×

130+ Animals in German

animals-in-german

Knowing some animal vocabulary in German is infinitely useful for talking about nature, the world at large and even interactions in day-to-day life.

You might have reviewed a basic list of tiere (animals) in German that include “cat” and “dog.”

But in this post, get ready to learn over 130 animals in German and over 20 verbs, animal parts and phrases.

Bauernhoftiere (Farm Animals)

herd of cows looking at the camera in a field of grass

Bauernhoftiere (farm animals) are some of the first animal names that children learn in school.

So they’re the first ones we’re going to learn in German! These animals live on der Bauernhof (the farm) and are cared for by der Bauer (the farmer).

GermanEnglish
das PferdThe horse
das PonyThe pony
die KuhThe cow
das SchweinThe pig
der HahnThe rooster
die HenneThe hen
das SchafThe sheep
die ZiegeThe goat
der EselThe donkey
der TruthahnThe turkey
die GansThe goose
die EnteThe duck
das LamaThe llama
das RentierThe reindeer
der BüffelThe buffalo
der WaschbärThe raccoon
der SchwanThe swan
der AdlerThe eagle
das OpossumThe possum

Haustiere (Common Animals and Pets)

person in a sweater holding a dog and cat

Unless you live on a farm, you’re much more likely to see the following group of animals in your everyday life. You might even have one of these animals as a Haustier (pet).

In fact, 45% of all German households had at least one pet in 2019. Imagine the lengthy conversations in German that you could have with native speakers about their beloved furry (or scaly) companions!

GermanEnglish
der HundThe dog
die KatzeThe female cat
der KaterThe male cat
das Kaninchen / der HaseThe rabbit
der GoldfischThe goldfish
das MeerschweinchenThe guinea pig
das FrettchenThe ferret
der HamsterThe hamster
die SchlangeThe snake
der VogelThe bird
der FischThe fish
die EidechseThe lizard
der FroschThe frog
die ChinchillaThe chinchilla

Waldtiere (Forest Animals)

two deer looking into the distance in a forest

The German-speaking regions have a variety of wildlife and that includes a good amount of Waldtiere (forest animals). Most of the animals in this list could be found there. 

Some of these might surprise you and be a little less common, such as wolves or moose. But they’re slowly making a comeback, either through conservation efforts or through natural causes.

GermanEnglish
der FuchsThe fox
der LuchsThe lynx
der HirschThe deer
der BisonThe bison
der ElchThe moose
der SteinbockThe ibex
der BärThe bear
der WolfThe wolf
der WaschbärThe raccoon
das StinktierThe skunk
der DachsThe badger
der IgelThe hedgehog
der MaulwurfThe mole
das WildschweinThe boar
die EuleThe owl
die FledermausThe bat
das EichhörnchenThe squirrel
der KojoteThe coyote
die TaubeThe dove
die TaubeThe pigeon

Insekten und Schädlinge (Insects and Household Pests)

ladybug on a big leaf

If only we lived in a world where only cats, dogs and other cute animals populated our homes. But we don’t! Sometimes we get an unwanted housemate, known as der Schädling (pest).

There are also some helpful and friendlier insects in this list as well. 

GermanEnglish
die MausThe mouse
die RatteThe rat
die SpinneThe spider
das InsektThe insect
die AmeiseThe ant
die FliegeThe fly
die Mücke / die Stechmücke / der MoskitoThe mosquito
die KakerlakeThe cockroach
die WespeThe wasp
die BieneThe bee
die ZeckeThe tick
der KäferThe beetle
der MarienkäferThe ladybug
die RaupeThe caterpillar
der SchmetterlingThe butterfly
der LeguanThe iguana
der GeckoThe gecko

Wassertiere / Meerestiere  (Aquatic Animals/Sea Animals)

sea turtle swimming under water in the ocean near rocks

Germany is a land full of lakes and rivers.

In the north, it borders the Nordsee (North Sea) and the Ostsee (East Sea). Germany is also home to many Flüsse (rivers), most notably the Rhine, Danube and Elbe rivers that run through many German cities and towns. 

As such, Germany is home to many Wassertiere (aquatic animals), both in its local waterways and in its Aquariums (aquariums) and Tierpark (zoos).

GermanEnglish
der OtterThe otter
der Krake / der Tintenfisch / der OktopusThe octopus
Der Kalmar / der TintenfischThe squid
der DelfinThe dolphin
der WalThe whale
der HaiThe shark
die KrabbeThe crab
der HummerThe lobster
der SeelöweThe sea lion
die RobbeThe seal
das WalrossThe walrus
die QualleThe jellyfish
der StechrochenThe stingray
der AalThe eel
der PinguinThe penguin
der SeesternThe starfish
der SeelöweThe sealion
die KrabbeThe shrimp
das SeepferdchenThe seahorse
die SeekuhThe manatee

Zootiere (Zoo Animals)

two lizards on a rock looking into the distance

A visit to a Tierpark (zoo) will expose you to animals from all over the world. Germans love going to the zoo, and there are zoos in many of Germany’s big cities such as Berlin, Munich and Frankfurt.

