🎯 Today's Learning Goals / Lernziele
- Demonstrate mastery of the German alphabet and letter names
- Apply all pronunciation rules including ch sounds, diphthongs, sp/st, and Auslautverhärtung
- Correctly use Umlauts (ä, ö, ü) and choose between ß and ss
- Count from 0 to 100, understand prices, and navigate the 21-99 flip
- State days, months, seasons, dates, and tell time using both informal and official systems
- Greet and say goodbye appropriately, choosing correctly between du and Sie
📚 Grammar & Rules / Grammatik
1. Quick Review: Alphabet & Letter Names (Lesson 0.1)
German uses 26 Latin letters plus Ä, Ö, Ü, and ß. Many letter names differ from English.
Key differences: W is 'Weh' [veh], V is 'Vau' [fow], Z is 'Zett' [tset], J is 'Jot' [yot], Y is 'Ypsilon'. The @ symbol is called 'Klammeraffe'. To ask how to spell something: 'Wie schreibt man das?' or 'Wie buchstabiert man das?'
Wie ist Ihr Name?
— What is your name? (formal)
Mein Name ist Schmidt. Es-Ce-Ha-Em-I-De-Te.
— My name is Schmidt. S-C-H-M-I-D-T.
Wie schreibt man das?
— How do you spell that?
⚠️ Common Mistake: German V is 'Vau' (sounds like 'fow'), not 'vee'. German W is 'Weh' (sounds like 'veh'), not 'double-u'.
💡 Study Tip: Think of Volkswagen: VW = 'Fau-Weh' in German. V makes an F sound, W makes a V sound.
2. Quick Review: Pronunciation Rules (Lesson 0.2)
German spelling is highly regular. Once you know the rules, you can read any word aloud correctly.
Key rules: (1) ei = 'eye', ie = 'ee' (the second letter speaks). (2) ch after a/o/u = throaty ach-Laut; ch after e/i/ä/ö/ü = soft ich-Laut. (3) Initial sp/st = shp/sht. (4) Final -ig = [ihy]. (5) W = V sound, V = F sound in native words. (6) Z = ts. (7) Long vowels before single consonant or h; short vowels before double consonant.
mein / Wien
— my (sounds like 'mine') / Vienna (sounds like 'veen')
💡 ei = eye, ie = ee
Nacht / nicht
— night (ach-Laut) / not (ich-Laut)
💡 ch sound depends on preceding vowel
sprechen / die Stadt
— to speak (shp-) / the city (sht-)
💡 Initial sp/st are always shp/sht
⚠️ Common Mistake: Final consonants are devoiced (Auslautverhärtung): 'und' sounds like 'oont', 'Tag' ends with a 'k' sound.
💡 Study Tip: The golden diphthong rule: 'When E and I go walking, the second one does the talking.'
3. Quick Review: Umlauts & Eszett (Lesson 0.3)
Umlauts change meaning and pronunciation. ß follows long vowels/diphthongs; ss follows short vowels.
ä = 'e' in 'bed' (easy). ö = say 'eh' with rounded lips (like British 'bird'). ü = say 'ee' with rounded lips (like whistling). The ß is a sharp voiceless 's', never a 'b'. Switzerland never uses ß. On keyboards without umlauts: ä=ae, ö=oe, ü=ue.
schon / schön
— already / beautiful
💡 Umlaut changes meaning entirely
Straße / Fluss
— street (long vowel = ß) / river (short vowel = ss)
Bruder / Brüder
— brother / brothers
💡 Umlauts form most German plurals
⚠️ Common Mistake: ß is NOT the letter B. It represents a sharp 's' sound. Straße = 'SHTRAH-seh', not 'SHTRAH-beh'.
💡 Study Tip: For ü: position your tongue for 'ee', then round your lips as if to whistle. The tongue stays forward.
4. Quick Review: Numbers 0-100 (Lesson 0.4)
0-12 are memorised. 13-19 = digit+zehn. Tens = digit+zig. 21-99 flip: ones first, then und, then tens.
