Is Your Coffee as Strong as Your German Apologies? One of the most important things to learn about a language, aside from introductions, is how to apologize in case you find yourself in the unfortunate situation that you need to do so. In the case of German, the most general word of apology is "Entschuldigung“. This literally means "apology“, and it's used in most situations: when you've accidentally done something bad when you want somebody's attention when you want people to make room Keep in mind though, that you should not use it when somebody tells some sad news about themselves, because that is not something you should apologize for – unless you had any stake in it. If you need something stronger than... Show more

Young children attend a Kindergarten (children’s garden). Gesundheit doesn’t really mean “bless you,” it means “health” — the good variety being implied. Psychiatrists speak of Angst (fear) and Gestalt (form) psychology, and when something is broken, it’s kaputt. Although not every English-speaker knows that Fahrvergnügen is “driving pleasure,” most do know that Volkswagen means “people’s car.” Musical works can have a Leitmotiv. Our cultural view of the world is called a Weltanschauung by historians or philosophers. Such terms are commonly understood by most well-read English-speakers. More English words borrowed from German: (Notice how many have to do with food!) - blitz, blitzkrieg, cobalt, dachshund, delicatessen, ersatz,... Show more

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