Expressing Opinions in German Conversation
There’s a huge number of ways to give an opinion in German. Here’s a 6-part overview of some common ones, taking you from your first baby steps (learning how to ask for someone else’s opinion) to having a proper argument.
To keep it simple, let’s assume you’re talking to a friend—maybe the German tandem partner you’re getting to know—and using the du (you, informal singular) form.
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
Contents
- 1. Asking for Someone’s Opinion
- 2. Expressing a View
- 3. Agreeing
- 4. Sitting on the Fence
- 5. Disagreeing
- 6. Moving On
- And One More Thing...
1. Asking for Someone’s Opinion
There are many ways to ask for someone’s opinion. The best thing about these questions is that they take you out of the hot seat.
Was ist deiner Meinung nach…?
What’s your opinion about…?
Wie findest du…?
How do you find…?
Was ist deine Ansicht über…?
What is your view of…?
Bist du der Meinung, dass…?
Are you of the opinion that…?
Was denkst du über…?
What do you think about…?
When a theme is already established, try adapting this one as follows:
Was denkst du darüber?
What do you think about it?
Note: You’ll come across this structure time and again in German, and it takes some practice. English speakers tend to want to say was denkst du über es. Resist the urge! The general German stand-in for “it”, where “it” is linked to a preposition, is da.
In this case, and many others, the da travels to the front of über, and attaches itself there, but with an r in between to make it pronounceable. It works with all manner of prepositions: mit, von, zu, auf, aus…though only those beginning with vowels need the r. That’s a discussion for another time, but if you’re keen to learn more about da, there’s a nice guide to it here.
2. Expressing a View
Okay, so you might not always get away with just asking for people’s opinions and nodding along to their replies. Sometimes you’ll find yourself on the receiving end of the questions above. Get started speaking your mind with these possibilities:
Ich meine / Ich finde…
I think…
Meiner Meinung nach…
In my opinion…
Ich bin überzeugt, dass
I’m convinced, that…
Ich bin dafür.
I’m in favor of it.
Ich bin dagegen.
I’m against it.
3. Agreeing
These phrases happen to be very useful for getting someone on your side without being expected to say much more—and, of course, for those times when you do just genuinely want to agree with someone.
Ich stimme dir zu.
I agree with you.
Du hast (vollig) recht.
You’re (completely) right.
Ich bin einverstanden.
I agree.
Das stimmt.
That’s right.
Ich bin der gleichen Meinung.
I agree (Literally: I am of the same opinion)
4. Sitting on the Fence
Plenty of situations just aren’t black and white. Wondering how to express your Gleichgultigkeit (indifference), Unschlüssigkeit (indecision) or the nuances of a divided opinion? Here are a few ways:
Ich bin da geteilter Meinung.
My opinion’s divided.
Es kommt darauf an. / Es hängt davon ab.
It depends.
Das ist mir egal.
It doesn’t matter to me.
Ich habe dazu nicht viel zu sagen.
I don’t have much to say about that.
Ich habe nichts dagegen.
I’ve got nothing against it.
5. Disagreeing
There are bound to be times when you don’t agree with someone—and you need to say so. This is where things get interesting.
You might want to start slowly…
Das kann sein, aber…
That might be so, but…
Ich widerspreche, weil…
I disagree, because…
Ich bezweifle, dass…
I doubt that…
..and work your way up.
Das ist einfach nicht so.
That’s simply not so.
Das ist nicht wahr.
That’s not true.
Auf (gar) keinen Fall.
Absolutely not.
When things get heated, the last thing you want is to be lost for words!
Du hast keine Ahnung!
You’ve got no idea!
Das ist total falsch!
That’s completely wrong!
Das ist Quatsch!
That’s rubbish!
6. Moving On
It might be the case that you need to find a way out of a disagreement where there’s no real Einigung (agreement), but neither party’s prepared to back down. If you’ve reached a Sackgasse (stalemate) with a difference of opinion, here are some phrases to wrap it up diplomatically.
Ich habe meine Meinung nicht geändert.
I haven’t changed my opinion
Ich bin (nicht) überzeugt.
I’m (not) convinced.
Lassen wir uns das Thema wechseln.
Let’s change the subject.
Kommen wir weiter.
Let’s move on.
Belassen wir es dabei!
Let’s leave it at that!
If you want to learn more about expressing opinions in German, you could check out a language learning program such as FluentU.
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Obviously learning to talk about opinions isn’t just a case of memorizing the right phrases. The examples here will help get you started, but applying these in conversation naturally and spontaneously—that’s the real secret to expressing yourself, and it’s something you’ll need to work at.
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
And One More Thing...
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