I recently looked up Fahrt in my German dictionary to check my interpretation …and lo and behold, I discovered another gem: Fahrtwind…the German word for airstream. The phrase means Have a Great Trip, but it sounds like something else entirely (how perfect to see this phrase on a gas pump!). No offense to speakers of this wonderful and challenging language, but to a person with a background in English… I find that certain words are worth a giggle.įahrtwind – I always get a kick out of Gute Fahrt. Even though the words are smooshed together, you’re still pronouncing separate syllables.As I continue my struggle to learn the German language, I’ve stumbled upon a few more words to add to my original list of Five Funny German Words. Waschmaschine breaks down into Wasch and maschine, which you can probably guess means “washing machine”. German words look very scary because we write them all together, but they’re pronounced just like compound words in other languages.Į.g. The main tip for the following words is to break up each one into its component parts. St - “sht” like in the Yiddish word “shtick” Longcompoundwordsarenotthatscary Schleswig Holstein: a federal state in the very north of Germany

Ü - To produce the ü, say “ee” as in “see” and then tightly round your lips while doing so. R - The second r should almost not be pronounced, like in British English.

Ö - Pronounce a “u” as in “turn”, but tightly round your lips while doing so, or try to pronounce an “e” like in “feel”, but shape your mouth like you’re saying “o.”Ĭh - Make a soft “hissing cat” sound by raising your tongue to the back of your mouth and smiling while you exhale.

R - Move your tongue further to the back of your throat, and make a sound as if you are gargling water (or you’re Homer Simpson thinking about donuts). Difficult German Words That May Throw You For A Loop Brötchen: bread roll But listen closely, because the tips below will help you avoid making the same mistakes as you learn German. The video above shows people struggling with some complex and difficult German words. It might sound strange at first, but German has very consistent rules of spelling and pronunciation. The German language has a reputation for being hard to pronounce, but, to be fair, it’s somewhat undeserved.

Weird german words in english