{"id":12786,"date":"2021-03-24T23:00:01","date_gmt":"2021-03-24T23:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/?p=12786"},"modified":"2021-03-24T15:24:12","modified_gmt":"2021-03-24T15:24:12","slug":"german-words-relating-to-marriage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/german-words-relating-to-marriage\/","title":{"rendered":"German Words Relating To Marriage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Guten Tag! I recently had a request to explain words relating to marriage, such as die Ehe<\/em>, die Heirat<\/em>, and der Ehemann<\/em>. In fact, the German language has a handful of words on this subject that are easily muddled up, as their similarity of meaning can be confusing to learners. So in this post I will list those words, and explain their meanings as best I can.<\/p>\n

German Words Relating To Marriage<\/h2>\n
\"marriage\"

Photo by Alasdair Elmes<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

die Hochzeit<\/h3>\n

Hochzeit<\/strong> is the German word for \u2018wedding\u2019<\/strong>, referring to the actual wedding ceremony and the celebration that follows.<\/p>\n

“Hochzeit: der sch\u00f6nste Tag Ihres Lebens\u201d
\n\u201cWedding: The best day of your life\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

For more on the etymology behind this interesting word, which literally translates to \u2018high time\u2019, click through to this post.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"marriage\"

Photo by Jeremy Wong Weddings<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

die Heirat<\/h3>\n

Heirat<\/strong> is the German word for \u2018marriage\u2019,<\/strong> referring to the act of getting married, <\/strong>or the marriage ceremony<\/strong> itself.\u00a0However, Heirat is sometimes translated as \u2018wedding\u2019, too, which is why it can be confusing \u2013 after all, you do get married<\/em> at a wedding<\/em>! But it makes much more sense to talk about \u2018meine Hochzeit\u2019 when talking about your wedding, as opposed to \u2018meine Heirat\u2019. Heirat also has a verb form, heiraten, which refers to the act of marrying:<\/p>\n

heiraten \u2013 to marry<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cSoll ich ihn heiraten?\u201d
\n\u201cShould I marry him?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIch habe ihn geheiratet!\u201d
\n\u201cI married him!\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I hope this distinction makes sense!<\/p>\n

\"marriage\"

Photo by Jo Jo<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

die Ehe<\/h3>\n

Ehe<\/strong> is also the German word for \u2018marriage\u2019<\/strong>, but this one refers more to married life<\/strong> once the Hochzeit is over. In other words, you get married to start die Ehe:<\/em>\u00a0a marriage.<\/p>\n

\"marriage\"

Photo by Beatriz P\u00e9rez Moya<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

der Ehemann \/ die Ehefrau \/ das Ehepaar<\/h3>\n

These words translate to husband<\/strong> (Ehemann), wife<\/strong> (Ehefrau), and married couple<\/strong> (Ehepaar). Normally, however, you hear people use the shortened, less formal terms:<\/p>\n

Mein Ehemann \u2013 Mein Mann<\/strong> (\u2018my husband\u2019)
\nMeine Ehefrau \u2013 Meine Frau<\/strong> (\u2018my wife\u2019)
\nDas Ehepaar \u2013 Das Paar<\/strong> (\u2018the couple\u2019)<\/p>\n

The shortened terms can be confusing as they have other meanings; Mann<\/strong> is also the general word for \u2018man\u2019, Frau<\/strong> the general word for \u2018woman\u2019 or \u2018Mrs.\u2019, and Paar<\/strong> the general word for \u2018couple\u2019. When you hear or read these words, it is a case of understanding the context they\u2019re being used in. Also, look out for the word \u2018mein\u2019<\/strong> or \u2018meine\u2019 (\u2018my\u2019)<\/em><\/strong>, which will tell you that someone is talking about their husband or wife, as opposed to ‘a man’ or ‘a woman’. For example:<\/p>\n

Das ist meine<\/strong> Frau
\nThis is my wife<\/p>\n

Das ist Frau Weghofer
\nThis is Mrs. Weghofer<\/p>\n

Mein<\/strong> Mann ist 40 Jahre alt
\nMy husband is 40 years old<\/p>\n

Der Mann ist 40 Jahre alt
\nThe man is 40 years old<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

*<\/p>\n

I hope this post has helped clear up any confusion you may have had surrounding these words! It\u2019s worth noting that there are other words you might hear, such as die Eheschlie\u00dfung, die Trauung,<\/em> and die Verm\u00e4hlung<\/em>, but these are much less common. If there are any other words around this topic that you are confused about, leave a comment in the comment box and I\u2019ll get back to you!<\/p>\n

Bis bald<\/p>\n

Constanze<\/p>\n

Other posts you might like:<\/strong><\/p>\n

7 German Wedding Milestones<\/a><\/p>\n

My Big, Fat, Bavarian Wedding<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"marriage\"

Guten Tag! I recently had a request to explain words relating to marriage, such as die Ehe, die Heirat, and der Ehemann. In fact, the German language has a handful of words on this subject that are easily muddled up, as their similarity of meaning can be confusing to learners. So in this post I…<\/p>\n

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