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Greetings • Grüße (with audio)
Below you'll find more common German greetings (Grüße) and pleasantries (Nettigkeiten) – continued from Part 1.

 
GREETINGS and COURTESIES - PART 2

Audio: To hear the phrases below, click on the Listen! link.

 
FAMILIAR (DU/IHR) EXPRESSIONS

Unlike English, German makes a clear distinction between formal "you" (Sie) and familiar "you" (du/ihr) in daily greetings. Phrases marked "familiar" or "casual" should only be used in informal, first-name situations. Germans tend to be more formal and use first names less frequently than English-speakers. You'll learn more about this in Lesson 2.

1. Grüß dich! - Hello! ("[God] greet you!") > Listen!
    This familiar greeting is used only among friends and family in Austria and Bavaria.

2. Servus! - Hello! or Good-bye!
    This familiar greeting is used only among friends and family in Austria and Bavaria. Like "Aloha!" in Hawaiian, it can mean both "Hello!" and "Good-bye!"

 
PLEASANTRIES: ASKING

1. Wie geht es Ihnen? - How are you? > Listen!
    The formal way to ask someone how they are. (Not for friends and family.)

2. Wie geht's? - How are you? - How's it going? > Listen!
    The familiar, informal way to ask friends and family how they are.

 
PLEASANTRIES: RESPONDING

1. Nicht so gut. - Not so well. Not that great. > Listen!
    But try not to be too negative!

2. Danke, gut. - Fine, thanks.
    That's a little better.

3. Es geht. - Okay. So-so.
    That's even better.

4. Sehr gut. - Fine. Great.
    Now you're talking!

 
POLITE REQUESTS

1. Darf ich? - May I? > Listen!
    As in English, it's "May I?" – not "Can I?" (Kann ich?)

2. Können Sie mir helfen? - Can you help me? > Listen!
    If you need some help, just ask!

3. Was möchten Sie? - What would you like? > Listen!
    Most commonly heard in a restaurant or when visiting someone's home. The correct reply is next...

4. Ich möchte… - I'd like… > Listen!
    You can also throw in a "bitte" to make your reply even more polite: "Ich möchte, bitte, Kaffee/Tee." (coffee/tea [TAY])

Quiz: Once you have studied this lesson thoroughly, you should test yourself with the self-scoring quiz for Lesson 1.

 
QUIZ > Lesson 1: Quiz
BACK > Greetings: Part 1
NEXT > Lesson 2: German ABCs (About.com)

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