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Well, no, learning German being hard is just a myth. Learning any language takes time and commitment. It’s the same with the German language. Having enough motivation and working hard towards your goal, is all it takes. And if you feel confused about where to start, we’ve put together some tips in this article that will help you learn to speak German really fast. Let’s be real. Chinese people will find it harder than an English native speaker to learn German.This is because the German language is part of Germanic languages, a group of Indo-European languages, that shares plenty of similarities with other Germanic languages like English or Dutch.
- ● Germany is the world’s second-largest exporter.
- ●The German economy ranks number one in Europe and number four worldwide. Its economy is comparable to that of all the world’s Spanish-speaking countriescombined.
- ● Germany is home to numerous international corporations.
- ● Direct investment by Germany in the United States is over ten billion dollars.
- ● German has the largest number of native speakers in the European Union (far more than English, Spanish, or French).
- ● German is among the ten most commonly spoken languages in the world. It is also a lingua franca of Central and Eastern Europe. And as for “all Germans speak English anyway”? That’s pure myth.
- ● 22 Nobel Prizes in Physics, 30 in Chemistry, and 25 in Medicine have gone to scientists from the three major German-speaking countries, while many laureates from other countries received their training in German universities. Eleven Nobel Prizes in Literature have been awarded to German-language writers, and seven Germans and Austrians have received the Peace Prize.
- ● Germans are world leaders in engineering.
- ● German and English are similar. Many words in German sound and/or look the same as equivalent English words, because the two languages share the same “grandparent.”
- ● The German-speaking world has produced some of the most revered filmmakers of the 20th century – from Fritz Lang to Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Wim Wenders and a new generation of transnational directors such as Tom Tykwer and Fatih Akin. German and Austrian filmmakers such as Lang, Billy Wilder and Ernst Lubitsch also shaped the history of Hollywood.
- ● German is the language of Goethe, Marx, Nietzsche, and Kafka, of Mann, Brecht, and Grass. Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, and Schubert, Brahms, Schumann, Wagner, Mahler, and Schoenberg spoke and wrote German, as did Freud, Weber, Einstein, and Heisenberg, Kant, Hegel, and Heidegger.
- ● German is the second most commonly used scientific language in the world.
- ● 18% of the world’s books are published in German, and relatively few of these ever appear in English translation.
- ● German is the gateway to a world-class higher education.
- ● Many of the Western world’s most important works of philosophy, literature, music, art history, theology, psychology, chemistry, physics, engineering and medicine are written in German and continue to be produced in German.
Learning German can be a bit difficult, especially if you are a native of a language that doesn’t belong to the Indo-European family of languages. But, no matter what your native language is, and even if German may seem tricky to you at first, don’t get discouraged. If you’re wondering if there are any shortcuts or specific ways how to learn german, we have mentioned a few in this guide that will help you make progress faster.
There is no fixed period of time that guarantees you will succeed in learning the German language, but what’s most important is consistency. You’re not going to wake up one morning and find yourself speaking fluent German. That only happens in the movies. If you take just one step at a time, you’ll see results happening fast.
Learning a new language may take a different time depending on many factors like your prior experience and exposure to the language, your resilience, how much work you put into the learning process, motivation and so on. But, if you practice on a daily basis for a period of at least three to six months, you’ll probably be able to handle a daily conversation with a friend and doing things like getting into a cafe and making an order in German.
Some people struggle more than others, and need more time to reach to that level but that’s mostly because they’re not putting in the effort and practicing daily. If you want to speak German fluently, it’s probably going to take a few years of practice, but we’re just looking to get started, right?
Here’s how to learn the German language fast and easy:
- Find a strong reason that will keep you motivated.
- 2. Learn all the fundamentals of the German language.
- 3. Keep things interesting by learning slang, funny words, and idioms.
- 4. Practice daily. If possible, talk with native German-speakers.
People say it’s all about mastering the basics. So, if you’re wondering how to learn german language if you’re a complete beginner, we recommend you start from the the alphabet. The German language has 26 letters, just like English. There are a few letters with pronunciation that doesn’t exist in English: ä,ö,ü and β, but you won’t find these letters in the Alphabet. Practice their correct pronunciation as this will help you adjust your accent significantly.
| Alphabet | Pronounciation | Alphabet | Pronounciation |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Ah | N | Enn |
| B | Beh | O | Oh |
| C | Tseh | P | Peh |
| D | Deh | Q | Kuh |
| E | Eh | R | Err |
| F | Eff | S | Ess |
| G | Geh | T | Teh |
| H | Hah | U | Uh |
| I | Ih | V | Fau |
| J | Yott | W | Veh |
| K | Kah | X | Iks |
| L | Ell | Y | Ypsilon |
| M | Emm | Z | Tzett |
What makes a language look difficult to you? Its grammar, right? Grammar is usually a nightmare for all people planning to get into a new language, and it’s not the case only with the German language. But, learn this part well and you’ll be speaking German fluently in no time. German has six tenses: Prasens, Präteritum, Perfekt, Plusquamperfekt, Futur I and Futur II.
- ● Präsens relates to the Present tense in English,
- ● Präteritum relates to Perfect tenses,
- ● Plusquamperfekt relates to Past Perfect,
- ● Futur I relates to the Future tense,
- ● Futur II relates to the Future perfect plus “will” and “have”.
This relation is not completely accurate, but looking at the tenses this way will make it easier for you to understand German grammar. They have four cases (nominative, accusative, dative, genitive). Here is a tricky thing about German that many people mention it often: the 16 forms that “the” of English takes on German in different cases and gender. German has three noun prepositions for each gender: die (for feminine nouns), der (for masculine nouns) and das (for neutral gender).
With every new word that you learn in German language, you must also learn what preposition needs to come in front of it. It may confuse you at first because sometimes a biological gender may not match its grammatical gender. However, there are some rules determining which noun gets which article with exceptions. There’s no need to stress about this part too much. Although you have to memorize all of them mechanically, a huge part of this grammar fundamental will soon start making more sense to you.
When you start learning a new language you probably wouldn’t like to start with all the grammar rules and things that make a language complicated. Language learning is all about the joy and entertaining part of it, other than the desire to expand your knowledge. To do, so you’ll have to start from a point that makes you wonder what’s beyond that, grab your attention, and set your motivation on fire. There is no better way how to learn German than just starting to learn a few words and some daily expressions like saying hello to somebody or asking someone for something. This will give you a little sense of achievement and boost your self-confidence. Here are a few basic German daily-life expressions to start with. Study them and then try to simulate a simple dialogue in your head.
How To Say… in German
| Hallo! – Hello! | Wie geht’s? – How are you? |
| Danke! – Thank you! | Mir geht’s gut. – I’m doing well |
| Vielen Dank! – Thank you very much! | Mir geht’s nicht gut. – I’m not doing well |
| Willkommen! – Welcome! | Ich komme aus… – I’m from |
| Alles Gute zum Geburtstag – Happy Birthday | Ich bin hier wegen + Genitiv… – I’m here for… |
| Fröhliche Weihnachten – Merry Christmas | Bis später! – See you later |
| Guten Morgen! – Good Morning! | Tschüß! – Bye! |
| Guten Abend! – Good evening! | |
| Ich heiβe… – My name is… | |
| Wie heißen Sie? – What’s your name? |