vocabulary
How Germans actually talk: 25 everyday phrases with real dialogues
2026-10-01
Textbook German is polite, complete and a little stiff. "Guten Tag, wie geht es Ihnen?" "Danke, sehr gut, und Ihnen?" Real Germans, on a normal Tuesday, sound more like this: "Na?" "Na?" "Alles klar?" "Joa, passt."
That's not bad German. It's efficient German. A handful of tiny phrases do most of the social work in everyday conversations: agreeing, shrugging, apologizing, saying thanks and saying goodbye. Learn them and you'll understand far more of what's going on around you, and you'll sound a lot less like a phrasebook.
Below are the 25 phrases we hear most, from our first YouTube video, in four short dialogues you can listen to. Each phrase is highlighted where it appears. All 30 phrases from the video are on the everyday German phrase page with example sentences and audio.
Scene 1: Paying at a café
Ordering is the easy part. Paying is where German cafés get interesting. The server will usually come to your table and ask Zusammen oder getrennt? (together or separate?), because splitting the check is completely normal in Germany.
Tipping works differently too. Instead of leaving money on the table, you tell the server the total you want to pay, or round up and say Stimmt so ("that's right like that"), meaning keep the change. Around 5 to 10 percent is a normal tip at a restaurant or café.
Zahlen, bitte!
Mia and Jonas are finishing coffee and cake. The server comes over.
- Mia: Zahlen, bitte! (Check, please!)
- Kellner: Gerne. Zusammen oder getrennt? (Sure. Together or separate?)
- Jonas: Zusammen. Lass mal, ich lade dich ein. (Together. Nah, I got this, it's my treat.)
- Mia: Echt jetzt? Danke! (Seriously? Thanks!)
- Kellner: Das macht 18,40 Euro. (That's 18.40 euros.)
- Jonas: Hier sind zwanzig. Stimmt so. (Here's twenty. Keep the change.)
- Kellner: Vielen Dank! Schönen Tag noch! (Thanks a lot! Have a nice day!)
- Mia: Danke, gleichfalls! (Thanks, you too!)
Lass mal stops someone from doing something, nicely. It's the go-to phrase when you want to pay for a friend: Lass mal, ich lade dich ein (nah, I got this, it's on me). Echt jetzt? means "seriously?" and works for good surprises and bad ones alike.
Scene 2: Making plans
This is where the shortest phrases live. Na? is a full greeting on its own: hello, how are you and what's up, in two letters. Answer with Na? back, or with Gut, und dir?
Keine Ahnung is the everyday "no idea", and Egal means "whatever" or "I don't mind". Careful with the second one: Das ist mir egal can sound like "I couldn't care less" if your tone is flat. Keinen Bock (not feeling it) is very casual, so keep it for friends, and never use it with your boss.
Was machst du heute Abend?
Lena calls her friend Sam on a Friday afternoon.
- Lena: Na? Was machst du heute Abend? (Hey, what's up? What are you doing tonight?)
- Sam: Keine Ahnung. Und du? (No idea. You?)
- Lena: Wir gehen ins Kino. Kommst du mit? (We're going to the movies. Want to come?)
- Sam: Welcher Film? (Which movie?)
- Lena: Egal, irgendwas Lustiges. (Doesn't matter, something funny.)
- Sam: Hm, eigentlich hab ich keinen Bock auf Kino. (Hmm, honestly, I'm not feeling a movie.)
- Lena: Schade! Dann vielleicht morgen? (Aw, too bad! Maybe tomorrow, then?)
- Sam: Vielleicht. Ich sag Bescheid! Danke fürs Fragen. (Maybe. I'll let you know! Thanks for asking.)
- Lena: Kein Ding! Alles klar, mach's gut! (No problem! Alright, take care!)
Schade! is the polite "aw, too bad" when plans fall through. Sag Bescheid! (let me know) comes from Bescheid sagen, to give someone a heads-up, and it's one of the most useful verbs in German everyday life. Kein Ding! is the relaxed answer to "thanks", a bit like "no problem" or "sure thing". Alles klar means "got it" or "alright", and as a question (Alles klar?) it asks if everything's okay. And Mach's gut! is a warm "take care".
Scene 3: Monday at the office
Offices have their own small vocabulary. Mahlzeit! (literally "mealtime") is how many Germans greet colleagues in the hallway around lunch, and the answer is simply Mahlzeit! back. You'll hear it more in traditional offices and factories than in a Berlin startup.
Mahlzeit!
Murat and Anna run into each other on the way to the company cafeteria.
- Murat: Mahlzeit! (Hi! (around lunchtime))
- Anna: Mahlzeit! Gehst du auch in die Kantine? (Hi! Heading to the cafeteria too?)
- Murat: Genau. Hast du die Mail vom Chef gesehen? Das Meeting ist morgen um sieben. (Yep. Did you see the boss's email? The meeting is tomorrow at seven.)
- Anna: Um sieben? Quatsch! Um elf. (At seven? Nonsense! At eleven.)
- Murat: Ach so! Dann ist ja gut. (Oh, I see! Well, that's fine then.)
- Anna: Die Präsentation ist aber noch nicht fertig, oder? (But the presentation isn't finished yet, right?)
- Murat: Doch! Seit gestern. (Yes, it is! Since yesterday.)
