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German vocabulary · Topic 1 of 10

Greetings & Essentials in German

German greetings depend on the time of day, the region, and whether you say du or Sie. Hallo and tschüss work almost everywhere, while Guten Tag and auf Wiedersehen are safer with strangers. These 100 words and phrases also cover polite words like bitte and the small question words that keep a conversation going.

Entries
100
Full guides
100

Showing all 100 entries in rank order.

  1. 1Hellointerjectionhallo
  2. 2Thank youphrasedanke
  3. 3Goodbyeinterjectionauf Wiederseheninformal: tschüss
  4. 4Pleaseadverbbitte
  5. 5Yesinterjectionja
  6. 6Nointerjectionnein
  7. 7Good morningphraseguten Morgen
  8. 8Good nightphrasegute Nacht
  9. 9How are you?phraseWie geht's?formal: Wie geht es Ihnen?
  10. 10I'm sorryphrasees tut mir leid
  11. 11You're welcomephrasebitte / gern geschehen
  12. 12Excuse mephraseEntschuldigung
  13. 13Good afternoonphraseguten Tag
  14. 14Good eveningphraseguten Abend
  15. 15Nice to meet youphrasefreut mich
  16. 16My name is…phraseich heiße…
  17. 17What's your name?phraseWie heißt du?formal: Wie heißen Sie?
  18. 18I'm fine, thanksphrasemir geht's gut, danke
  19. 19See you laterphrasebis später
  20. 20See you tomorrowphrasebis morgen
  21. 21See you soonphrasebis bald
  22. 22I love youphraseich liebe dichto friends and family: ich hab dich lieb
  23. 23Thank you very muchphrasevielen Dank
  24. 24No, thank youphrasenein, danke
  25. 25What?pronounwas?
  26. 26Where?adverbwo?
  27. 27When?adverbwann?
  28. 28Why?adverbwarum?
  29. 29How?adverbwie?
  30. 30Who?pronounwer?
  31. 31How much?phrasewie viel?
  32. 32Which?pronounwelcher? / welche? / welches?
  33. 33I don't understandphraseich verstehe nicht
  34. 34Do you speak English?phraseSprichst du Englisch?formal: Sprechen Sie Englisch?
  35. 35Can you repeat that, please?phraseKannst du das bitte wiederholen?formal: Können Sie das bitte wiederholen?
  36. 36More slowly, pleasephraselangsamer, bitte
  37. 37I don't knowphraseich weiß nicht
  38. 38How do you say…?phraseWie sagt man…?
  39. 39What does this mean?phraseWas bedeutet das?
  40. 40I speak a little (Italian, Hindi…)phraseich spreche ein bisschen Deutsch
  41. 41Okayinterjectionokay / in Ordnung
  42. 42Of coursephrasenatürlich / klar
  43. 43Maybeadverbvielleicht
  44. 44No problemphrasekein Problem
  45. 45Welcome!interjectionwillkommen
  46. 46Congratulations!interjectionherzlichen Glückwunsch
  47. 47Happy birthday!phrasealles Gute zum Geburtstag
  48. 48Good luck!phraseviel Glück
  49. 49Cheers!interjectionprost!
  50. 50Have a nice dayphraseschönen Tag noch
  51. 51Take carephrasepass auf dich auf
  52. 52Where are you from?phraseWoher kommst du?formal: Woher kommen Sie?
  53. 53I'm from…phraseich komme aus…
  54. 54How old are you?phraseWie alt bist du?formal: Wie alt sind Sie?
  55. 55Ipronounich
  56. 56Youpronounduformal: Sie; plural: ihr
  57. 57Hepronouner
  58. 58Shepronounsie
  59. 59Wepronounwir
  60. 60Theypronounsie
  61. 61Andconjunctionund
  62. 62Orconjunctionoder
  63. 63Butconjunctionaber
  64. 64Becauseconjunctionweil
  65. 65Withprepositionmit
  66. 66Withoutprepositionohne
  67. 67Hereadverbhier
  68. 68Thereadverbda / dort
  69. 69Thispronoundasbefore a noun: dieser/diese/dieses
  70. 70Thatpronoundasbefore a noun: der/die/das … da
  71. 71Veryadverbsehr
  72. 72Alsoadverbauch
  73. 73Onlyadverbnur
  74. 74Notadverbnicht
  75. 75Nothingpronounnichts
  76. 76Help!interjectionHilfe!
  77. 77One moment, pleasephraseeinen Moment, bitte
  78. 78Well done!interjectiongut gemacht!
  79. 79Bless you! (after a sneeze)phraseGesundheit!
  80. 80Happy New Year!phrasefrohes neues Jahr!
  81. 81Merry Christmas!phrasefrohe Weihnachten!
  82. 82Get well soonphrasegute Besserung
  83. 83Have a good tripphrasegute Reise
  84. 84Sweet dreamsphrasesüße Träume
  85. 85Long time no seephraselange nicht gesehen!
  86. 86I miss youphraseich vermisse dich / du fehlst mir
  87. 87Let's go!phraselos geht's!
  88. 88Really?adverbwirklich?
  89. 89I agreephraseich bin einverstanden
  90. 90That's rightphrasegenau! / stimmt
  91. 91Come in!phraseherein! / komm rein!
  92. 92What's up?phrasewas geht? / wie läuft's?
  93. 93It doesn't matterphrasedas macht nichts / egal
  94. 94Have fun!phraseviel Spaß!
  95. 95I have a questionphraseich habe eine Frage
  96. 96What happened?phrasewas ist passiert?
  97. 97Don't worryphrasekeine Sorge
  98. 98Be careful!phrasepass auf! / Vorsicht!
  99. 99Have a good weekendphraseschönes Wochenende
  100. 100Hurry up!phrasebeeil dich!

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FAQ

Greetings & Essentials in German: common questions

When should I use du and when Sie?

Use du with friends, family, children, and usually with people your age in casual places. Use Sie with strangers, shop staff, officials, and colleagues until someone offers du. If you are unsure, start with Sie.

Why does bitte have so many meanings?

Bitte means please, but it is also the usual reply to danke (you're welcome). Wie bitte? means "Pardon?" when you didn't hear something, and staff say Bitte? to mean "What can I get you?"

Is tschüss rude?

No. Tschüss is a friendly, informal goodbye that you can use in shops and with most people. In formal situations, auf Wiedersehen is more polite, and on the phone people say auf Wiederhören.

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