Keep reading to learn about 89 of the more intriguing and cool Germans words<\/a> that are commonly-used in English.<\/p>\n [fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1. Autobahn<\/strong><\/p>\n Referring to the famous highway in Germany where drivers abide by no speed limits, the word Autobahn<\/em> has transferred to the English language to mean a mere expressway. Many tourist attractions use this name, such as the Autobahn Indoor Speedway in Alabama.<\/p>\n 2. Automat<\/strong><\/p>\n This one is fairly simple, since it refers to a machine that takes money and serves food or drink, typically at fast food restaurants. It’s not that common of a word anymore, but we still see vending machines, which are a form of automat.<\/p>\n 3. Diesel<\/strong><\/p>\n Diesel fuel is\u00a0named after Rudolf Diesel, the inventor of the diesel engine.<\/p>\n 4. Gesundheit<\/strong><\/p>\n This word’s literal meaning is “health” in German, but it can be used after a sneeze to mean “bless you.” People of all languages use it around the world.<\/p>\n 5. Kaput<\/strong><\/p>\n “This car is kaput!” If you say that in English, it means that the car is not working or broken.\u00a0<\/strong>The word has the same meaning in German.<\/p>\n 6. Kindergarten<\/strong><\/p>\n This is the grade before first grade. In German the word literally means “child garden.”<\/p>\n 7. Uber or \u00fcber<\/strong><\/p>\n It can be a preposition or a prefix in German, and it generally means something like \u201cabove,\u201d \u201chigher\u201d or \u201cgreater.\u201d\u00a0In English we tend to use it similarly, possibly calling people things like an \u201cuber-chef,\u201d an \u201cuber-planner\u201d or an \u201cuber-[expletive].\u201d<\/p>\n 8. Fest<\/strong><\/p>\n If you plan on going to a party or celebration, you can tell everyone that the word “fest” came from Germany, like when it’s used for the feasts of Oktoberfest<\/em> and Maifest<\/em>.<\/p>\n 9. Anschluss<\/strong><\/p>\n Although this word means connection, it comes from the forced integration of Austria with Nazi Germany.<\/p>\n 10. Achtung<\/strong><\/p>\n The word achtung means “attention,” yet we’ve seen it in several cultural references such as the U2 album “Achtung Baby.”<\/p>\n 11. Blitzkrieg<\/strong><\/p>\n Meaning\u00a0\u201clightning war,\u201d<\/a>\u00a0this is\u00a0used to describe the tactics used by Germany to quickly conquer many different European countries at the start of World War II. The word was then later appropriated by the Ramones\u00a0and used in their song\u00a0\u201cBlitzkrieg Bop\u201d<\/a>\u00a0to conquer the hearts and minds of punk rock fans.<\/p>\n 12. Blitz<\/strong><\/p>\n The term “blitz” was derived from “Blitzkrieg” and translates as a sudden military attack. It was first used by the British press during the bombing campaign against the UK in 1940 to 1941 during the World War II.\u00a0<\/p>\n A more common use of the word in English would be a blitz by the defense on an American football quarterback.<\/p>\n 13. Fuhrer or f\u00fchrer<\/strong><\/p>\n This means \u201cleader\u201d or \u201cdriver\u201d in German, and was used to refer to\u00a0the big H<\/a>. Even today, mentioning the words \u201cHitler\u201d or\u00a0F\u00fchrer<\/em>\u00a0in Germany can\u00a0get the attention of a room full of people\u2014but note that it won\u2019t be the good type of attention, and they probably won\u2019t be impressed with your command of these two German words.<\/p>\n 14. Gestapo<\/strong><\/p>\n This is an interesting word, because although it simply means a police force in German, Gestapo has a negative connotation throughout the rest of the world, because of how the World War II Gestapo lead the way to a mass genocide.