Learn German : Essentials (2024)

How to learn German by yourself? Start with an easy and free online course!

We have adopted an objective and efficient approach to learn how to speak a language easily and quickly: we suggest you to start bymemorizing words, phrases and practical expressionsthat you can use in everyday life and that will be useful whentraveling.
Getting used to pronounce words out loud, numbers for instance, is an easy exercise that you can practice often and at anytime throughout the day.
It will help you to get used to the sounds of your chosen language and thus make it more familiar.
And once your vacation begins, in Berlin, Hamburg or in another city in which German is the official language, you will be surprised how familiar and easy to understand it will seem.
Furthermore, using a pocket dictionary is always useful, particularly during a trip. It enables you to find the translation of new words and enrich your vocabulary.

Why speak German while traveling?

This is the most spoken language in Europe

No less than 100 million people around the world master German. In addition to being Goethe’s mother tongue, it is the official language of several countries, including Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Liechtenstein and Austria, and it is also spoken in some parts of Africa and certain communities in north America. As you can see, speaking this language is firstly a way to access a diversity of cultures, but also a way to increase your business opportunities both in European and African countries and in some American communities.
The official language of the world's fourth-largest economy and the leading power in Europe is also the one of many classics of world literature such as the works of Goethe, the Grimm brothers, Thomas Mann and the winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature Heinrich Böll and Herta Müller.

A major language on the Internet

There is another reason why learning this language is useful: the Internet. We are in the digital age and domains with the ".de" extension (referring to Germany) is the most present on the web, just after the ".com" domains. Having access to such content can prove very useful when you want to expand your search capabilities or find information that is not widely known in other languages.
Germany's annual contribution to science and research is another interesting motivation. Did you know that every year one in ten books published in the world is written in this language? This country is among the leaders in research and innovation, occupying the third place in patent applications worldwide.
Germany's annual contribution to science and research is another interesting motivation. Did you know that every year one in ten books published in the world is written in this language? This country is among the leaders in research and innovation, occupying the third place in patent applications worldwide.

Make a success of your stay in Germany

Whether you are going to spend a few days with friends for a leisure trip or if you are on a business trip, nothing will be more useful to you than to be able to slip a few words in the language of your interlocutors, who will appreciate your effort and will be certainly more willing to help.

How to succeed in having good pronunciation within a week to a month?

It's easy: all the letters are pronounced
Thepronunciationof German is fairly faithful to its writing: you can rely on the texts to pronounce this language correctly. You will need to learn some rules to have a good accent (for example, to know where to place the tonic accent), but in general it will not be too difficult for you to understand, despite some subtleties on syllables like "sch" or the "-e " in the end of a word — subtleties that may make Germans laugh when they hear you, but will not prevent them from grasping the meaning of your words, neither from appreciating your efforts to learn their language.
We invite you to listen to the pronunciation of the letters by clicking on the following link: German alphabet with audio.

What are the best websites to progress quickly?

100% Autonomous Learning - Online Resources

German courses by Deutsche Welle (DW)
Level: beginner to advanced (A1 to C).
Services:Deutsche Welle (DW) is an international broadcasting service in German. You will not have anything to pay; everything is free. You will find a very rich and varied set of resources, such as vocabulary sheets with audio, videos, interactive exercises, evaluation tests and the best news in the language.
Our opinion: the quality and wealth of this 100% free website will allow you to go through all the stages of your learning without ever getting bored. This site is undoubtedly the best we can recommend you.

Deutsch lernen
Level: for people who already have the first notions.
Services: exercises and summaries related to grammar and conjugation
Services: exercises and summaries related to grammar and conjugation.
Our opinion : this site is very focused on writing and formal rules (verbs and conjugations, declinations, names and articles, adjectives, numbers, pronouns, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions, passives...). It is not really advisable for complete beginners, but it will be very useful as soon as you have some basic grammatical knowledge. In fact, you will not find a better free resource to do exercises. And it is very pleasant to use.

Resources to go further

Online dictionary Reverso
Level: all levels.
Services: online dictionary.
Our opinion: the interest of this dictionary is not to provide only a simple translation, but also a whole "cloud" of results.

Your comments are welcome!

Rhina: Omg! This is absolute gold. These resources are going to help me so much! Thank you! Do not worry :P I'm not always this excited about some vocabulary and sound samples, but right now I began my university journey! As someone who wants to study tech in Germany I recently started my language journey. Which is absolute incredible, but my books still need to be delivered so at home I kinda have no resources, except the internet, to intensify my German knowledge. So here I am! Learning from your site :) That's where my excitement comes from! THANK YOU!

