Archive for January, 2018
2 Words You Didn’t Know Were German Posted by Constanze on Jan 31, 2018
Guten Tag! When you think of English words that are German in origin, a few will spring to mind immediately: Angst, Poltergeist, and Doppelgänger, amongst others. Yet there are some English words that you need to look a little closer at to discover that they are, in fact, German! Today I’ve got two English words…
An Extraordinary Tradition – Das Bloch Posted by Sten on Jan 26, 2018
Yesterday, a new film premiered. The documentary shows a more than 200 years old tradition in the Appenzellerland, a region in Switzerland. It is quite useless – a Bloch (Swiss word for “log”, a tree trunk) is hauled from one place through the villages, and finally back to the starting place. So it did not really go…
German Onomatopoeia Posted by Constanze on Jan 24, 2018
Today we’re going to look at onomatopoeia in the German language! The dictionary defines onomatopoeia as ‘the formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named (e.g. cuckoo, sizzle ).’ You might already be familiar with some of these words in English: Splash, boom, and many animal noises including miaow. Just like…
Going to a Spa in Germany Posted by Larissa on Jan 23, 2018
Winter is the perfect season to have a spa weekend; there is nothing better on a cold day then to be in a sauna or hot tub. This post is so you know what to do if you ever find yourself in a spa in Germany! The general rules in Germany I’m not sure what…
Sayings + Expressions 15 – Die Sau! Posted by Sten on Jan 22, 2018
Sayings and expressions! It’s been quite some time, so let’s have some fun with two today – related to the Sau (sow). The Schwein (pig) and the Sau (sow) in particular have widespread meaning in the German language. So this post might get a follow up! Let’s start today – beginning with the expression! Check here for previous posts in this series…
Will You Get Lucky In 2018? Posted by Sten on Jan 18, 2018
It is 2018, a new year! That not only means setting new year’s resolutions and goals, but it also means wishing people a happy new year, and wishing each other luck. How? Find out. Frohes neues! 1. Ich/Wir wünsche(n) viel Glück und Erfolg im neuen Jahr! I/We wish good luck and success in the new year!…
Reflexive German Verbs Posted by Constanze on Jan 17, 2018
Guten Tag! Today we’re going to look at reflexive German verbs. If you’ve ever heard a German native say something like “I will shower me” in English instead of “I will take a shower”, for example, this post on reflexive verbs will hopefully explain why that is! What is a reflexive verb? A reflexive verb…