Top 10 German idioms | Culture| Arts, music and lifestyle reporting from Germany | DW | 17.02.2014

We use cookies to improve our service for you. You can find more information in our data protection declaration.

More info OK
  1. Inhalt
  2. Navigation
  3. Weitere Inhalte
  4. Metanavigation
  5. Suche
  6. Choose from 30 Languages

Culture

Top 10 German idioms

When it comes to German, legendary for its linguistic precision, there's often little room for interpretation. But even German sometimes strays from its literal roots, leaving some of us scratching our heads.

  • Glücksbringer fürs neue Jahr

    Having pig

    If you've won the lottery, aced an exam that you didn't study for, or escaped being recruited for an unwanted task, lucky you! "Schwein gehabt!" You had a pig. In many cultures, pigs serve their main purpose on dinner plates. In Germany they do too - but, oddly enough, they also happen to be lucky.

  • Kaffeepötte in warmen Farben Flash-Galerie

    Not all cups in the cupboard

    If he doesn't have "alle Tassen im Schrank," then he happens to be crazy. English speakers would similarly say he's gone mad, or he's "lost his marbles."

  • Inter City Express ICE Zug Deutsche Bahn

    I understand only train station

    The German phrase, "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof," doesn't mean the speaker speaks only the language of train stations. Rather, the statement indicates utter confusion. A comparable English phrase would be, "It's all Greek to me."

  • Pferde auf einer Weide

    Life is not a pony farm

    Suck it up, cowboy. When the going gets tough, someone is bound to remind you that "das Leben ist kein Ponyhof." In other words, life isn't fair, it's not a bed of roses, nor is it a bowl of cherries.

  • Symbolbild Nase Makrofotografie

    I have the nose full

    "Ich habe die Nase voll" could potentially be interpreted to mean aning that someone needs a tissue. But more than likely it means enough is enough: The speaker is fed up with a particular situation.

  • Sprachbar Deutschkurse Biersorten im Glas

    Hop and malt is lost

    The idiom stems from beer brewing - surprise! What would a list of German idioms be without reference to amber nectar? If "Hopfen und Malz is verloren," then you'd better just give up hope because it is a lost cause. Should something go wrong in the brewing process, the ingredients were considered wasted, and a good beer was thus, a lost cause.

  • Silvester 2013/2014 Berlin

    Beautiful celebration night!

    If your colleagues wish you a "schönen Feierabend" after a day in the office, they're hoping you have a pleasurable post-work evening. Don't be fooled by hard-working Germans: They know how to play just as hard. So much in fact, that once Germans clock out - even after a night shift that ends at 6:00 am - the remainder of the day is considered a party.

  • Deutschland Wurst

    It's sausage to me

    Now that you're off work, maybe you're open to suggestions on how to spend your post-work celebration. If it doesn't matter what you do, tell your friends, "es ist mir Wurst," and they'll know you're not talking about sausage, but that you really don't have an opinion one way or another.

  • Symbolbild Daumen drücken

    I press my thumbs for you

    When they're wishing you good luck, friends will say "Ich drücke dir die Daumen" and may even raise their fists upwards to show you. In English, this good-will sentiment includes the hands, but fingers are crossed instead of pressed.

  • Deutschland Dackelrennen

    Lies have short legs

    Stretching the truth might work in the short term, but it won't last. In the long run, "Lügen haben kurze Beine," which means the falsehood won't withstand time and could at some point come back to haunt you. The only thing these Dachshunds have in common with lies, is that they also have short legs.


  • Glücksbringer fürs neue Jahr

    Having pig

    If you've won the lottery, aced an exam that you didn't study for, or escaped being recruited for an unwanted task, lucky you! "Schwein gehabt!" You had a pig. In many cultures, pigs serve their main purpose on dinner plates. In Germany they do too - but, oddly enough, they also happen to be lucky.

  • Kaffeepötte in warmen Farben Flash-Galerie

    Not all cups in the cupboard

    If he doesn't have "alle Tassen im Schrank," then he happens to be crazy. English speakers would similarly say he's gone mad, or he's "lost his marbles."

  • Inter City Express ICE Zug Deutsche Bahn

    I understand only train station

    The German phrase, "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof," doesn't mean the speaker speaks only the language of train stations. Rather, the statement indicates utter confusion. A comparable English phrase would be, "It's all Greek to me."

