Common German Phrases

It's always a good idea to have a handy arsenal of friendly expressions and phrases that you can use to keep the conversation flowing. In this lesson there are lots of really useful expressions and common german phrases you can use when socializing with Germans. Remember to make use of the Testing at the end of this lesson to really reinforce your learning!

Here are some of the most basic German phrases to get you started. Further on in this lesson we will look at the pronunciation of these and more German phrases.

  • Wie geht es dir? - How are you? (casual)
  • Wie geht es Ihnen? - How are you? (formal)
  • Mir geht es gut - I’m well.
  • Mir geht es nicht so gut - I’m not so well.
  • Alles in Ordnung? - Everything alright?
  • Ich möchte gerne… - I would like to...
  • Ich möchte so gerne - I would love to
  • Gerne - Certainly
  • Du siehst toll aus! - You look great!
  • Kann ich helfen? - Can I help?

Resources for further reading:

How to pronounce common German phrases

Practice Your Pronunciation With Rocket Record

Rocket Record lets you perfect your German pronunciation. Just listen to the native speaker audio and then use the microphone icon to record yourself. Once you’re done, you’ll get a score out of 100 on your pronunciation and can listen to your own audio playback. (Use a headset mic for best results.) Problems? Click here!

Wie geht es dir?

How are you? (casual)

Wie geht es Ihnen?

How are you? (formal)

Mir geht es gut

I'm well.

Mir geht es nicht so gut

I'm not so well.

Alles in Ordnung?

Everything alright?

Ich möchte gerne…

I would like to...

Ich möchte so gerne

I would love to

Gerne

Certainly

Du siehst toll aus!

You look great!

Kann ich helfen?

Can I help?

Möchtest du…

Would you like…(casual)

Möchten Sie…

Would you like…(formal)

Das ist sehr nett

That is very nice

Das ist sehr freundlich

That is very kind

Das gefällt mir sehr gut

I like that very much

Das macht Spaß

That's fun

Das macht keinen Spaß

That's no fun

Bitte

Please

Danke

Thanks

Vielen Dank

Thank you very much

Danke schön

Thanks a lot

Nichts zu danken

You're welcome

Socializing

Like or Love?

If you want to express that you are fond of someone you can say

Ich mag dich.

I like you.

You could also say

Ich habe dich lieb

I like you very much / I am very fond of you

There is no equivalent in English for “Ich habe dich lieb,” it’s kind of between “I like you” and “I love you.” It basically means that you like someone very, very much. For example a mother might use it to tell her child how fond she is of him or her. It is most often used between family members.

If you want to confess your love to someone, just say

Ich liebe dich.

I love you.

Hopefully the answer will be

Ich liebe dich auch

I love you, too.

For example:

Ich mag dich sehr gerne.

I like you lots

Ich habe dich sehr lieb.

I like you very much

Ich liebe dich über alles.

I love you more than anything.

Why not check out some more lessons on German phrases next?

Bis bald!

Paul Weber: Rocket German

Make It Stick With Rocket Reinforcement

Reinforce your learning from this lesson with the Rocket Reinforcement activities!