GermanEnglish
der PapageiThe parrot
der LöweThe lion
der GepardThe cheetah
der TigerThe tiger
der EisbärThe polar bear
der AffeThe monkey
der MenschenaffeThe ape
der GorillaThe gorilla
das KänguruThe kangaroo
das ErdmännchenThe meerkat
der ElefantThe elephant
das ZebraThe zebra
die GiraffeThe giraffe
das NilpferdThe hippopotamus
das KrokodilThe crocodile
das NashornThe rhino
der StraußThe ostrich
die SchildkröteThe turtle
der PfauThe peacock
der AlligatorThe alligator
der PantherThe panther
das KamelThe camel
der FlamingoThe flamingo
der PandaThe panda
die HyäneThe hyena
die WildkatzeThe wildcat
die AntilopeThe antelope
der KoalaThe koala
der LeopardThe leopard
die TrägheitThe sloth
der TukanThe toucan
das ChamäleonThe chameleon

Tierbabys  (Baby Animals)

baby bunny sitting in the grass surrounded by purple flowers

Animals, while cute, are always cuter when they’re babies! As in English, German has specific words for animals when they’re young.

GermanEnglish
das EiThe egg
der WelpeThe puppy
das Kätzchen / das KatzenbabyThe kitten
das EntchenThe duckling
das LammThe lamb
das KalbThe calf
das FohlenThe foal
das HirschkalbThe fawn
das SchweinchenThe piglet
das KükenThe chick

Note that the ending -chen can be added to many nouns to make them diminutive (referring to the smaller version of something).

As in the cases of die Katze (the cat) and die Ente (the duck), we get the words das Kätzchen (the kitten) and die Entchen (the duckling).

This can also be added to other nouns such as das Hündchen (the little dog) and das Mäuschen (the little mouse) to describe the younger or smaller version of the animal.

Keep in mind, however, that by adding the ending -chen to animals, they automatically become neuter in gender despite what their previous grammatical gender was. This means that these nouns will take the definite article das (the) in the nominative case.

For example:

der Tisch (the table) → das Tischlein (the little table)

Where possible, you also need to add an umlaut to the first vowel in the diminutive: 

die Maus (the mouse) → das Mäuschen (the little mouse)

Tierkörperteile  (Animal Body Parts)

two puppy tails forming a heart in the grass

Animals—regardless of what language is being used to talk about them—have different body parts than us.

GermanEnglish
die SchnauzeThe snout
das MaulThe mouth/the muzzle
der SchwanzThe tail
die PfoteThe paw
der PelzThe fur
die FederThe feather
der FlügelThe wing
das HornThe horn

Common Verbs and Phrases Related to Animals in German

Finally, animals also have different needs than humans, and these require special verbs that describe the caring for and interacting with animals.

Some of these verbs can be extended to humans, but some are specifically for animals and will be pointed out as such in the list.

GermanEnglish
Sich um etwas kümmernTo take care of something
FütternTo feed
StreichelnTo stroke
Spazieren gehen / Gassi gehenTo take for a walk
SpielenTo play
Sich putzenTo groom itself
StriegelnTo groom an animal
FressenTo eat

In addition to having different body parts than humans, animals also eat differently in German than they do in English.

While we use the verb essen (to eat) in German to talk about the act of humans eating, the verb fressen (to eat) must be used to talk about an animal eating.

While fressen is commonly used to describe the act of an animal eating, it can also be used to mean “to gobble” or “to gorge” when a human is eating.

Despite being a different verb, fressen conjugates similarly to the verb essen. Check out the verb conjugation pattern here. Pay particular attention to the er, sie, es (he, she, it) conjugation of the verb:

How to Practice Animal Vocabulary in German

Now that you’ve learned all these words and phrases to talk about animals in German, you’re going to need a way for it all to sink in!

Luckily, there are many places online where you can practice them all.

Digital Dialects

Digital Dialects offers a challenging, interactive online game for learning German animal vocabulary. Who doesn’t love a game that’s fun and educational, after all?

FluentU

FluentU is one of the best websites and apps for learning German the way native speakers really use it. FluentU takes real-world videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.

Watch authentic media to simultaneously immerse yourself in the German language and build an understanding of the German culture.

By using real-life videos, the content is kept fresh and current. Topics cover a lot of ground as you can see here:

learn-german-with-videos

Vocabulary and phrases are learned with the help of interactive subtitles and full transcripts.

learn-german-with-subtitled-video-clips

Hovering over or tapping on any word in the subtitles will automatically pause the video and instantly display its meaning. Interesting words you don’t know yet can be added to a to-learn list for later.

learn-german-with-interactive-lessons

For every lesson, a list of vocabulary is provided for easy reference and bolstered with plenty of examples of how each word is used in a sentence.

Your existing knowledge is tested with the help of adaptive quizzes in which words are learned in context.

practice-german-with-adaptive-quizzes

To keep things fresh, FluentU keeps track of the words you’re learning and recommends further lessons and videos based on what you've already studied.

This way, you have a truly personalized learning experience.

Start using the FluentU website on your computer or tablet or, better yet, download the FluentU app from the iTunes or Google Play store. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)

Sporcle

Sporcle has a quiz for practicing the spelling of a variety of German animals.

German spelling can be tricky, so this resource will prove to be very beneficial for learners who are looking to improve their writing skills.

ToLearnFree

ToLearnFree offers a few quizzes for practicing.

The first allows you to practice farm animals, and the second is specifically for practicing baby animals. The third quiz will help you practice aquatic animals.

 

Now that you’ve learned over 130 words and phrases related to animals in German, you’re on your way to the lion’s share of German fluency!

Enter your e-mail address to get your free PDF!

We hate SPAM and promise to keep your email address safe

Close