Idhwen: HI!! I'm Idhwen, and I'm just starting to learn German. I found this site VERY helpful.Thank you! :D

Rohel Aijaz: Hallo! Ich bin Rohel. I'm from Pakistan and I started learning German a few months ago. I came upon this website and I really appreciate your efforts. It's too user-friendly. I'll continue using this website.

Kristie: We use this in our classroom! It would be nice if we could slow the pronunciation of the German words down...

Cindy : It was so much fun learning how count, colors and so on.It was helpful that I can hear the word pronounce as often as I need to. Are there other vocabulary lessons? It was much more fun than duolingo. Thanks

Alexander: It would greatly help if an audio pronunciation of the German words could be provided. It will go a long way to help

Dasilva Lorenco: CONGRATULATIONS 4 YR JOB: I lived, worked and studied English language (Non academic curse)in Cambridge/UK and I consider yr job very didactic and v/ interesting 4 everyone to start a new language. I agree with with the concept basic of basics to start because if you dont understand the basic words and expressions WHY we start immediatly learn grammar? ....The Classic process ist very borring to start if you need the language immediatly ....and became just a frustrating time.Greating for all yr time!Im John/ Mainz/ DE

stebra90: Hi.Upon visiting your site, I thought I had found a solution, to improve my German.A voice then says "Guten Tag" -- and I am informed that this is "Hello".Even with my very mediocre and rusty German, I know that "Guten Tag" means "Good Day", and doesn't mean "Hello".I couldn't imagine a worst start.Auf Wiedersehen.Loecsen :The expressions given in each language are not literal translations from another language; they are the expressions that would normally be used in particular situations that people find themselves in when traveling. The translators, all of whom are professionals, have not always chosen the grammatically closest translation, because that would not necessarily be the one used most often when you’re there!

Jessica: Best thing ever my kids love it!

Faith Tobi: Great site, great job! i visited your website for the first time today cause i wanted to learn German language for free and i found your website very helpful. well doneFrom Nigeria.

Show comments ( + )

Learn German : Essentials (2024)

FAQs

Can I learn German in 1 year? ›

It is estimated that a total of 30 weeks or 750 classroom hours are necessary to learn German. But you could complete those 750 hours in a matter of months or over the course of many years.

How do you answer questions in German? ›

You can also use v heist iya v heist iya v heist eeeh if you are addressing more than one person in

Is German pod 101 good? ›

In general, GermanPod101 is a solid way to learn German. The German course isn't as developed as some of the other languages that Innovative Languages offers, but there is enough content to achieve a conversational level in the language. There are more lessons for beginners and intermediate learners than for advanced.

How long does it take to learn German B2? ›

How long does it take to learn German?
Assess your current level & test your German online!Intensive course (20 lessons/week)
A1beginner8 weeks
A2elementary8 weeks
B1intermediate8 weeks
B2upper intermediate10 weeks*
2 more rows

Is B1 German fluent? ›

The B Levels: Conversational

B1 German speakers have no problem understanding the main points of a conversation when clear standard German is used, especially when the topic is something familiar like school or work.

Is B2 level German fluent? ›

B2 is the first level that means that you can speak really fluent and understand 80% of the situations that you find yourself in repeatedly. You can prepare yourself for the exam and even see a sample of the language level here.

What 6 countries speak German as an official language? ›

With close to 100 million native speakers in Europe, German is the most spoken language on the continent (after Russian, with 110 million). The six countries that have German as their official language, in alphabetical order, are: Austria, Belgium, Germany, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg and Switzerland.

Why do most all question words in German and English start with a W? ›

They are called so because, all the question words begin with the letters Wh, except the question word how. German question words are nothing but Wh- question words. Wh- questions are known as W-Fragen in German.

How do you respond to Wer ist das? ›

-Wer ist das? -Das ist Anna.

‑That's Anna.

Is A2 German enough? ›

Levels A1 and A2: These levels provide you with basic knowledge of the German language. If you have no previous knowledge, attending an A1 course is highly recommended. Levels B1 and B2: Here is where you will learn German at an advanced level.

Can I reach B2 German in 3 months? ›

B2 also takes around 3 months if you spend around 8 hours a week. P.S.: There are some people who are good at learning languages and remembering stuff who finished it all in 3-4 months. It all depends on how easy this comes to you and how much time you're spending on it.

