German vocabulary

10 best online German dictionaries

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If you live in Germany, online German dictionaries are a daily necessity. I think that no one remembers paper dictionaries anymore. The choice, however, is not so rich.

German picture description phrases and sequence
Basic German. 4. Time and prepositions of time in German and other grammar posts
Difference between merken and bemerken and other words for memory and notice and other German synonyms
All posts for #New in Germany
Giving direction essay in German. Wegbeschreibung
Idioms in German with meaning stupidity, madness

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Difference between merken and bemerken and other words for memory and notice

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The difference between merken and bemerken is at the formal level, in shades of meaning and in other meanings of these words. Additionally, let’s take the words wahrnehmen, erkennen, sich erinnern, einprägen, memorieren.

As you can easily guess, the root of the word comes from Marke – a mark. Hence all the meanings: made a mark – remembered, made a mark – noticed, made a mark (verbal) – that is, made a remark.

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Difference between ändern and verändern, verwandeln, wechseln and tauschen

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This topic is about the difference between ändern and verändern, verwandeln, wechseln and tauschen. You can change slightly and completely, in a positive or negative sense, externally or internally.

It can be also interesting:
Basic German. 4. Time and prepositions of time in German
Betrag or Beitrag, vertragen or ertragen and other members of tragen family
German picture description phrases and sequence
Difference between steigen, steigern, erhöhen, erheben, zulegen, zunehmen
German idioms about talking

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Betrag or Beitrag, vertragen or ertragen and other members of tragen family

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The tragen family is not as numerous as the drucken / drücken family we once analyzed, however, short, similar words often get confused in the mind, especially the sweet couple Betrag or Beitrag.

It can be also interesting
German synonyms. öffnen – offen – aufmachen
Dialogues b1 Deutsch Test für Zuwanderer
Receive: erhalten or bekommen, kriegen, beziehen, erlangen
Conjunctions in sentences. Different word order
Difference between ändern and verändern, verwandeln, wechseln and tauschen

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Picture description in German B1. Deutschtest für Zuwanderer

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This thread lists the pictures for picture description in German that people saw in real exams Deutschtest für Zuwanderer (Niveau B1) and that were collected by me on the forums. For the basic principles and useful phrases for picture description, see the first part.

Part 1. German picture description useful phrases

All about DTZ (Deutschtest für Zuwanderer):
Read about German test b1 Deutschtest für Zuwanderer (DTZ).
German Writing for Exam B1: Letters 1, Letters 2, Letters 3, Letters 4, Letters 5, Letters 6
Dialogues for B1 test 1, Dialogues 2
Questions and anworts for the Leben in Deutschland test.

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German picture description phrases and sequence

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Having dealt with letters examples and dialogue topics for b1 test, we move on to the next topic – German picture description phrases for DTZ. The picture description is called Bildbeschreibung. This task is used in the exam up to level B1, then something more substantial is usually used, like a diagram or graph. In … Read more

Aufmachen or öffnen or offen or eröffnen

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To this day, every time I have to ask when an institution or store is open, I am agonizingly unsure which word to use. Aufmachen, öffnen or offen or geöffnet? Or, to be sure, just auf? What difference between öffnen and eröffnen?

Also aufschlagen, andrehen, aufschließen can mean “open closed”. Let’s start with them, so as not to get in the way.

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Difference between steigen, steigern, erhöhen, erheben, zulegen, zunehmen

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Increase, raise, rise – there is not one, but several rows of synonyms at once. Let’s search difference between steigen and steigern, erhöhen and erheben, zulegen and zunehmen…

First look at steigen, steigern, erhöhen. All of them suppose changing the level.

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Giving direction essay in German. Wegbeschreibung

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Giving direction essay (Wegbeschreibung) pops up several times in different grades and at different levels. Not all teachers decide to write this essay, some take it verbally. And in VERA in grade 3, too, there was a similar task.

The training method is very simple: we open a map of the area, a city plan (for example tourist plan from tourist office) and ask to give direction from and to.

To complicate things, we add additional conditions:
the boy was with gypsum, it was an old woman with a stick (you need a short and safe path without stairs),
it was a cyclist,
it was a tourist (wants a more interesting route),
it was a small kind (you need a safe path without streets crossings) etc.

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German dialogues b1 for Deutschtest für Zuwanderer. Part 2

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In the first part we organized holidays, shopping trips and walks, now we will learn German dialogues b1 about help and advise.

DTZ German dialogues b1 Part 1
Read about German test b1 Deutschtest für Zuwanderer (DTZ).
German Writing for Exam B1: Letters 1, Letters 2, Letters 3, Letters 4, Letters 5, Letters 6
Questions and anworts for the Leben in Deutschland test.

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Dialogues b1 Deutsch Test für Zuwanderer

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Diealogues are part of Deutsch Test für Zuwanderer. First you speak about yourself, then you describe a picture and have to speak with your partner. I give possible topics for this part. Tasks are taken from reviews of real exams shared in Internet.

