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Vocabulary for food in German Posted by on Aug 24, 2015 in Food, Grammar, Language

I’ve composed a list to help you understand what you’re buying in der Supermarkt (the supermarket). I’ve listed basic everyday food below and I’ve also added the plural to each one. The general rule when saying an object is plural in the nominative and accusative cases is that the gender changes to “die”: for example der Apfel is just one apple, but many apples would be die Äpfel.

Obst

Fruit

die Banane(n)                                           Banana(s)

der (die) (Ä)Apfel                                     Apple(s)

die Feige(n)                                               Fig(s)

die Traube(n)                                           Grape(s)

die Birne(n)                                              Pear(s)

die Ananas                                               Pineapple(s)

die Wassermelone(n)                              Watermelon(s)

die Orange(n)                                            Orange(s)

Gemuse

Vegetables

die Karotte(n)                                                   Carrot(s)

die Kartoffel(n)                                                 Potato(es)

die Zucchini(s)                                                  Courgette(s) – for all the American readers it would of course be zucchini, an easy one to remember!

die Paprika(s)                                                    Pepper(s) (as in bell pepper) – put the colour before just as you would do in English. For example die rote (red) Paprika, die gelbe (yellow) Paprika, die grüne (green) Paprika.

der Mais                                                              Sweetcorn (there is no plural for this, and therefore remains der”)

der (die) Maiskolben                                     Corn on the cob(s) – note that the “n” stays at the end when it’s singular too!

die Zwiebel(n)                                                  Onion(s)

der (die) Knoblauch(zehen)                           Garlic(cloves)

die Bohne(n)                                                     Bean(s)

die Erbse(n)                                                       Pea(s)

 

Fleisch

Meat

Here a lot of the words have no plural variation. For example in English you would say “the beef” whether it was singular or plural, which is the same in German in this case.

 

das Rindfleisch                                                 Beef

das Schweinefleisch                                          Pork

der Speck                                                            Bacon

das (die) Hähnchen                                          Chicken(s)

 

Milchprodukte

dairy

der (die) Käse                                                Cheese

die Milch                                                          Milk

der (die) Joghurt(s)                                      Yoghurt(s)

die Butter                                                        Butter

der Quark                                                       Quark

 

alles Andere

Everything else

der (die) Chip(s)                                           Crisp(s) – or chips to the American readers!

die Pommes                                                        Chips/Fries

der Reis                                                               Rice

die Nudel(n)                                                      Pasta – although a lot of German’s now say pasta as well.

der (die) Kamillen/Pfefferminz/Früchttee(s)         Chamomile/peppermint/fruit tea(s)

der Kaffee                                                          Coffee

der Thunfisch                                                    Tuna

die Sardelle(n)                                                 Anchovy(ies)

der (die) Lachs(e)                                            Salmon

das (die) Öl(e)                                                  Oil

das Mehl                                                          Flour

der Honig                                                         Honey

die Nu(ü)ss(e)                                                  Nut(s)

das (die) Brot(e)                                              Bread

 

If you want to know any other translations of food leave a comment below and I’ll be happy to answer it!

 

Tschüss,

Larissa

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About the Author: Larissa

Hello I'm Larissa. I live in Germany and I am half German and half English. I love sharing my passion for Germany with you through my posts! Apart from writing posts I teach fitness classes in Munich.


Comments:

  1. Joseph T. Madawela:

    Thanks this is excellent. I am compilind a list of german words so I can become proficient in German. This helps a lot.

    • Larissa:

      @Joseph T. Madawela Thanks Joseph for the comment! I’m glad I helped, it’s always good to have a whole list of vocabulary 🙂

      Larissa

      • Chairy azzadin:

        @Larissa Hi larissa im Azza i have a plan to study in german and i need “brieffreund” to get newest information about study in german can you be my brieffreund?
        Please reply to me in my email
        Im begging….

  2. Allan Mahnke:

    Thanks! This allows me to ask a question that came up again recently. I grew up with grapes as Trauben, as you have it. But recently I am seeing Weintrauben used more frequently. (In the US most of my direct experience of German comes written or on internet videos.) I can’t detect from context a difference. Is there one?

    Thanks!!
    Allan

    • Larissa:

      @Allan Mahnke Hi Allan, you know I was thinking the same thing as I wrote this post! Technically all grapes are Weintrauben, as Weintrauben are simply grapes that come from a Weinrebe (grapevine). However there are different types of grapes that are specially grown, such as Tafeltrauben are grown to be eaten raw (these would be seedless and sweet) and another type which are also called Weintrauben are grown to make wine (wein = wine)! So in a way there isn’t really a difference between Weintrauben and Trauben… unless you were talking about making wine. A bit confusing, but I hope that answered your question?!

      Larissa 🙂

  3. Grant F:

    Hallo and thank you for the post! One question on Misc foods: what is der Quark?

    • Larissa:

      @Grant F Hi Grant, Quark is a soft cheese that’s a bit like Greek yoghurt but naturally has no fat in it 🙂

      Larissa

  4. Allan Mahnke:

    You did answer it. It is as I suspected. Many thanks!

    We have been delighted to find that our market here in the US is carrying Quark. Perhaps it will soon reach other cities as well.

  5. Milton:

    Hi, very useful your blog, thanks
    By any chance do you have an audio with the pronunciation? It would be a great help also
    Cheers
    Milton

  6. Junior:

    Thank you for giving me some words to learn about I’m learning German but I’m at a beginner’s stage.Thank u

  7. Pece N.:

    Hello Larissa.

    In one week I need to have an interview in German for a seasonal job in Germany. Besides words for foods in German, do you have other basic useful words and phrases in German from where I can learn?

    Thanks in advance.

    Pece N.

  8. Diana:

    I am trying to make a dish I grew up with in Germany Gemuse.. the vegetable used is wirschein what is this in English?

    Thank you,
    Diana

  9. Lukas:

    It’s great. I can German words easily

  10. Hailey:

    Can someone help me with these words in german including articles? Sardine, peanut butter, ants (plural of ant with article please), ladybugs (plural of Lady bug with article), grasshoppers ( plural of grasshopper with article). Please and thanks.