Tag: German language

• Word of the Week: Plattenbau

  If you’ve ever visited East Germany during the Cold War, you probably saw a lot of grey, cheaply-built apartment buildings that might have made you feel depressed. This sort of…

  August 25, 2021

• Word of the Week: Bratkartoffelverhältnis

  A Bratkartoffelverhältnis,  which literally means “fried potato relationship,” is not about how much Germans love fried potatoes, but it is about finding a meal ticket, or at the very least…

  August 12, 2021

• Word of the Week: Sonnenwendfeier

  Many Germans – like the Scandinavians – celebrate the Sonnendwendfeier, an annual midsummer festival marking the summer solstice, or longest day of the year (on June 20 this year). The…

  June 18, 2021

• Word of the Week: Sommerloch

  Although it may at first sound like a reference to a refreshing riverside swimming hole, a Sommerloch (“summer hole”) actually refers to something entirely different – the dearth of “real…

  June 15, 2021

• Word of the Week: Hüftgold

  Many of us may be  carrying a few extra pounds around the middle, and in German there’s a nice word it: Hüftgold! Directly translated, Hüftgold means “hip gold”, and it…

  May 18, 2021

• Word of the Week: Bierernst

  If you’re trying to express how serious you are about something, what word would you use? In German, you would say you are bierernst (“beer serious”). No joke! Or is…

  May 4, 2021

• Word of the Week: Eiertanz

  Have you ever wondered what to do with any leftover colored Easter eggs you don’t plan on keeping for next year or are unable to eat anytime soon? How about…

  April 6, 2021

• Word of the Week: Tortenheber

  What do you use to lift up a piece of pie and place it on a plate? A Tortenheber, of course! It seems that Germans have a word for everything,…

  March 16, 2021

• Word of the Week: Verdauungsspaziergang

  What do you do when you ate too much? You go on a Verdauungsspaziergang, of course! A Verdauungsspaziergang is a walk that you take to get you moving and help…

  March 10, 2021

• Word of the Week: Sehnsucht

  The German language is filled with words that do not exist in English. One such word is Sehnsucht, which is difficult to translate accurately. Sehnsucht is a deep emotional state; it…

  January 14, 2021