150 Essential German Words That Learners Should Memorize ASAP
There are hundreds of thousands (potentially millions) of German words hanging around, just waiting to be learned and used.
But as a newcomer to the language, you’ll need to prioritize.
I’ll show you the most important 150 German words you should learn first.
I’ve chosen them based on frequency and usefulness. Learn these, and you’ll be much better off in your next German conversation.
Contents
- Common German Nouns
- German Prepositions
- German Pronouns
- Common German Phrases
- German Verbs
- German Adjectives
- German Body Parts
- German Numbers
- German Time and Seasons
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)
Common German Nouns
German nouns, especially German compound nouns, have a bit of a reputation, one that makes them quite enjoyable for learners. Let’s go over some of the critical nouns you should know.
Remember that German nouns are gendered and paired with the appropriate pronoun: der is the masculine pronoun, die is feminine, das is neuter and die is also used for plural nouns.
1. der Mann — man
2. die Frau — woman
3. das Kind — child
4. der Junge — boy
5. das Mädchen — girl
6. der Freund — friend
7. die Leute — people (plural)
8. die Familie — family
9. die Arbeit — work
10. die Stadt — city
11. das Ding — thing
12. das Beispiel — example
13. die Frage — question
14. das Problem — problem
15. das Leben — life
16. das Geld — money
17. das Essen — food
18. das Haus — house
German Prepositions
In sentences, prepositions are the words that create a relationship between a subject and an object. They often detail a subject’s positioning in time or space, and so are quite critical when describing something.
German prepositions take different cases. Some can take on more than one, with a rule of thumb being that the dative is used for stasis or location and the accusative used for describing movement or a change of state. Be aware that using the wrong case can imply a different meaning!
Avoid a grammar faux pas by using a program like FluentU, which lets you hear words spoken in context by native German speakers.
Search for any word from this list on FluentU to pull up videos that mention it. Then you can watch the words being used in content like movie clips, music videos and commercials—aided by subtitles with on-demand definitions, multimedia flashcards and transcripts and personalized exercises.
Perhaps most importantly, the FluentU dictionary is contextual, so you’ll be seeing definitions specific to the situations where they appear. This will prevent grammar and vocab mishaps when you use the words in conversations yourself.
Seeing new words in use is an extremely powerful way to study them, since the human mind remembers best with context. Give it a try!
19. von — by, of, from (dative)
20. um — about, around, at (accusative)
21. zu — to, towards (dative)
22. bis — until, by, up to (accusative)
23. an — to, on (accusative or dative)
24. auf — on, to, upon (accusative or dative)
25. aus — from, out of (dative)
26. bei — by, at, near, in (dative)
27. seit — since, for (dative)
28. für — for (accusative)
29. vor — before, in front of (dative)
30. nach — after, towards (dative)
31. in — in (accusative or dative)
32. durch — through (accusative)
33. mit — with (dative)
34. neben — beside, near (dative)
German Pronouns
Because they change depending on the case and, at times, gender, German pronouns can be a little tricky for learners. We’ll go over the pronouns in their nominative, accusative and dative forms (in that order).
36. du / dich / dir — you (informal, singular)
37. er / ihn / ihm — he / him / it (for masculine nouns)
38. sie / sie / ihr — she / her / it (for feminine nouns)
39. es / es / ihm — it (for neuter nouns)
41. ihr / euch / euch — you (informal, plural)
42. sie / sie / ihnen — they / them
43. Sie / Sie / Ihnen — you (formal, singular and plural)
Common German Phrases
Few conversations would feel complete without the bare essentials of phrases. These are the basic German phrases and expressions that you’re bound to use in any chat you have, no matter how long or short.