<\/p>\n 15. Kaiser<\/strong><\/p>\n This refers to a\u00a0German or Austrian emperor<\/a>\u00a0(the word that in turn came\u00a0long ago from the Latin word\u00a0C<\/em>aesar)<\/em>,\u00a0and in English it\u2019s mainly used in contexts that refer to the time before and during World War I. By the time that war ended in\u00a01918, Kaiser Wilhelm II had been exiled to the Netherlands.<\/p>\n 16. Nazi<\/strong><\/p>\n The word Nazi once denoted a person or idea associated with the National Socialist political party, but now it’s associated\u00a0with tyranny and Hitler. Therefore, when someone calls another person a Nazi, it simply means they are a fanatical person.<\/p>\n 17. Panzer<\/strong><\/p>\n Panzer technically means “armor” in German, but it’s become synonymous with the light German military tank.<\/p>\n 18. Reich<\/strong><\/p>\n In German, this word has use for the term “empire” or as part of the name of a nationalized service, like the post office. However, since the Third Reich, the word has deep connections with the tyranny of Hitler’s reign. This tyranny is the primary meaning in the English-speaking world.<\/p>\n 19. Bagel<\/strong><\/p>\n Many English speaking people use this word every morning, and this tasty bread food actually comes from Poland, but Germans also called them bagels or\u00a0beigels<\/em>.<\/p>\n 20. Biergarten<\/strong><\/p>\n This is also often written as \u201cbeer garden,\u201d which makes it more English-y and which gives away\u00a0its meaning in German. In English, it can be used to describe almost any place that serves beer, especially German beer.<\/p>\n 21. Bratwurst<\/strong><\/p>\n As one of the most popular sausages in Germany, English-speaking folks enjoy grilling and talking about these as well. (Editor’s note: Shout-out to Madison, Wisconsin\u2014home of the World’s Largest Brat Fest<\/a>!)<\/p>\n 22. Bretzel<\/strong><\/p>\n A rather popular sandwich shop in the US is called Hannah’s Bretzel, and the word is referring to a pretzel. It can either be a hard or soft pretzel.<\/p>\n 23. Delicatessen<\/strong><\/p>\n You may know this as the word “deli,” yet you’ll still find many shops that have the word “delicatessen” plastered on the sign. It refers to a place that sells delicacies like cheeses and meats.\u00a0Delicatessen<\/em> includes two separate German words:\u00a0delikat<\/em> means “delicious” and\u00a0essen<\/em> means “to eat.”<\/p>\n 24. Frankfurter<\/strong><\/p>\n It is a smoked sausage and “frankfurter” refers to the respective city of origin \u2014 Frankfurt.\u00a0<\/p>\n 25. Einkorn<\/strong><\/p>\n Einkorn is an ancient type of wheat, and it was grown in Germany, but many farmers around the world are trying to bring it back.<\/p>\n 26. Knockwurst<\/strong><\/p>\n Wurst<\/em> is the German word for “sausage,” so any time you see it, you\u2019re likely to get meat in tube form. Knockwurst (also written as “knackwurst” in English\u2014the German version is also written with the “a”) probably comes from knacken,<\/em>\u00a0which is the\u00a0popping or cracking sound that the sausage makes when bitten into.<\/p>\n 27. Hamburger<\/strong><\/p>\n While the origin of the\u00a0food called a hamburger<\/a>\u00a0may be in doubt, the\u00a0word<\/a>\u00a0itself clearly refers to a person or object originating from the city of Hamburg. How this food then became a staple of\u00a0stereotypical \u201cAmerican food,\u201d an idea that even many Germans believe<\/a>, remains a subject for a different post.<\/p>\n 28. Kraut<\/strong><\/p>\n Kraut, as used in both English and German, is a type of cabbage.<\/p>\n 29. Kohlrabi<\/strong><\/p>\n Similar to kraut, kohlrabi is also a type of cabbage.