 26 | Ich komme aus … Most countries take no article: aus Spanien, but aus der Türkei, aus den USA. | I'm from … | Ich komme aus Hamburg. I'm from Hamburg. | |
| 27 | Ich verstehe nicht Add das for one specific thing: Ich verstehe das nicht. | I don't understand | Langsamer bitte, ich verstehe nicht. Slower please, I don't understand. | |
| 28 | Wie bitte? The polite "what?". With a sharp tone it can sound indignant. | sorry? pardon? | Wie bitte? Ich habe dich nicht verstanden. Sorry? I didn't catch what you said. | |
| 29 | Können Sie das bitte wiederholen? Formal Sie. Informal: Kannst du das bitte wiederholen? | could you repeat that, please? | Können Sie das bitte wiederholen? Ganz langsam. Could you repeat that, please? Very slowly. | |
| 30 | Sprechen Sie Englisch? Formal. Informal: Sprichst du Englisch? Language names take no article. | do you speak English? | Entschuldigung, sprechen Sie Englisch? Excuse me, do you speak English? | |
| 31 | Ich spreche nur ein bisschen Deutsch Saying this usually makes people slow down and choose simpler words. | I only speak a little German | Ich spreche nur ein bisschen Deutsch, sorry. I only speak a little German, sorry. | |
| 32 | Was heißt das auf Deutsch? For a single word you can also ask: Wie sagt man "spoon" auf Deutsch? | what's that in German? | Und was heißt das auf Deutsch? And what's that in German? | |
| 33 | Ich weiß nicht From wissen; the ich-form is irregular (ich weiß, not ich weiße). | I don't know | Ich weiß nicht, ob der Laden offen ist. I don't know whether the shop is open. | |
| 34 | Keine Ahnung Informal and extremely frequent; a bit blunt towards strangers. | no idea | Keine Ahnung, frag mal im Büro. No idea, ask at the office. | |
| 35 | Alles klar As a question, Alles klar? means "you okay?" / "everything fine?" | got it, all right | Alles klar, dann treffen wir uns um acht. All right, then we'll meet at eight. | |
| 36 | Genau Used constantly to agree or simply to fill a pause. | exactly, right | Genau, so war das gemeint. Exactly, that's how it was meant. | |
| 37 | Moment, bitte Also Einen Moment, bitte, or the very casual Moment mal! | one moment, please | Moment, bitte, ich suche den Schlüssel. One moment, please, I'm looking for the key. | |
| 38 | Kannst du mir helfen? helfen takes the dative: mir, dir, ihm. Formal: Können Sie mir helfen? | can you help me? | Kannst du mir helfen? Der Koffer ist schwer. Can you help me? The suitcase is heavy. | |
| 39 | Wo ist die Toilette? In bars and among friends you also hear the casual Wo ist das Klo? | where is the toilet? | Sag mal, wo ist die Toilette? Tell me, where is the toilet? | |
| 40 | Wie komme ich zum Bahnhof? zum with masculine/neuter places, zur with feminine ones: zur Post, zur Uni. | how do I get to the station? | Entschuldigung, wie komme ich zum Bahnhof? Excuse me, how do I get to the station? | |
| 41 | Was kostet das? Wie viel kostet das? is just as normal in shops. | how much does that cost? | Was kostet das denn? So how much does that cost? | |
| 42 | Ich hätte gern … The standard polite way to order. Ich möchte … also works and sounds a touch more direct. | I'd like … | Ich hätte gern ein Stück Kuchen. I'd like a piece of cake. | |
| 43 | Einmal … bitte Standard at counters and Imbiss stands: einmal, zweimal, dreimal + the food. | one … please | Einmal Pommes, bitte! One portion of fries, please! | |
| 44 | Die Rechnung, bitte Equally common: Zahlen, bitte! Staff may ask Zusammen oder getrennt? (together or separately?) | the bill, please | Wir müssen los – die Rechnung, bitte! We have to go – the bill, please! | |
| 45 | Stimmt so Said while handing over the money, tip included. | keep the change | Stimmt so, danke! Keep the change, thanks! | |
| 46 | Guten Appetit Said just before eating; the usual reply is Danke, gleichfalls! | enjoy your meal | Guten Appetit! Das sieht lecker aus. Enjoy your meal! That looks tasty. | |
| 47 | Prost Clink glasses and look the other person in the eye. With wine also: Zum Wohl! | cheers | Prost, auf euch! Cheers, to you all! | |
| 48 | Gesundheit Said after someone sneezes; literally "health". | bless you | Gesundheit! Bist du erkältet? Bless you! Do you have a cold? | |
| 49 | Viel Glück For exams and interviews you also hear Viel Erfolg! (success rather than luck). | good luck | Viel Glück bei der Prüfung! Good luck with the exam! | |
| 50 | Ich muss los Informal and very common; los means "off, away". | I have to go | So, ich muss los, mein Zug fährt. Right, I have to go, my train's leaving. |
Annika Vogel
Native German · Speaks English, Dutch
Hamburg native. I spent years explaining German word order to exchange students and still enjoy it. My decks favour the words you hear on the U-Bahn over the ones in textbooks.
Published
Questions about this deck
- When do I say Hallo and when Guten Tag?
- Hallo works almost everywhere and with almost everyone – friends, neighbours, shop staff. Guten Tag is a notch more formal and is what you use in an office, at a doctor's practice or with older strangers, roughly from late morning until early evening. In northern Germany, Moin replaces both at any hour of the day.
- Does bitte really mean both "please" and "you're welcome"?
- Yes, and a third thing too. As a request it means "please" (Einen Kaffee, bitte). As a reply to Danke it means "you're welcome" – often expanded to Bitte schön or Bitte sehr. And when someone hands you something, Bitte means "here you go". Only the situation tells you which one is meant.
- How do I answer when someone asks Wie geht's?
- Keep it short: Danke, mir geht's gut. Und dir? Other standard answers are Ganz gut, Alles gut or Es geht (so-so). The question is taken a bit more literally than English "How are you?", so among friends an honest "not great" is completely normal – with strangers people still stay brief.
- Should I use du or Sie with these phrases?
- Use Sie (and the Sie forms: Wie heißen Sie? Können Sie mir helfen?) with strangers, officials, staff behind a counter and anyone clearly older. Use du with friends, family, children, fellow students and in most casual workplaces. If unsure, start with Sie – the other person will offer du if they want it.
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