Can Germans have A2 without A1? ›

Yes you can. It is not necessary that one has to appear for the A1 exam first. One can appear for any of the German exam levels directly. I hope that my answer helps you.

Is German pod 101 free? ›

You can sign up for a free account at www.germanpod101.com! You will have a free, lifetime account and a 7 Day Free Trial of Premium access.

Is Rocket Languages good for German? ›

Rocket German is a decent enough course, but it falls short of the high praise it often receives. The audio lessons aren't bad, but they aren't exceptional either, and the activities that are part of every lesson are too repetitive and boring.

Can I reach B1 in German in 3 months? ›

In all, that comes to about 200 hours total, meaning that to reach a B1 level in German in 3 months, you should study the language for about ~2 hours and 10 minutes each day. It's a high goal, but if you have sufficient motivation, you can definitely reach it.

Is A2 German hard? ›

German A2 exam pattern is quite simple. As it's a language, there are 4 modules- Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking. It is a 60 points exam and you have to score a minimum 36 points (60%) to pass the exam.

How much time does it take to reach C1 German? ›

150 hours of lessons. B1: 300 hours of lessons. B2: 240 hours of lessons. C1: 240 hours of lessons.

What level of German do you need for university? ›

It requires a good command of German (level B1 of the Common European Framework of Reference ) and a successful entrance examination. Classes take up 28 to 32 hours per week.

Can I learn German B2 in 5 months? ›

As you can see, rapid learning is undoubtedly doable even if you want to learn German from scratch to a B2 level in 5 months or faster. I have done it with dozens of students using the outlined strategy, and results are always great.

Is B1 German hard? ›

Hi, B1 is the beginning of the Intermediate level as a Deutsch speaker. So, by this time you should be able to carry out basic level conversations and form simple sentences since you would have already completed A2. B1 takes you further deeper in verbs and complex sentence structure.

What is a German person called? ›

Germans (German: Deutsche, pronounced [ˈdɔʏtʃə] ( listen)) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, and sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The constitution of Germany defines a German as a German citizen.

How many Germans speak English? ›

1. English. 56% of the population speak English. Its growing popularity as the official language of business has resulted in more German businesses officially adopting English as their main language.

Where is the best German spoken? ›

Where is the best German spoken? The "best" German is considered to be spoken around Hannover.

How do you answer yes no question in German? ›

Yes/No-Questions can be answered with "ja," "nein," or "doch."

How do you introduce yourself in German? ›

Another common way to introduce yourself in German is: I'm Yassir. (Ich bin Yassir.)

What is called Who are you in German? ›

"Wer bist du?" means: "Who are you?" "Wer bist du?" "Ich bin Anja." We have one more way to ask for the name in German: We learnd "Wie heißt du?", "Wer bist du?" and the last one is "Wie ist dein Name?".

What do you reply to Wie Gehts? ›

Small talk in German

“Wie geht's?” OR “Wie geht es dir?” Now, the classical small talk answer would be something like “fine”, “good” or “I am fine.”, “I am good.” etc. Of course one can answer the same things in German: “Gut” OR “Mir geht es gut.” / “Es geht mir gut.”

Is Wie Gehts formal? ›

“Wie geht's” is actually the short form of “Wie geht es” (How's it going) or “Wie geht es Dir/Ihnen” (How are you doing). It is used in formal (Ihnen) and informal (Dir) situations, you can use it to start a conversation with whoever you meet.

What does Wen mean in German? ›

Translation of wen – German–English dictionary

whom [pronoun] (used as the object of a verb or preposition, but in everyday speech sometimes replaced by who) what person(s)(?) Whom/who do you want to see? Whom/who did you give it to? To whom shall I speak?

How long does it take to reach C2 German? ›

Learners reach C2 at different rates depending on the other factors we'll discuss here, but expect nothing less than three years (and probably several more years). The Goethe Institut says you need to have studied German for at least 750 hours to get to this point.

Can I learn German in 3 months? ›

You need more than 3 months to be fluent. But even with such a short time, if you adjust your strategy, you can actually learn German and get really close to being fluent.

How long would it take to be fluent in German? ›

So, how long do you need to learn German if you want to reach this level of fluency? According to the U.S. Foreign Service Institute (FSI), you'll need about 750 hours of study to become fluent in German. This means that if you study 12-15 hours a week, you'll be able to speak like a pro in just a year!