<\/p>\n 30. Kuchen<\/strong><\/p>\n Kuchen<\/em> is the actual word used for cake in German, but in English-speaking countries it could refer to a wide variety of desserts and pastries.<\/p>\n 31. Lager<\/strong><\/p>\n The word\u00a0lagern<\/em>\u00a0is a verb that means \u201cto store\u201d or \u201cto wait,\u201d and in fact that\u2019s what happens with\u00a0lager beer<\/a>: It\u2019s stored for a period of up to six months to age before consuming.<\/p>\n 32. Liverwurst<\/strong><\/p>\n The Germans call it Leberwurst<\/em>, from the German words Leber<\/em> (liver) and W<\/em>urst <\/em>(sausage), but English-speaking people know this tasty sausage and spread as liverwurst.<\/p>\n 33. Noodle<\/strong><\/p>\n From the\u00a0German word Nudel<\/em>, this is a popular pasta food we all know and love.<\/p>\n 34. Nosh<\/strong><\/p>\n If you were to say, “I’m filling the cooler with some nosh,” you’d be talking about food.<\/p>\n 35. Pumpernickel<\/strong><\/p>\n Pumpernickel is a dark, compressed bread, sold all over the world.<\/p>\n 36. Sauerkraut<\/strong><\/p>\n Sauerkraut<\/em> means “sour cabbage” in German.\u00a0<\/p>\n 37. Sauerbraten<\/strong><\/p>\n Although it’s still technically a completely German word, many English-speaking people use it to refer to a German pot roast.<\/p>\n 38. Schnapps<\/strong><\/p>\n Anyone who drinks has probably heard of Schnapps at some point. The distilled beverage is written schnaps<\/em> in German.<\/p>\n 39. Schnitzel<\/strong><\/p>\n A schnitzel is basically a meat cutlet and a\u00a0Wiener Schnitzel<\/a><\/em>\u00a0is a schnitzel from Vienna\u00a0(Wien)<\/em>. They\u2019re usually served with lemon and maybe a side of potatoes, but not sauerkraut.<\/p>\n 40. Seltzer<\/strong><\/p>\n The word seltzer means a type of soda or carbonated water.<\/p>\n 41. Sparerib<\/strong><\/p>\n A sparerib, often used as two words, is a pork or beef rib.<\/p>\n 42. Spritz<\/strong><\/p>\n You may think this is slang, but it’s actually a real English and German word. Do you want a spritz of water on this hot day? It means a small bit of liquid.<\/p>\n 43. Strudel<\/strong><\/p>\n The German word\u00a0Strudel<\/em>\u00a0is used to describe the delicious pastry dessert, but it also can mean a sort of whirlpool effect in rivers.<\/p>\n 44. Wiener<\/strong><\/p>\n It’s a thin sausage from Vienna, the capital of Austria.\u00a0<\/p>\n 45. Cobalt<\/strong><\/p>\n Cobalt is both an element and a color, and it’s found in the earth’s crust and on the periodic table at number 27.<\/p>\n 46. Ansatz<\/strong><\/p>\n An ansatz is similar to a hypothesis, in that it is used in math and science in reference to making an educated guess that will later be tested and verified. In German it has a more literal meaning about the initial placement of a tool for work purposes.<\/p>\n 47. Gestalt<\/strong><\/p>\n Gestalt is a theory of the mind, which is thought to\u00a0have originated in Berlin. It refers to something that is more than the sum of its parts.<\/p>\n 48. G\u00f6tterd\u00e4mmerung<\/strong><\/p>\n The rather fun g\u00f6tterd\u00e4mmerung word is used to talk about a catastrophic event in English, but in German mythology it marks the downfall of the gods. This comes from the two German words\u00a0G\u00f6tter<\/em> (gods) and D\u00e4mmerung<\/em>, which refers to the twilight at dusk.<\/p>\n 49. Gedankenexperiment<\/strong><\/p>\n The German word\u00a0Gedankenexperiment\u00a0<\/em>is composed of two different parts: Gedanken<\/em> meaning “thought” and experiment<\/em> which is an exact equivalent to the English word “experiment.”<\/p>\n Together, we get the meaning “thought experiment” from\u00a0gedankenexperiment<\/em>. This word was popularized by Albert Einstein<\/a> in both English and German to refer to the use of complex mental reasoning instead of actual physical evidence as proof of his theories in physics.