German Compliments: 16 Phrases to Brighten Someone’s Day
Being able to compliment someone in German is useful for all sorts of situations and occasions.
It can help you strike up a casual conversation and make new friends.
It can also come in handy at work or in personal relationships when you want to win someone over through flattery.
In this post, you’ll find 16 German phrases you can use to compliment someone in any situation.
Use the audio to perfect your pronunciation and then practice these compliments on anyone who could use some joy!
Contents
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
16 Compliments in German
(You look great today.)
This unisex phrase doesn’t carry romantic undertones, so you can use it in any situation.
(You are very beautiful.)
(You look stunning!)
Translated more literally as “You look staggering,” this compliment is for those for whom the word “beautiful” is simply not enough.
(That color suits you.)
One way to say that something fits a person particularly well is to suggest that it “stands to them” (stehen + reflexive pronoun [Dative]).
(I like your hairstyle.)
6. Das ist eines der Dinge, die ich an dir mag.
(That’s one of the things I like about you.)
(I love your smile.)
(I like your shoes.)
9. Mit dir kann ich am besten lachen.
(I can laugh so well with you.)
10. Was würde ich ohne dich tun?
(What would I do without you?)
(What a lovely dog!)
12. Ihre Kinder sind so schön.
(Your children are so nice.)
13. Das schmeckt wirklich gut!
(That tastes really good!)
(The food smells good.)
15. Es war köstlich!
(It was delicious!)
16. Deine Stimme klingt himmlisch.
(Your voice sounds heavenly.)
Getting Practice with German Compliments
Any German learner can benefit from watching or listening to compliments being used in action. It can help you can understand how people use them in German culture and what kind of situations are appropriate for complimenting someone.
Compared to Americans, Germans are more reserved—they typically don’t give out (or expect) compliments very often. If you don’t have a German friend or two who you can chat with and listen to, you can always turn to media like TV shows, movies and even vloggers on YouTube.
You can also use a language-learning program like FluentU to hear native German speakers use compliments in many different contexts. On this website and app, you can watch authentic German videos with interactive captions that provide definitions, pronunciations and additional usage examples without needing to leave the video.
Spot a compliment in a video you’re watching? Write it down—or, if you’re on FluentU, add it to your flashcard deck for later review.
The next time you need to break the ice, try using one of these German compliments!
Just don’t be disheartened if you don’t hear any flattery back while in Germany. According to some, it’s simply a cultural thing.
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
If you liked this post, something tells me that you'll love FluentU, the best way to learn German with real-world videos.