  • Pferde auf einer Weide

    Life is not a pony farm

    Suck it up, cowboy. When the going gets tough, someone is bound to remind you that "das Leben ist kein Ponyhof." In other words, life isn't fair, it's not a bed of roses, nor is it a bowl of cherries.

  • Symbolbild Nase Makrofotografie

    I have the nose full

    "Ich habe die Nase voll" could potentially be interpreted to mean aning that someone needs a tissue. But more than likely it means enough is enough: The speaker is fed up with a particular situation.

  • Sprachbar Deutschkurse Biersorten im Glas

    Hop and malt is lost

    The idiom stems from beer brewing - surprise! What would a list of German idioms be without reference to amber nectar? If "Hopfen und Malz is verloren," then you'd better just give up hope because it is a lost cause. Should something go wrong in the brewing process, the ingredients were considered wasted, and a good beer was thus, a lost cause.

  • Silvester 2013/2014 Berlin

    Beautiful celebration night!

    If your colleagues wish you a "schönen Feierabend" after a day in the office, they're hoping you have a pleasurable post-work evening. Don't be fooled by hard-working Germans: They know how to play just as hard. So much in fact, that once Germans clock out - even after a night shift that ends at 6:00 am - the remainder of the day is considered a party.

  • Deutschland Wurst

    It's sausage to me

    Now that you're off work, maybe you're open to suggestions on how to spend your post-work celebration. If it doesn't matter what you do, tell your friends, "es ist mir Wurst," and they'll know you're not talking about sausage, but that you really don't have an opinion one way or another.

  • Symbolbild Daumen drücken

    I press my thumbs for you

    When they're wishing you good luck, friends will say "Ich drücke dir die Daumen" and may even raise their fists upwards to show you. In English, this good-will sentiment includes the hands, but fingers are crossed instead of pressed.

  • Deutschland Dackelrennen

    Lies have short legs

    Stretching the truth might work in the short term, but it won't last. In the long run, "Lügen haben kurze Beine," which means the falsehood won't withstand time and could at some point come back to haunt you. The only thing these Dachshunds have in common with lies, is that they also have short legs.


Related content

Glücksbringer fürs neue Jahr

Is your pig whistling? Quirky German idioms featuring pigs 04.02.2019

It's the Chinese Year of the Pig — time to let out the sow, as they say in Germany. From whistling pigs to the sow's claw, the German language has many quirky idioms featuring this porky animal.

Tomaten auf den Augen (Symbolbild)

From head to toe — quirky German idioms based on body parts 23.01.2019

Idioms based on body parts are popular in both English and German, but they aren't identical. In Germany, stones drop from hearts and some people live on big feet.

Symbolbild: Ein Mann hält sich ein elektronisches Buch, E-Book-Reader, ein anderer Mann ein konventionelles Buch vor das Gesicht

German book market: Between crisis and hope 11.01.2019

The book branch is in a crisis as fewer people are reading print and younger generations are turning to their smartphone. A look at the facts that show developments in Germany's book industry.

Advertisement

Film

Berlinale Film By the Grace of God (Jean-Claude Moireau)

French court allows release of Francois Ozon's Church abuse film

Berlin's Grand Jury Prize-winning film, "By the Grace of God" by Francois Ozon, puts an ongoing Catholic Church sexual abuse trial in the spotlight. The accused priest wanted the film's release to be blocked in France. 

Arts

Brexit Zeichnen für ein Europa (2019 Beltz & Gelberg)

'Drawing Europe Together': Illustrators against Brexit

How do you illustrate the idea of Europe? A book project initiated by Gruffalo-creator Axel Scheffler collects 45 works of artists who feel the UK should not leave the EU. 

Music

„Unser Lied für Israel“: Aly Ryan (NDR/Brian Tampol)

Eurovision: German acts vying to become the 2019 national entry

Who will represent Germany at the Eurovision Song Contest in Israel? Following a long and complicated selection process, here are the contenders. Public voting and a panel of experts are to decide on the winner.  

Arts.21

GMF 2018 women in culture (DW/R. Stewart)

#MeToo: How has it changed the arts?

The #metoo and "Time's Up" movements have reshifted the balance of power in arts and culture. At DW's Global Media Forum in Bonn, a panel of prominent women discuss the seismic changes underway. 

Digital Culture

Facebook - Dislike (picture alliance / dpa)

15 years on, is it time to #DeleteFacebook?

What started as an online student directory aimed at ranking women by their looks quickly grew into the world's most popular social media platform. But as DW's Courtney Tenz argues, we might be happier Facebook free.