<\/p>\n 50. Feldspar<\/strong><\/p>\n The Germans called this\u00a0Feldspat,\u00a0<\/em>but in the English-speaking world it’s called “feldspar,” and it’s a type of rock that forms 60% of the world’s crust.<\/p>\n 51. Pitchblende<\/strong><\/p>\n This is merely a form of the\u00a0mineral uraninite.<\/p>\n 52. Dachshund<\/strong><\/p>\n As you may know, the word Hund\u00a0<\/em>in German means dog. Pair that with Dachs\u00a0<\/em>and you get a badger dog, which simply means a\u00a0breed of dog with a long body and short legs in English.<\/p>\n 53. Hamster<\/strong><\/p>\n A hamster is the furry little creature many people keep as pets, but the word is considered to come from Germany.<\/p>\n 54. Schnauzer<\/strong><\/p>\n This breed of dog comes straight from Germany, and the breed name typically means mustache or snout.<\/p>\n 55. Abseil<\/strong><\/p>\n The word abseil is commonly used by rock climbers when they talk about descending by rope. Although you would generally say that you are abseiling, another less German way to refer to this action is by saying you’re\u00a0rappelling.<\/p>\n 56. Carabiner<\/strong><\/p>\n The German word karabinerhaken\u00a0<\/em>is a spring hook safety system used on German rifles. In English-speaking countries the word “carabiner” derived from that, but it’s mainly talking about a metal safety loop employed by rock climbers.<\/p>\n 57. Cringle<\/strong><\/p>\n A cringle is an area of a boat in which you would pass a rope.<\/p>\n 58. Gelandesprung<\/strong><\/p>\n For those skiing fans out there, this word is referring to a ski jump, generally over an obstacle. You can even see it posted on the sign of the\u00a0Gelandesprung Ski Club in Green Bay, Wisconsin.<\/p>\n 59. Hinterland<\/strong><\/p>\n A word that means “backwoods,” or “the land behind,” hinterland mainly refers to wilderness areas in both the German and English languages.<\/p>\n 60. Knapsack<\/strong><\/p>\n One might call this a backpack or book bag.<\/p>\n 61. Langlauf<\/strong><\/p>\n Langlauf usually means some sort of cross country skiing, but others use it for cross country running as well.<\/p>\n 62. Rucksack<\/strong><\/p>\n Hikers generally use this word in English to mean a backpack. In fact, the most common use of the word is in the military.\u00a0<\/b>The literal German translation is “back sack,” but it’s still referring to the same item, a backpack.<\/p>\nDaily Life<\/h2>\n
![\"cars](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/5\/cars-on-the-motorway-e1680700054126.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWar<\/h2>\n
![\"a](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/5\/a-sign-on-the-window-saying-Achtung-e1680700208788.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nFood & Drink\u00a0<\/h2>\n
![\"a](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/5\/a-photo-of-stacks-of-bagels.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nScience\u00a0<\/h2>\n
![\"small](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/5\/Small-blue-marbles-e1680700590621.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nAnimals<\/h2>\n
![\"hamster](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/5\/hamster-standing-with-its-paws-next-to-its-mouth-e1680700705349.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nOutdoors and Sports\u00a0<\/h2>\n
![\"an](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/5\/an-image-of-a-carabiner-e1680700838543.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nOther<\/h2>\n
![\"Edelweisses](\"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/site\/\/5\/Edelweisses-with-fuzzy-Matterhorn-in-the-background-e1680700993410.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n