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1500 questions
63
votes
4 answers
Word meaning "to use" – "verwenden", "anwenden", "benutzen", "nutzen", "gebrauchen"
I understand 5 words to roughly mean to use:
verwenden
anwenden
benutzen
nutzen
gebrauchen
When is one of these preferred to the others?
I think that benutzen is the most commonly used of these, so I've been defaulting to it whenever something is…
Voriki
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60
votes
8 answers
Is it still good form to use a capital D for Du or Dir in a letter?
This question also has an answer here (in German):
Schriftliche Höflichkeitsformel – Du oder du
I was taught (several decades ago) to write a capital D for all pronouns such as Du, Dir, Deine, when writing to my German penpals.
I am afraid it…
ogerard
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58
votes
10 answers
Ist "wegen dir" falsch und nur "deinetwegen" richtig?
Ich habe Widersprüchliches darüber gelesen, ob die Verwendung der Präposition wegen + Pronomen im Dativ richtig oder falsch ist.
wegen mir, wegen dir, wegen ihm, wegen ihr usw.
Viele Leute behaupten, richtig sei nur
meinetwegen, deinetwegen,…
splattne
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58
votes
15 answers
Polite alternatives to "Grüß Gott"?
I'm looking for polite alternatives to the omnipresent
Grüß Gott
in Austria/Bavaria. I dislike using a religious phrase to salute others (potentially non religious persons). I'm also not very fond of
Guten Tag
as it is mostly associated with…
Sebastian
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57
votes
7 answers
Gibt es im Deutschen Reste von anderen grammatischen Fällen als den vier üblichen?
Ich habe mal gehört, dass das "Hause" in "zu Hause" ein Lokativ ist.
Gibt es noch andere Überbleibsel von ungewöhnlichen grammatischen Fällen im Deutschen?
Does German contain relics of other grammatical cases than the four usual ones?
I have heard…
Phira
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56
votes
2 answers
What is the German word for: "It only works when I try to show you how it does not work"?
In reading a web page on increasing word power, there was a German word with the definition that means:
It only works when I try to show you how it does not work.
Is there a single word in German to describe that situation?
user40125
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56
votes
28 answers
What movies are good for learners who want to improve their grammar and vocabulary?
This question is present as a matter of historical interest. While you are encouraged to help maintain its answers, please understand that "big list" questions are not generally allowed on German Language and Usage and will be closed per the…
Twelve47
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56
votes
5 answers
Was ist der Unterschied zwischen den Fragewörtern "wieso", "weshalb" und "warum"?
Wo liegt der Unterschied zwischen den Fragewörtern "wieso", "weshalb" und "warum"? Ist er regional, gibt es subtile Unterschiede in den Bedeutungen, oder gibt es noch einen anderen Grund für die Existenz so vieler ähnlicher Fragewörter?
Jan
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54
votes
5 answers
What is the origin of the rules about the capitalization of the first letter of each noun?
To my knowledge, German is the only language which capitalize the first letter of each of its nouns. Why is there such a rule?
Meines Wissens ist Deutsch die einzige Sprache, in der der erste Buchstabe eines Nomens groß geschrieben wird. Woher…
Eldros
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53
votes
5 answers
When to use "bezahlen" and when "zahlen"?
Leo shows that both bezahlen and zahlen are translated as "to pay". I noticed that people sometimes use the one, and sometimes the other.
So, when to use bezahlen and when zahlen?
BЈовић
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53
votes
6 answers
Dasselbe vs. das Gleiche, what's the difference?
How should one best interpret the difference between "dasselbe" and "das Gleiche" ? When should one use one or the other?
Is it correct that "dasselbe" is appropriate for concrete things, and "das Gleiche" is for the abstract idea? Is there much…
ghshtalt
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52
votes
12 answers
How is the ending -ig pronounced, and where?
I've heard the following alternatives for pronouncing the ending -ig of words like fertig and lustig:
/ɪç/ (as in mich)
/ɪʃ/ (as in Fisch)
/ɪg/
/ɪk/
Where are the different pronunciations used? Are there more alternatives?
Tim
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52
votes
6 answers
Why are "tomorrow" and "morning" the same in German?
I have encountered the following interesting (at least to me) fact, that in German the words tomorrow and morning have the same spelling: Morgen.
I have three questions here:
Do these words have the same meaning or they are just homographs?
How one…
LRDPRDX
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50
votes
3 answers
Where is exactly the position of "nicht" in the sentence?
A question came to my mind while I was reading a conversation in German:
Ich bin krank,
Ich kann nicht einkaufen.
Ich kann nicht mit Jonas zum Arzt gehen.
Ich kann Anna nicht in den Kindergarten bringen.
Ich kann Jonas' Lehrer nicht anrufen.
Why…
user508
49
votes
5 answers
How to use "hier", "dort" and "da" properly in German?
In English "here" and "there" are typical pairs to indicate space and distance. The same is true of Hungarian ("itt" and "ott").
But in German it's a bit different: I have seen "da" many times in contexts when I would have used "hier". And I have…
Andras Nemeth
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