- Anna: Krass! Dann machen wir heute pünktlich Feierabend. (Wow! Then we're leaving on time today.)
This scene has the most important little word on the list: Doch!. English has no direct equivalent. Doch is a "yes" that contradicts a negative. Anna asks "the presentation isn't finished, right?", and a plain "Ja" would be confusing (yes, it isn't?). Doch! means "yes, it is!". Once you start using it, you'll wonder how English gets by without it.
The others are quick wins. Genau (exactly) is how Germans agree all day long; you'll hear it every few minutes. Quatsch! means "nonsense!", and it's friendly, not rude. Ach so! is the sound of something finally making sense: "Oh, I see!". ..., oder? works like "right?" at the end of a sentence. Krass! is an all-purpose "whoa", for good and bad news. And Feierabend is the end of the workday, the most cherished word in this whole list.
Scene 4: The train is late (again)
Deutsche Bahn delays are a national running joke, which makes the train platform a great place to learn how Germans complain politely. Notice that Ella and Paul are strangers, so they use Sie: that's why Paul says Machen Sie's gut! instead of Mach's gut!.
Der Zug hat Verspätung
Hamburg main station. Ella bumps into Paul's suitcase while looking at the departures board.
- Ella: Oh, Entschuldigung! Das war Ihr Koffer. (Oh, sorry! That was your suitcase.)
- Paul: Passt schon. Moin! (No worries. Hi!)
- Ella: Moin! Fahren Sie auch nach Berlin? (Hi! Are you going to Berlin too?)
- Paul: Ja, aber der Zug hat zwanzig Minuten Verspätung. (Yes, but the train is twenty minutes late.)
- Ella: Mist! Dann verpasse ich meinen Anschluss. (Shoot! Then I'll miss my connection.)
- Paul: Na ja, vielleicht wartet der Anschluss ja. (Well, maybe the connection will wait.)
- Ella: Stimmt. Kann ja sein. (True. Could be.)
- Paul: Gute Reise! Machen Sie's gut! (Have a good trip! Take care!)
- Ella: Danke, Ihnen auch! (Thanks, you too!)
Passt schon (it's fine, no worries) is what you say when someone apologizes for something small. Moin! is the classic greeting in northern Germany, used at any time of day, even in the evening. In Bavaria and Austria you'll hear Servus! instead, which works for hello and goodbye.
Mist! is the polite way to swear: "shoot!" or "darn!". The rude version starts with Sch, and you already know it. Na ja is a hesitant "well..." or "meh", and Stimmt means "true" or "that's right". Fun detail: Stimmt and Stimmt so come from the same verb, stimmen (to be correct), but one agrees with you and the other gives the server a tip.
Match them up
Ten of the phrases, ten meanings. Drag each German phrase onto its meaning (or tap one, then the other). The score counts the pairs you match on the first try.
Match the phrase to the meaning
Two rounds of five. Use the speaker to hear each phrase.
- Doch!: Yes, it is! (after a no)
- Passt schon.: No worries.
- Stimmt so.: Keep the change.
- Keinen Bock.: Not feeling it.
- Sag Bescheid!: Let me know!
- Kein Ding!: No problem!
- Lass mal.: Nah, I got this.
- Na ja.: Well... meh.
- Ach so!: Oh, I see!
- Mist!: Shoot! Darn!
Why textbooks skip these
Textbooks are written to be correct, complete and clear, so they model full sentences: "Ja, das stimmt." "Nein, ich habe keine Lust." Real conversation is faster and leans on context. "Stimmt." "Keinen Bock." Both are correct German; they just belong to different situations. A good rule of thumb: with strangers and in writing, use the full sentence. With friends, colleagues and anyone you say du to, the short phrases sound natural and friendly.
The five we left out
The video has 30 phrases, and five didn't make it into the dialogues above:
- Hä? is a blunt "huh? what?". Fine with friends, but with strangers say Wie bitte?
- Na und? means "so what?", and it can sound cheeky.
- Alter! is "dude!" or "whoa, man!", for friends only.
- Läuft bei dir! is "look at you, killing it!", often used ironically.
- Servus! is hello and goodbye in Bavaria and Austria.
How to make these phrases your own
Knowing 25 phrases is nice. Using them without thinking is the goal. Here's what works:
- Pick three a week. This week, try Genau, Stimmt and Na?. Use each one at least once a day, even if it's just with yourself.
- Listen for them. Once you know them, you'll hear Genau and Doch everywhere: in podcasts, on the train, in German shows on Netflix. Every time you notice one, it sticks a little better.
- Practice the answers, not just the phrases. Most of these come in pairs: Danke, Kein Ding. Entschuldigung, Passt schon. Schönen Tag noch, Gleichfalls.
- Copy the melody. Na? goes up. Ach so! goes down. Doch! is short and firm. Play the dialogues above and repeat each line out loud.
- Mind du and Sie. Most of these phrases work with anyone, but a few change with Sie: Mach's gut becomes Machen Sie's gut, and Sag Bescheid becomes Sagen Sie Bescheid. Genau, Stimmt, Passt schon and Kein Problem are safe with everyone. Keinen Bock, Alter and Hä? are not.
When you want to go further, our Gen Z slang guide covers the next layer (Digga, Ehre, Das crazy), and the German word lists give you the nouns to go with your new phrases.
How did you do?
Your score from the matching game.