44. Hallo — Hello
45. Guten Morgen — Good morning
46. Guten Abend — Good afternoon
47. Gute Nacht — Good night
48. Ich heiße… — My name is…
49. Wie geht’s? — How are you? (informal)
50. Auf Wiedersehen — Goodbye / See you again
51. Tschüss — Bye
52. Gesundheit — Bless you
53. Ja — Yes
54. Nein — No
55. Vielleicht — Maybe / Perhaps
56. Bitte — Please / You’re welcome
57. Entschuldigung — Excuse me
58. Danke — Thanks
59. Es tut mir leid — I’m sorry
60. Genau — Exactly / That’s right
61. Ach so — I see
German Verbs
Off to do something? Hopefully, you know how to say so in German! Here are some common German verbs that will get you going.
62. sein — to be
63. haben — to have
64. machen — to make, do
65. gehen — to go
66. nehmen — to take
67. bringen — to bring
68. werden — to become
69. wollen — to want
70. wissen — to know (information)
71. kennen — to know (a person or place)
72. können — to can, be able to
73. mögen — to like
74. denken — to think
German Adjectives
Who doesn’t love adjectives?
They’re the spice of life in sentences, and German adjectives are no different.
Luckily, many adjectives in German sound quite similar to their English counterparts—just don’t forget that in German, adjectives are also conjugated!
75. gut — good
76. schlecht — bad
77. klein — small
78. groß — big, tall
79. schön — handsome, beautiful, lovely, nice
80. fantastisch — fantastic
81. traurig — sad
82. müde — tired
83. neu — new
84. alt — old
85. jung — young
86. kalt — cold
87. heiß — hot
88. kurz — short
89. lang — long
90. viel — a lot / very
91. wenig — little
German Body Parts
Knowing how to describe the body parts in German is essential for beginner learners. Here are some of the crucial body parts you should know pronto.
92. der Körper — body
93. der Kopf — head
94. das Gesicht — face
95. die Augen — eyes
96. die Nase — nose
97. der Mund — mouth
98. der Hals — neck
99. die Schulter — shoulder
100. die Brust — chest
101. der Rücken — back
102. der Bauch — stomach
103. der Arm — arm
104. die Hand — hand
105. das Bein — leg
106. der Fuß — foot
German Numbers
Counting in German is pretty simple, but you’ll of course have to get familiar with the numbers first. No worries—they should be pretty quick to memorize!
107. null — zero
108. eins — one
109. zwei — two
110. drei — three
111. vier — four
112. fünf — five
113. sechs — six
114. sieben — seven
115. acht — eight
116. neun — nine
117. zehn — ten
118. elf — eleven
119. zwölf — twelve
120. dreizehn — thirteen
121. vierzehn — fourteen
122. fünfzehn — fifteen
123. sechzehn — sixteen
124. siebzehn — seventeen
125. achtzehn — eighteen
126. neunzehn — nineteen
127. zwanzig — twenty
128. dreißig — thirty
129. vierzig — forty
130. fünfzig — fifty
131. sechzig — sixty
132. siebzig — seventy
133. achtzig — eighty
134. neunzig — ninety
135. hundert — hundred
136. tausend — thousand
German Time and Seasons
Whether you’re discussing events within the hour or months ahead, learning how to tell time in German is one of the first things on the beginner learner’s agenda. So better not waste time learning these!
137. die Zeit — time
138. früh — early
139. spät — late
140. die Uhr — clock / o’clock (pronoun removed)
141. die Stunde — hour
142. die Minute — minute
143. der Tag — day
144. die Woche — week
145. der Monat — month
146. das Jahr — year
147. der Winter — winter
148. der Frühling — spring
149. der Herbst — fall
150. der Sommer — summer
150 words sounds like a lot, but remember, these are just the tip of the German language iceberg! They’ll serve as a great starting point for you to jump off of as you immerse into your German studies.
To better reinforce these words (and German vocabulary in general), you can utilize tried-and-true review strategies. Flashcards and vocabulary quizzes are a quick and easy way to ensure you’re frequently practicing the material. Our complete guide on how to learn German vocabulary is here:
Once you’re confident with the essentials, you can plow forward and indulge in all the other fun and quirky words unique to German!
Download: This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you can take anywhere. Click here to get a copy. (Download)