Is German B2 difficult? ›

It is not at all difficult to pursue B2 level with graduation. I finished my C2 when I was in my second year of graduation. I used to take breaks for the courses only during my exam months and did not take admission during those times.

What level is duolingo German? ›

Whether you're a total beginner or you're looking to brush up, Duolingo's German course is definitely one of the best options currently available. The course is now hitting the same heights as the French and Spanish courses — which Duolingo reckon can get you to a B2 level on the CEFR.

How difficult is A1 German? ›

German A1 exam pattern is quite simple. As it's a language, there are 4 modules- Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking. It is 60 points exam and you have to score 36 points (60%) to pass the exam.

Which German exam is easy? ›

Of the three different levels DSH-1, DSH-2 and DSH-3, the former is the easiest. When the DSH-2 level is reached (67%), the graduate can enrol in many different courses of study, as this means that he or she is admitted to almost all German universities.

Can I give directly B1 German exam? ›

One can not give directly B1 exam without having A1, A2 basic knowledge. The one who prepares well for A1, A2 can directly give the exam for B1 level.

How long will it take to be fluent in German? ›

So, how long do you need to learn German if you want to reach this level of fluency? According to the U.S. Foreign Service Institute (FSI), you'll need about 750 hours of study to become fluent in German. This means that if you study 12-15 hours a week, you'll be able to speak like a pro in just a year!

Can I learn German in 6 months? ›

The average language you need to know 2,000–3,000 words to be fluent. That not including grammar and idiums. Therefore if you wish to learn 2,500 words in 6 month (180 days) you need to learn about 14 words per day.

Can you learn German in 9 months? ›

In practice, no. Where I went to language school in Germany, it takes around 7 months of intensive coursework to go from A0 to B2. 4 hours a day, 5 days a week. You can start by doing the free courses on Goethe Institut or Deutsche Welle.

How long does it take to learn German if you live there? ›

According to the Foreign Service Institute (FSI), on average, it will take at least 750 hours or 30 weeks for a person to learn German. This time frame includes anyone living in Germany or outside a foreign country.

Is A1 German enough? ›

Levels A1 and A2: These levels provide you with basic knowledge of the German language. If you have no previous knowledge, attending an A1 course is highly recommended. Levels B1 and B2: Here is where you will learn German at an advanced level.

Is B1 German hard? ›

Hi, B1 is the beginning of the Intermediate level as a Deutsch speaker. So, by this time you should be able to carry out basic level conversations and form simple sentences since you would have already completed A2. B1 takes you further deeper in verbs and complex sentence structure.

How quickly can an English speaker learn German? ›

In short, the FSI estimated that learning German will take approximately 30 weeks (750 hours) for English speakers. This may seem like a lot of time, but it's a fraction compared to languages like Chinese, Japanese and Arabic, which took students up to 88 weeks to learn.

How many words of German do you need to know to be fluent? ›

How many words do you need to be fluent in German? To be fluent in German, a speaker needs to know around 10,000 words.

How many hours is A2 German? ›

150 hours of lessons. A2: approx. 150 hours of lessons. B1: 300 hours of lessons.

How many words does the average German speaker know? ›

And the average speaker uses only 12,000 to 16,000 words in their vocabulary.

Is B2 enough to study in Germany? ›

As a rule of thumb, German universities require you to present a proof of upper intermediate to advanced German language skills (level B2/C1) to study in German.

Can I get to B2 German in one year? ›

It is possible to learn German in one year, but it will take a near full-time commitment and immersion learning.

What is B2 level German? ›

The Goethe-Zertifikat B2 is a German exam for young people and adults. It certifies that candidates have acquired advanced language skills and corresponds to the fourth level (B2) of the six-level scale of competence laid down in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).

Can Germans have A2 without A1? ›

Yes you can. It is not necessary that one has to appear for the A1 exam first. One can appear for any of the German exam levels directly. I hope that my answer helps you.

How difficult is A1 German? ›

German A1 exam pattern is quite simple. As it's a language, there are 4 modules- Reading, Writing, Listening and Speaking. It is 60 points exam and you have to score 36 points (60%) to pass the exam.

What level is Duolingo German? ›

Whether you're a total beginner or you're looking to brush up, Duolingo's German course is definitely one of the best options currently available. The course is now hitting the same heights as the French and Spanish courses — which Duolingo reckon can get you to a B2 level on the CEFR.

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