Six irregulars: sechzehn/sechzig drop the 's'; siebzehn/siebzig drop the 'en'; zwanzig (not zweizig); dreißig (only one with ß). Numbers 21-99 reverse the digits: 47 = siebenundvierzig (seven-and-forty). Written as ONE word. Germany uses comma for decimals and dot for thousands: 1.250,50 € = one thousand two hundred fifty euros fifty.
einundzwanzig
— 21 (one-and-twenty)
💡 Ones digit spoken first
Zwölf Euro fünfzig
— 12 euros 50
💡 Prices: euro amount then cents
zwo
— two (alternative for zwei)
💡 Used on phones to avoid confusion with drei
⚠️ Common Mistake: When hearing a number, wait for the end! The tens digit comes last. einundvierzig = 41, not 14.
💡 Study Tip: Practice by saying your phone number in German digit by digit, then in pairs.
5. Quick Review: Calendar & Time (Lesson 0.5)
All days, months, and seasons are masculine (der). Use am for days, im for months/seasons, um for clock times.
Days end in -tag except Mittwoch (mid-week). Saturday = Samstag (south) or Sonnabend (north). Dates use ordinals with a dot: der 3. Mai = der dritte Mai. Ordinals 1-19 add -te; 20+ add -ste. Irregulars: erste, dritte, siebte, achte. German dates are day.month.year. The halb trap: halb drei = 2:30 (halfway TO three, not half past three).
halb drei
— 2:30 (NOT 3:30!)
💡 Halb counts FORWARD to the next hour
Heute ist der erste Januar.
— Today is the 1st of January.
vierzehn Uhr dreißig
— 14:30 (official/24-hour time)
💡 Official time: hour + Uhr + minutes
⚠️ Common Mistake: halb acht = 7:30, NOT 8:30. If a colleague says 'Treffen um halb acht' and you arrive at 8:30, you are one hour late.
💡 Study Tip: morgen (lowercase) = tomorrow. der Morgen (capitalised) = the morning. Context and capitalisation distinguish them.
6. Quick Review: Greetings & Farewells (Lesson 0.6)
When in doubt, use Sie (always capitalised). Greetings follow the clock. Gute Nacht is only for bedtime.
Guten Morgen (until ~11), Guten Tag (~11-18), Guten Abend (after ~18). Hallo works anytime informally. Regional: Moin (north), Grüß Gott/Servus (south/Austria), Grüezi (Switzerland). Farewells: Auf Wiedersehen (in person), Auf Wiederhören (phone), Tschüss (informal). Reply to any good wish with 'Danke, gleichfalls!' du = friends/family/children; Sie = strangers/officials/older people.
Wie geht es Ihnen? — Danke, gut. Und Ihnen?
— How are you? (formal) — Thanks, good. And you?
Auf Wiederhören!
— Goodbye! (on the phone)
💡 Wiederhören = hear again (phone)
Danke, gleichfalls!
— Thanks, likewise!
💡 Universal reply to any good wish
⚠️ Common Mistake: Gute Nacht is NOT a greeting. Never use it at 10 PM to say hello — use Guten Abend. Gute Nacht means 'sleep well'.
💡 Study Tip: Bitte is the Swiss army knife of German: please, you're welcome, here you go, and (as a question) pardon?
📖 Study Offline with the Official German A1 Ebook (PDF)
Get the Ebook →
Get all 45 days, 1,500+ vocabulary words, and Goethe exam practice formatted into a 274-page printable PDF.
📖 Core Vocabulary / Wortschatz (45 Words)
Click 🔊 to hear correct German pronunciation. Nouns are marked with articles: der (masculine) die (feminine) das (neuter).
| Audio | German | English | Type | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| dasAlphabet | the alphabet | noun (neuter) |
Das deutsche Alphabet hat 26 Buchstaben. (The German alphabet has 26 letters.)
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| derBuchstabe | the letter (of alphabet) | noun (masc.) |
Wie heißt dieser Buchstabe? (What is this letter called?)
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| buchstabieren | to spell | verb |
Können Sie das bitte buchstabieren? (Can you spell that, please?)
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| derUmlaut | the umlaut | noun (masc.) |
Ä, Ö und Ü sind Umlaute. (Ä, Ö, and Ü are umlauts.)
