It is always really helpful to know your numbers and the days of the week. Otherwise, if you were invited for "Ein Bier Dienstag um zwei." you might miss out on a good thing. You'd probably guess it had something to do with beer but you'd go thirsty at 2:00 on Tuesday.

For more blather on the German language, see Language section under German Culture.

Other words you need to know are:

Word	Meaning in English
Abfahrt	Departure, as in trains or busses
Abflug	Departure for airplanes
Absteigen	Dismount
Achtung	Attention!
Altstadt	Old Town area
Ankunft	Arrival, as in trains, busses or airplanes, etc.
Apotheke	Pharmacy that can dispense prescriptions
Aufpassen	Pay attention
Bahnhof, Hauptbahnhof (Bhf ,Hbf)	Train Station
Bar	Cash money
Belegte Brötchen	A sandwich made with a hard roll
Berg	Mountain
Blegt or Besetzt	Occupied, busy, or full up (a sign indicating "no vacancy")
Bett und Frühstrück	Bed and Breakfast
Bitte, Bitte schön	Please, You're Welcome
Brücke	Bridge
Burg, Wasserburg	Castle on a hill, Castle with a moat
Campingplatz	Campground
Danke, Danke schön	Thank you (don’t say “Donka Schane,” it makes you sound like Wayne Newton)
Dom	Cathedral
Drogerie	Drug store with “over the counter” remedies
Fähre / Rundfähre	Ferry
Fahrkarte / Ticket	Ticket
Fahrrad / Rad	Bicycle
Fahrrad freundlich	Bicycle Friendly
Ferienwohnung (FeWo)	Vacation Apartment abbreviated FeWo. See here.
Freilichtmuseum	Open-air museum
Frühstrück / mit Frühstrück	Breakfast / breakfast included
Fremdenzimmer	Overnight accommodation
Gästezimmer	Overnight accommodation
Gaststätte	Restaurant (some have overnight accommodations)
Gesperrt	Closed (such as a road closed)
Gleis	Track (in a train station)
Guten / Morgen /Tag / Abend	Good morning, Good day, Good evening
Imbiss	Snack Bar
Innenstadt	City Center
Ja / Nein (Ja-ein)	Yes / No (yes and no)
Jugendherberge	Youth Hostel
Kännchen Kaffee	A small pot of coffee (about 2 cups)
Karte / Radtourenkarte	Map / bicycle-touring map
Kirche	Church
Kloster	Monastery / convent (there is no such thing as a Nunestery)
Landstrasse	Primary road between towns, second only to Autobahn in traffic
Links / Rechts	Left / Right
Markt / Marktplatz	Market Place or Farmer’s Market
Mittagspause	Lunch or Lunch break
Münster	Minster / Cathedral
Nord / Süd / Ost / West	North / South / East / West
Ortsmitte / Stadtmitte	Town / City center
Pfad	Path
Rad	A Rad is a wheel but also a bicycle.
Radweg / Radfahrer / Radfernweg or Fernradweg	Bike Path / Bike rider / Long-distance Bike Path
Radverleih - Verleih	Bicycle for rent - short term rent of whatever
Radwanderweg	Bicycle Path
Reform Haus	Health food store
Richtung (Re)	Direction (used on public transportation to indicate destination)
Ruhetag	Day Off during the week. On this day, the business is closed
Schloss	Palace small castle
See	Lake
Spur	Lane, like on a road
Stadtzentrum	City Center
Tal, (as in Wesertal)	Valley, or Weser Valley
Tor / Stadttor	Gate / City gate
Tschüss	Ciao / good bye
Übernachtungsmöglichkeit	Over night possibility
Umleitung	Detour
Verboten	Forbidden
Verkehrsamt / Fremdenverkehrsamt	Tourist information office
Verleih - Radverleih	Bicycle rental firm or station
Vermieten / Fahrrad Vermietstationen	Rent / Bike rental station
Wald	Forest
WC	Water Closet (Toilet)
Weinprobe / Weinstube	Wine tasting / Wine drinking room
Zelt / Zelten	Tent / Camping or Tenting
Zimmer / Zimmer frei	Room or Rooms for Rent
Zug / Eissenbahn / Bahn	Train

I thank Nadine Slavinski of the Mountaineers from whose book, Germany by Bike, I borrowed heavily for this list. Her book may be purchased through The Mountaineers Books, 1011 SW Klickitat Way, Seattle, WA, 98134, USA or Amazon.com by clicking on the link in the left margin.

Revised: March 30, 2008

Word

Meaning in English