Table of Contents
Talking About Languages in German
In this chapter, you learn how to say which languages you speak and understand, and how to ask other people about their language skills.
Key words for “language”
The basic German word is “Sprache,” which means “language.”
Some useful phrases:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| die Sprache | the language |
| Welche Sprache? | Which language? |
| Welche Sprachen? | Which languages? |
| die Muttersprache | native language, mother tongue |
| Fremdsprache | foreign language |
| eine Sprache sprechen | to speak a language |
| eine Sprache lernen | to learn a language |
| eine Sprache verstehen | to understand a language |
Remember: Sprache is feminine.
Singular: die Sprache.
Plural: die Sprachen.
Saying which languages you speak
You often use the verb “sprechen” (to speak) with languages.
Patterns:
| English structure | German pattern |
|---|---|
| I speak … | Ich spreche … |
| You speak … | Du sprichst … / Sie sprechen … |
| He / She speaks … | Er spricht … / Sie spricht … |
| We speak … | Wir sprechen … |
| They speak … | Sie sprechen … |
Examples with language names:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Ich spreche Deutsch. | I speak German. |
| Ich spreche Englisch. | I speak English. |
| Ich spreche ein bisschen Deutsch. | I speak a little German. |
| Ich spreche nur Englisch. | I speak only English. |
| Ich spreche gut Englisch. | I speak English well. |
| Wir sprechen Spanisch und Italienisch. | We speak Spanish and Italian. |
Useful small words to describe your level:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| gut | well, good |
| sehr gut | very well |
| ein bisschen | a little |
| nur | only |
| nicht | not |
| noch nicht | not yet |
Example combinations:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Ich spreche sehr gut Englisch. | I speak English very well. |
| Ich spreche ein bisschen Deutsch. | I speak a little German. |
| Ich spreche noch kein Deutsch. | I do not speak any German yet. |
| Ich spreche nicht so gut Deutsch. | I do not speak German very well. |
Typical pattern:
Ich spreche + (Adverb) + Sprache.
Example: Ich spreche ein bisschen Deutsch.
Asking about language skills
To ask which languages someone speaks, you combine “sprechen” with question words.
Very common questions:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Welche Sprachen sprichst du? | Which languages do you speak? (informal) |
| Welche Sprachen sprechen Sie? | Which languages do you speak? (formal) |
| Sprichst du Deutsch? | Do you speak German? (informal) |
| Sprechen Sie Englisch? | Do you speak English? (formal) |
| Welche Sprache sprichst du zu Hause? | Which language do you speak at home? |
| Was ist deine Muttersprache? | What is your native language? (informal) |
| Was ist Ihre Muttersprache? | What is your native language? (formal) |
Short answers:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Ja, ein bisschen. | Yes, a little. |
| Ja, sehr gut. | Yes, very well. |
| Nein, leider nicht. | No, unfortunately not. |
| Meine Muttersprache ist Englisch. | My native language is English. |
| Meine Muttersprache ist Spanisch. | My native language is Spanish. |
For yes / no questions with languages, use:
Sprech- + personal ending:
Sprichst du …? / Sprechen Sie …?
Important language names
Most language names are the same as the nationality form you learn elsewhere, but here you use them as languages. They are written with a capital letter.
Some very common ones:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | German |
| Englisch | English |
| Französisch | French |
| Spanisch | Spanish |
| Italienisch | Italian |
| Portugiesisch | Portuguese |
| Russisch | Russian |
| Arabisch | Arabic |
| Chinesisch | Chinese |
| Japanisch | Japanese |
| Koreanisch | Korean |
| Türkisch | Turkish |
| Polnisch | Polish |
| Niederländisch | Dutch |
| Schwedisch | Swedish |
| Norwegisch | Norwegian |
| Dänisch | Danish |
| Tschechisch | Czech |
| Griechisch | Greek |
| Hindi | Hindi |
| Urdu | Urdu |
Example sentences:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| Ich spreche Deutsch und Englisch. | I speak German and English. |
| Ich lerne jetzt Deutsch. | I am learning German now. |
| Zu Hause sprechen wir Arabisch. | At home we speak Arabic. |
| Er versteht ein bisschen Russisch. | He understands a little Russian. |
| Sie spricht sehr gut Französisch. | She speaks French very well. |
Language names are capitalized in German:
Deutsch, Englisch, Spanisch, Arabisch, …
Talking about learning languages
When you talk about learning German or another language, you can use “lernen” or “sprechen.”
Useful sentence patterns:
| German | English | |
|---|---|---|
| Ich lerne Deutsch. | I am learning German. | |
| Ich lerne jetzt Deutsch. | I am learning German now. | |
| Ich möchte Deutsch lernen. | I would like to learn German. | |
| Ich möchte besser Deutsch sprechen. | I would like to speak German better. | |
| Ich verstehe Deutsch, aber ich spreche nicht so gut. | I understand German, but | I do not speak very well. |
You can combine this with information from other chapters later, for example where you are from and your nationality, but here the focus is on the language words and basic patterns.
New vocabulary from this chapter
| German | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| die Sprache | language | feminine noun |
| die Sprachen | languages | plural |
| Welche Sprache? | Which language? | singular |
| Welche Sprachen? | Which languages? | plural |
| die Muttersprache | native language | feminine |
| die Fremdsprache | foreign language | feminine |
| eine Sprache sprechen | to speak a language | phrase |
| eine Sprache lernen | to learn a language | phrase |
| eine Sprache verstehen | to understand a language | phrase |
| sprechen | to speak | verb |
| lernen | to learn | verb |
| verstehen | to understand | verb |
| gut | good, well | adverb / adjective |
| sehr gut | very good, very well | phrase |
| ein bisschen | a little | adverbial phrase |
| nur | only | adverb |
| nicht | not | negation |
| noch nicht | not yet | phrase |
| Welche Sprachen sprichst du? | Which languages do you speak? | informal |
| Welche Sprachen sprechen Sie? | Which languages do you speak? | formal |
| Sprichst du Deutsch? | Do you speak German? | informal |
| Sprechen Sie Englisch? | Do you speak English? | formal |
| Was ist deine Muttersprache? | What is your native language? | informal |
| Was ist Ihre Muttersprache? | What is your native language? | formal |
| Deutsch | German (language) | capitalized |
| Englisch | English (language) | capitalized |
| Französisch | French (language) | capitalized |
| Spanisch | Spanish (language) | capitalized |
| Italienisch | Italian (language) | capitalized |
| Portugiesisch | Portuguese (language) | capitalized |
| Russisch | Russian (language) | capitalized |
| Arabisch | Arabic (language) | capitalized |
| Chinesisch | Chinese (language) | capitalized |
| Japanisch | Japanese (language) | capitalized |
| Koreanisch | Korean (language) | capitalized |
| Türkisch | Turkish (language) | capitalized |
| Polnisch | Polish (language) | capitalized |
| Niederländisch | Dutch (language) | capitalized |
| Schwedisch | Swedish (language) | capitalized |
| Norwegisch | Norwegian (language) | capitalized |
| Dänisch | Danish (language) | capitalized |
| Tschechisch | Czech (language) | capitalized |
| Griechisch | Greek (language) | capitalized |
| Hindi | Hindi (language) | capitalized |
| Urdu | Urdu (language) | capitalized |
| zu Hause | at home | phrase |
| leider | unfortunately | adverb |