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| dieAussprache | the pronunciation | noun (fem.) |
Die Aussprache ist wichtig. (Pronunciation is important.)
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| dieZahl | the number | noun (fem.) |
Welche Zahl ist das? (What number is that?)
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| dieNummer | the number (phone/room) | noun (fem.) |
Meine Nummer ist null-eins-sieben-vier. (My number is 0-1-7-4.)
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| derEuro | the euro | noun (masc.) |
Das kostet fünf Euro. (That costs five euros.)
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| derCent | the cent | noun (masc.) |
Und sechzig Cent zurück. (And sixty cents back.)
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| kosten | to cost | verb |
Was kosten die Äpfel? (How much are the apples?)
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| wie viel | how much | interrogative |
Wie viel kostet das? (How much does that cost?)
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| derTag | the day | noun (masc.) |
Welcher Tag ist heute? (What day is today?)
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| dieWoche | the week | noun (fem.) |
Die Woche hat sieben Tage. (The week has seven days.)
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| derMonat | the month | noun (masc.) |
Welcher Monat ist jetzt? (What month is it now?)
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| dasJahr | the year | noun (neuter) |
Das Jahr hat zwölf Monate. (The year has twelve months.)
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| dieUhr | the clock / o'clock | noun (fem.) |
Es ist drei Uhr. (It is three o'clock.)
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| dieStunde | the hour | noun (fem.) |
Eine Stunde hat sechzig Minuten. (An hour has sixty minutes.)
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| dieMinute | the minute | noun (fem.) |
Wir haben noch zehn Minuten. (We still have ten minutes.)
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| derGeburtstag | the birthday | noun (masc.) |
Mein Geburtstag ist im Mai. (My birthday is in May.)
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| derTermin | the appointment | noun (masc.) |
Ich hätte gern einen Termin. (I would like an appointment.)
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| heute | today | adverb |
Heute ist Montag. (Today is Monday.)
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| morgen | tomorrow | adverb |
Bis morgen! (See you tomorrow!)
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| gestern | yesterday | adverb |
Gestern war Sonntag. (Yesterday was Sunday.)
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| Guten Morgen | Good morning | greeting |
Guten Morgen! Wie geht es Ihnen? (Good morning! How are you?)
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| Guten Tag | Good day / Hello | greeting |
Guten Tag, Frau Klein. (Good day, Ms Klein.)
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| Guten Abend | Good evening | greeting |
Guten Abend! Willkommen! (Good evening! Welcome!)
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| Auf Wiedersehen | Goodbye (in person) | farewell |
Auf Wiedersehen, Herr Özdemir! (Goodbye, Mr Özdemir!)
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| Auf Wiederhören | Goodbye (on phone) | farewell |
Danke für den Termin. Auf Wiederhören! (Thanks for the appointment. Goodbye!)
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| Tschüss | Bye (informal) | farewell |
Tschüss! Bis bald! (Bye! See you soon!)
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| Wie geht es Ihnen? | How are you? (formal) | phrase |
Wie geht es Ihnen? — Danke, gut. (How are you? — Thanks, good.)
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| Freut mich | Pleased to meet you | phrase |
Mein Name ist Bauer. Freut mich! (My name is Bauer. Pleased to meet you!)
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| Entschuldigung | Excuse me / Sorry | interjection |
Entschuldigung, können Sie das wiederholen? (Excuse me, can you repeat that?)
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| bitte | please / you're welcome | particle |
Zwei Kilo Äpfel, bitte. (Two kilos of apples, please.)
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| danke | thank you | particle |
Danke schön! (Thank you very much!)
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| Danke, gleichfalls! | Thanks, likewise! | phrase |
Schönen Tag noch! — Danke, gleichfalls! (Have a nice day! — Thanks, likewise!)
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| Ich verstehe nicht. | I do not understand. | phrase |
Entschuldigung, ich verstehe nicht. (Sorry, I do not understand.)
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| Wie bitte? | Pardon? / Sorry, what? | phrase |
Wie bitte? Können Sie das wiederholen? (Pardon? Can you repeat that?)
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| wiederholen | to repeat | verb |
Können Sie das bitte wiederholen? (Can you please repeat that?)
