Tag Archives: Language
How The Umlaut Changes German Words Posted by Constanze on Apr 14, 2021
Guten Tag! Today we’re looking at the Umlaut – specifically, German words whose meanings change depending on whether an Umlaut is present in the word, or not! Hopefully this will help you to recognise and avoid some common errors when it comes to using the Umlaut. Firstly, what is the Umlaut? If you’re not familiar…
Why Did Germany Change This Street Name? Posted by Constanze on Apr 12, 2021
Guten Tag! The subject of today’s post is a good example of how language evolves over time, and how powerful an effect it can have. In summer 2020, Germany decided to change a street name in Berlin. In this post we’ll look at why that is, and what they changed it to! Why Did Germany…
German Suffixes And Word Genders Posted by Constanze on Mar 31, 2021
Guten Tag! Today we’re revisiting the subject of German word genders (articles), and how you can recognise if German words are masculine (der), feminine (die) or neuter (das), by looking at their suffixes. Learning the genders of every single German noun is no small task – especially when there is no hard and fast rule…
Zuhause, zu Hause, Haus… What’s The Difference? Posted by Constanze on Feb 24, 2021
Guten Tag! Recently we have been talking on here about the home: das Zuhause. Or is it zuhause? Or zu Hause? Or even… das Haus? Heimat? Daheim?? What’s the difference?? If this topic confuses you, you’re not alone! In this post I will try to clear up the confusion surrounding all these different ways of…
Zoom Meetings In German Posted by Constanze on Feb 3, 2021
Guten Tag! I hope you are all well, and have had a great start to 2021. We are nearing March, which will, unbelievably, mark one year since the start of the Coronavirus Pandemie (pandemic) lockdown here in the UK. We have discussed the more serious matters regarding the pandemic throughout the year on this blog…
More German ‘Non-Words’ of 2020 Posted by Constanze on Jan 27, 2021
Guten Tag! Today’s post is a follow-up to the Unwort des Jahres 2020 – the German ‘non-word’ of the year 2020. To fall into the category of an ‘Unwort’, the word must do one or more of the following: violate the principles of human dignity; violate the principles of democracy; discriminate against social groups; or…
Vowels With Umlaut Next To Ordinary Vowels Posted by Constanze on Jan 20, 2021
Guten Tag! Today we’re going to talk about the Umlaut (ä ö ü) in German. More specifically, we are going to talk about how vowels with an Umlaut sound and look next to ordinary vowels. Read on to find out more! What is an Umlaut? First off, if you’re not yet familiar with the German…