German dialogues b1 for DTZ. Part 2
Read about German test b1 Deutschtest für Zuwanderer (DTZ).
German Writing for Exam B1: Letters 1, Letters 2, Letters 3, Letters 4, Letters 5, Letters 6
German picture description phrases and sequence
Picture description in German B1. Deutschtest für Zuwanderer
Questions and anworts for the Leben in Deutschland test.

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German synonyms. Receive: erhalten or bekommen, kriegen, beziehen, erlangen

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In this thread, synonyms with the meaning “receive” are in the center. These are the words erhalten or bekommen and also kriegen, beziehen and erlangen. In addition, let’s take a look at enthalten – the word that is always confused with erhalten.

Let’s start with the simplest.

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Idioms in German with meaning stupidity, madness. Part 2

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Several additionally found idioms in German with meaning stupidity from modern books and blogs. They have not yet entered the dictionaries, and probably not all will. But the frequency can be high as they are in vogue now.

I chose more interesting idioms, but did not take the more offensive ones.

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Idioms in German with meaning stupidity, madness. Part 1

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The dignity of a person never collects so many idioms, full of artistic images, as swearing. Opportunity to unburden himself, especially expressively stigmatizing the mental abilities of the opponent, is dear to everyone.

And native speakers of German have made a big contribution to this topic. During the collection of the material, I thought that I would drown under the number of expressions. Frequency is often difficult to determine. I didn’t take outdated ones. Found in texts and included in the popular lists are in bold.

Stupidity can be lack of intelligence, insanity, misunderstanding and error. Let’s start with the first and second, since the border between them is not very clear.

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Anki cloze – type answer

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Previously, I told you how to use a ready-made deck, how to set up your own cards, about useful functions. Next time I’ll tell you about automatic sound for your cards. And this time about Anki Cloze. And not simply Cloze, but with typing answer.

Cloze is a special note’s type. You can skip a word or some words or whole sentence. Programm show you a sentence with skipped places and you think, which words have to match.

In my cards I not only think, but also type words. It is great exercise for translation from native to foreign language.

It gives a lot:

  • the word is placed in context
  • you can train forms and prepositions
  • you can train meanings that are lost when we train a word without context. Many verbs have two or more very different meanings, each of which is often used in speech. But when studing a word, we study the first meaning well, and the second is often not learned or is forgotten.
  • you can study idioms

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30+ idioms in German with meaning astonished

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In this part I collect German idioms (Redewendungen) expressing surprise and astonish.

Expressions that are noted as “common” in sources or that I have come across in books are printed in bold. usg. – umgangssprachlich (colloquial)

It can be interesting:
German synonyms. öffnen – offen – aufmachen
Carnival vocabulary
Anki for German language. 1. Studying
Orientierungstest. 3. Political system and elections
German. False participles

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Difference between beziehungsweise, respektive, entsprechend

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This topic is about words with meaning “respectively” and “accordingly” – difference between beziehungsweise, respektive, entsprechend.

It was difficult, to out how to translate “respectively” in a sentence like “you can get to Niesen und Stockhorn with a train – stations Mülenen and Erlenbach, respectively.” Dictionaries usually pay much attention the meaning of “accordingly, in accordance with something”

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Idioms in German with meaning talk too much, too little

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We continue our German idioms list from field “talking”. This group with expression “talk too much or too little” is too big, therefore I made a separate post for them.

Idioms in German with meaning talk – Part 1
German synonyms. Difference between achten and beachten, aufpassen, Acht geben
Bilingual children
Conjunctions in sentences. Different word order
Basic German with tables. 3. Local prepositions
Others German idioms lists – see #idioms in german.

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German idioms about talking

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Idioms are one of the most interesting and difficult parts of a foreign language. Some are briefly mentioned in textbooks but more often ignored as grammar and basic vocabulary are preferred.

I make German idioms lists with a specific meaning – in this post with meaning “taking”, that is expression ´associated with the communication process. One group of such expressions turned out to be too large. I moved it separately to the second part

German idioms with meaning talking too much or too little
German picture description phrases and sequence
German synonyms. Difference between verschieden, unterschiedlich, anders
Riddle in German. Do you know what it is …
Deutschtest für Zuwanderer b1 (DTZ). German writing examples
Others posts with German idioms lists – see #idioms in german

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German. False participles

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geschlossene Tür – from schließen, so Gestiefelte Kater – from stiefeln and beanzugter Mann – from anzugen, really?

There is an original form of adjectives in German. They have a connection with nouns, but pretend that they are formed from verbs and have the form of participles. There are not many of these words, but they are among the very common ones.

The list differs in different sources, since some words still have corresponding verbs, but it is not certain that the word is derived from them, and not from nouns. It is not so important for us whether the verbs were lost along the way of history or whether these words were formed simply by analogy.

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