Learn German for beginners

German uses the Latin alphabet, so you can read and sound out words from day one.

In German the verb sits in second place in a simple sentence and jumps to the end of many others. Building sentences from a word bank, then saying them aloud, makes that pattern automatic instead of something you work out each time.

• Hallo: hello
• Danke: thank you
• Wie spät ist es?: what time is it

1. 1

   Listen first

   Hear the German sentence before you try it so your ear knows the target.

2. 2

   Say it out loud

   Say the sentence three times. Slow first, then natural speed.

3. 3

   Build it

   Rebuild the sentence from its words so the word order sticks.

4. 4

   Repeat tomorrow

   Start the next session with yesterday's sentences.

• Only reading and tapping, and never saying anything aloud.
• Memorising word lists with no sentences around them.
• Waiting until you feel ready to speak. You get ready by speaking.
• Studying for two hours once a week instead of fifteen minutes daily.
• Expecting fast results. German takes about 900 hours to reach working proficiency, but basic spoken German comes much sooner.

Go deeper with most common German words, useful German phrases, and German verb conjugations.