Now that we’ve got a handle on a bit of German grammar and a few German vocabulary words, we can dive into the conversational phrases that’ll help you ease into real-world conversations.

1. Learn German phrases in context

Now that we’ve got the ball rolling by building a grammatical base and pronunciation, we can put these skills to work with a few common German phrases. After all, once you get started, it’s all about moving forward one step at a time with a program like Rosetta Stone that contextualises your practise.

2. Start with some German modal verbs

Get rolling with a few of the most commonly used German verbs, which are modal verbs usually used to describe the relationship to a second verb. German has six modal verbs and while they have some irregular conjugations, learning these verbs can set you up for most basic German sentence structures. The six German modal verbs are:

• dürfen: allowed
• können: can
• mögen: to like
• müssen: have to
• sollen: should
• wollen: want

Once you learn these modal verbs and how to properly conjugate them in a sentence, you can speak and understand German phrases like the following with confidence.

Ich möchte gern ein Currywurst essen. I would like to eat a Currywurst.

3. Learn German expressions and greetings

The basic conversational building blocks are a great place to start. Simple phrases like good morning, how are you, etc. grease the wheels of daily conversation in most every language, including German.

• Guten Tag: Good day
• Wie geht es dir?: How are you?
• Bitte: Please
• Danke: Thank you

4. Practise German pronunciation daily

To feel confident in a learned language you need to practise speaking daily, so you become comfortable with pronunciation and confident speaking aloud. With Rosetta Stone’s bite-sized lessons and award-winning mobile app, you have it all at your fingertips. Rosetta Stone allows learners to connect, chat, and practise through an online community of language learners just like you.

You’ve dipped your toe into some of the German grammar constructs and modal verbs, but to get to the next level of confidence with the language, you’ll have to really dig in. The good part is while German may have lots of structure and rules, that also means it has less irregularities to memorise.

Tackle German prepositions and prefixes

Prepositions are small words that may seem inconsequential, but you’ll find them in nearly every sentence, and they make a big difference in the meaning of words. German prepositions can be tricky because they seem abstract, but there are some clues about which cases you should use with them, and we’ll point towards a couple examples and rules that can help.

German has prefixes that do double-duty in the language called separable prefixes. When added, these prefixes make a new word and change the meaning of the original verb. Let’s look at what happens if we add with (mit) to some common verbs.

• mit = with, along
• mitbringen = to bring along
• mitnehmen = to take along
• mitkommen = to come along

Other prefixes are inseparable. These prefixes must stay attached to the verb. We’ll look at apart (zer).

• zer = asunder, apart
• zerstören = to destroy
• zerreißen = to tear apart, rip

• zerbrechen = to break into pieces

Learn German connectors

Like other languages, connectors are the common words that hold sentences together in German. Once you know a few key connectors, a handful of vocabulary, basic rules about how to conjugate and arrange words in German sentences, you can start having intelligent conversations. For instance, if you already know the words for snowing (schneit) and raining (regnet), you can add a connector like unfortunately (leider) to convey your true message:

• “Unfortunately, it is raining.” = Leider schneit es.

Learn German idioms

German has lots of idioms or phrases that have a literal meaning and a figurative one. Like English, some of these are fairly common usage in the language and can make speaking and understanding German difficult for the beginner.

• Jemanden Honig um den Mund schmieren. = Literally: to smear honey around someone’s mouth. In English we might say, to butter someone up.
• Nur Bahnhof verstehen. = Literally: to only understand train station. In English we might say: it’s all Greek to me.
• Alles ist in Butter. = Literally: everything is in butter. In English we might say: It’s all good / It’s all gravy.
• Das ist mir Wurst! = Literally: that’s sausage to me, or simply, I don’t care.

When you’re learning German, word order matters

There are some tricky rules about conjugating verbs and how they are affected by the order in the sentence. Word order shifts more in German than in English, so it is something you’ll definitely want to practice. The word order in a simple, declarative sentence is the same in both English and German: Subject, verb, other. However, the verb is always second in a conjugated German sentence. The rules only build and become more intricate from here. There are many rules to cover, but generally, a good word order rule of thumb to follow in German is TMP (time, manner, place). The other rules will fall into place with a little patience and daily practice.

German is a language that may take you a bit to find your footing in, but once you have a handle on the grammar and basic structure, it’s much like any other language. Practise makes perfect.

Learn German vocabulary with phrasebook

For quick reference and to help you study in the time that you do have to devote to learning German, make good use of Phrasebook. Rosetta Stone’s Phrasebook feature is available to online subscribers from the site and from the Learn Language with Rosetta Stone mobile app. Not only will Phrasebook give you practise in compound and gendered nouns, it can be a quick shortcut to key conversational phrases you’ll need to become a confident German language speaker.

Immerse yourself in German

Between Rosetta Stone practise sessions, you’ll want to immerse yourself in the German language. With 1 of every 10 books published, written in German, you have plenty of opportunity to get lost in a good book. If books aren’t your thing, enhance your German learning with these German shows, movies, and songs.

Speak and practise German daily

Practise makes perfect when learning some of the less intuitive aspects of speaking German. Your confidence with gendered nouns, modal verbs and more will grow and eventually become second nature. Accelerate your learning by connecting with another language learner right from the Rosetta Stone award-winning mobile app. Use Rosetta Stone to connect, chat, practise, and ask questions through the online community.