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| langsamer | more slowly | adverb (comparative) |
Können Sie bitte langsamer sprechen? (Can you please speak more slowly?)
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| diePrüfung | the test / exam | noun (fem.) |
Ich habe morgen eine Prüfung. (I have an exam tomorrow.)
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| dieAntwort | the answer | noun (fem.) |
Die Antwort ist richtig. (The answer is correct.)
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| richtig | correct / right | adjective |
Das ist richtig! (That is correct!)
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| falsch | wrong / false | adjective |
Die Antwort ist falsch. (The answer is wrong.)
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| sehr gut | very good | phrase |
Sehr gut! Alles richtig! (Very good! Everything correct!)
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| Alles klar? | All clear? / Everything OK? | phrase |
Alles klar? Dann weiter zu Modul 1! (All clear? Then on to Module 1!)
|
💬 Key Conversational Phrases / Redemittel
Wie schreibt man das?
How do you spell that? · Asking for spelling of a name or word
Können Sie das bitte buchstabieren?
Can you spell that, please? · Formal request for letter-by-letter spelling
Wie spät ist es?
What time is it? · Asking for the current time
Um wie viel Uhr?
At what time? · Asking when something takes place
Der Wievielte ist heute?
What is the date today? · Asking for the calendar date
Ich habe am ... Geburtstag.
My birthday is on the ... · Stating your birthday with ordinal date
Wie viel kostet das?
How much does that cost? · Asking for a price
Können Sie das wiederholen, bitte?
Can you repeat that, please? · When you did not catch what was said
Können Sie bitte langsamer sprechen?
Can you speak more slowly, please? · When someone speaks too fast
Wie geht es Ihnen? / Wie geht's?
How are you? (formal / informal) · Standard greeting follow-up
Danke, gut. Und Ihnen? / Und dir?
Fine, thanks. And you? (formal / informal) · Returning the how-are-you question
Danke, gleichfalls!
Thanks, likewise! · Universal reply to any good wish
Sprechen Sie Englisch?
Do you speak English? · Emergency fallback phrase
Ich spreche nur ein bisschen Deutsch.
I only speak a little German. · Setting expectations about your German level
🗣️ Practical Dialogue / Dialog
Situation: Prüfungsgespräch: Alles zusammen (Putting It All Together)
Maria:
Guten Morgen!
Good morning!
Herr Braun:
Guten Morgen! Willkommen bei der Sprachschule. Wie ist Ihr Name?
Good morning! Welcome to the language school. What is your name?
Maria:
Mein Name ist Gonzalez, Maria Gonzalez.
My name is Gonzalez, Maria Gonzalez.
Herr Braun:
Wie schreibt man das? Können Sie das bitte buchstabieren?
How do you spell that? Can you spell that, please?
Maria:
Ge-O-En-Zett-A-El-E-Zett.
G-O-N-Z-A-L-E-Z.
Herr Braun:
Danke. Wie alt sind Sie?
Thank you. How old are you?
Maria:
Ich bin sechsundzwanzig.
I am twenty-six.
Herr Braun:
Gut. Ihr Kurs beginnt am Mittwoch, dem dritten September, um halb neun.
Good. Your course starts on Wednesday the 3rd of September at half past eight.
Maria:
Halb neun — also acht Uhr dreißig?
Half nine — so eight thirty?
Herr Braun:
Genau, acht Uhr dreißig. Hier ist Ihr Buch. Das macht fünfundzwanzig Euro.
Exactly, eight thirty. Here is your book. That will be twenty-five euros.
Maria:
Hier sind dreißig Euro.
Here is thirty euros.
Herr Braun:
Und fünf Euro zurück. Wie geht es Ihnen übrigens?
And five euros back. How are you, by the way?
Maria:
Danke, gut, aber ein bisschen nervös! Und Ihnen?
Thanks, good, but a little nervous! And you?
Herr Braun:
Sehr gut, danke! Dann bis Mittwoch, Frau Gonzalez. Schönen Tag noch!
Very good, thank you! Then until Wednesday, Ms Gonzalez. Have a nice day!
Maria:
Danke, gleichfalls! Auf Wiedersehen!
Thanks, likewise! Goodbye!