Life & Leisure
Schnapsidee ("booze idea"): An idea so crazyyou can hardly imagine someone came up with it in a sober condition

Schnapsidee

If you ever texted your ex at 3 a.m. after you have just recovered from the breakup, you know that ideas you have under heavy alcohol influence are rarely worth imitating.

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"Jein": German gives you the power to say yes and no at the same time with just four letters.

Jein

“Did you watch the German national team game yesterday” – “Jein. I left the TV on. But my Tinder date came to visit, so I didn’t catch that much of it.”

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Wollmaus: A dustball on the floor is called a “woolen mouse” in German

Wollmaus

Germans spend around two and a half hours a week cleaning their homes. That doesn’t quite live up to their reputation as cleanliness fanatics.

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Mahlzeit: To this day, there are people in Germany who greet around noon by shouting “meal” at each other

Mahlzeit

It’s an expression that I can hardly believe has survived into the present day because it sounds so utterly bizarre. Nevertheless, you still hear it from time to time, especially in larger companies.

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Bergfest ("mountain celebration"): German has an extra word for “the chronological center of a stressful process”

Bergfest

For the Oktoberfest, Germans have to wait a whole year. So it helps a lot that there is a festivity that they can celebrate every week, all without being forced to wear Dirndl and Lederhosen.

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Glückspilz (“lucky mushroom”): That’s how Germans refer to a person who is always on the fortunate side

Glückspilz

What does a German actually need to be happy? According to a study from 2020, the job is the most important factor—how could it be any different?

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Verschlimmbessern: German has an extra word for “making something worse by trying to improve it,” and I think every language in the world needs something like this!

verschlimmbessern

If you haven’t had an idea of what “verschlimmbessern” means—just think about the introduction of the Video Assistant Referee in soccer that wiped out a lot of the emotions without really making the game any more fair after all.

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Karteileiche ("file corpse"): A member who is registered but inactive

Karteileiche

I still get mail once a year from the dental clinic I last visited about 10 years ago. For this doctor’s office, I am a typical Karteileiche today.

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Heimscheißer - German is Weird

Heimscheißer

For such a precise-sounding term, the word Heimscheißer is remarkably versatile. On the most basic level, it simply describes what it says: a person who prefers to do their number 2’s at home.

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Arschbombe: A cannonball jump is called an "ass bomb" in German

Arschbombe

Cannonball jump: the diving style that gives chubby people some bragging rights during summer season.

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Schwalbe: When a soccer player pretends to have been fouled, Germans will shout, "swallow"

Schwalbe!

or other nations, soccer is a game of physical elegance and athletic artistry. For Germans, Fußball is basically 22 men working their butts off.

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Fremdenverkehr ("strangers' traffic): That’s the formal German word for tourism and I don’t think it sounds very inviting

Fremdenverkehr

If there was just one German word that should be stripped from all dictionaries rather sooner than later: “Fremdenverkehr” should be the one.

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Klugscheißer ("wise shitter"): That’s how Germans refer to a know-it-all. And believe me, you will find a good amount of them in Germany ;)

Klugscheißer

Klugscheißen is a true national sport in Germany. To be honest, it is hard to have a conversation with a German without them correcting you every 10 seconds.

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Spendierhosen: When you are in a generous mood, Germans will sayyou are wearing your “spending pants”

Spendierhosen

The expression is born of a joking idea that generosity is not a matter of character, but of the pants you are wearing and the tailor who created them.

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Feierabend ("celebration evening"): That’s the German word for the end of the work day. Who said that Germans aren't party animals?

Feierabend

To many people, Germany is synonymous with diligence and productivity. Yet we don’t work any more than other Europeans—at least when calculated by time.

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German is weird: Fun Facts and Trivia about the German language

This blog is a love letter to the curiosities of the German language that give it its poetic and, at times, oddly humorous qualities.

German Is Weird: Crazy Words von Arschkarte bis Zielwasser - from "ass card" to "aiming water"

The “German Is Weird” book is now available: order here!

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