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Which German Dictionaries are Good for Learners: Books, Websites, and Apps

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Learning how to use a German-English dictionary effectively is one of the single skills which can really help support you in your German learning adventure.

German learners frequently ask: Which German-English dictionary should I buy? Is it worth buying the big one? How do I know which dictionary will be right for me? Are the online German dictionaries better?

In this blog post/podcast episode, I'll guide you step-by-step through which dictionary you can/should use as a beginner through the el…

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Frau Warner reads aloud: "der Kobold in der Mühle" from the Brothers Grimm

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It's a 'scary' time of year and to go along with it, here is your Brothers Grimm fairy tale in a video.

You might not know Der Kobold in der Mühle, however it's every bit as eery as the other fairy tales.

What does Kobold mean?

A Kobold is a "house spirit," a German folk being who takes care of household tasks and sometimes causes mischief.

Britannica.com has a fantastic description of a Kobold that includes this important information:

"...mischievous household spirit who usually helps wi…

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What is the Plusquamperfekt?

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The Plusquamperfekt is a form of the past tense in German.

It's generally reserved for high intermediate and advanced learners at levels B2 and C1.

If you're not there yet, I recommend you save this blog post for later.

The remainder of this blog post is in German, as is the explanation video.

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Das Plusquamperfekt ist sehr hilfreich, wenn Sie über zwei verschiedene Ereignisse reden wollen, und beide bereits passiert sind.

Es kann viel Spaß machen, wenn Sie das Plusquamperfekt bilden und au…

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Regular and Irregular German Verbs: What's the Difference?

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Almost all of the people who sign up for private German lessons have already run into German verbs and their conjugations.


When we get to the Perfekt (the present perfect or spoken past tense), it's always interesting to hear what they think of it so far.


Here are a few of the top questions people have asked me about learning the Perfekt:

  1. Are these regular or irregular verbs?

  2. What's the difference between them?

  3. What's the pattern for these verbs? And for these verbs? And f…

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Lernen Sie trennbare Verben ~ Learn German Separable Verbs

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Today you get to learn separable verbs (trennbare Verben) just like one of my German clients!

This is a technique I've used with dozens of German learners and it makes separable verbs a kinaesthetic exercise--and that in two different ways.

You'll need print out or write out some cards, and to have one supply to have ready when you start the video.

Los geht's!

Step 1: Print out or make these cards of trennbare Verben

Download this PDF of 4x6 cards and print them.

If you can't print them, …

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Take this Relaxing Video Trip to Bavaria

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Wenn man nicht reisen kann, egal ob man zu wenig Geld hat oder es eine Pandemie gibt, kann man immer das Internet benutzen, um eine virtuelle Reise zu machen.

Es kostet nichts und man kann die gleiche Reise immer wieder machen.

Diese Woche gibt es eine Videoreise nach Bayern. Sie können verschiedene Seen sehen, eine Wiese, verschiedene Städte und vieles mehr.

Kommen Sie für 4 Minuten, 30 Sekunden mit nach Bayern. 

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When the time isn't right to travel, no matter if it's because money is tigh…

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Practice a Tongue Twister in German

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der Zungenbrecher = tongue twister

Heute können Sie einen Zungenbrecher üben! Hier können Sie das PDF herunterladen:

 PDF herunterladen

Dann schauen Sie das Video. Ich helfe Ihnen dabei, das /ts/ aussprechen zu können und den Zungenbrecher zu lernen. Viel Spaß dabei!

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auf Englisch:

Today you can practice a tongue twister! You can download the PDF here:

download PDF

And then watch the video. In the video I'll help you correctly pronounce the /ts/ sound and to learn the tongue twister. Ha…

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Ein Gedicht: Wenn die Hoffnung nicht wär

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Guten Morgen allerseits!

Heute habe ich ein Gedicht für euch. So können Sie das Gedicht lernen:

1. Laden Sie das PDF herunter und lesen Sie das Gedicht.

PDF herunterladen

2. Schlagen Sie Wörter nach, die Ihnen neu sind. Schreiben Sie einen Kommentar, wenn Sie eine Frage haben.

3. Schauen Sie das Video.

4. Schauen Sie das Video nochmal und sprechen Sie mit.

5. Sprechen Sie das Gedicht laut vor. Gut ist's!

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Good morning everyone!

Today I have a poem for you. Here's how you can le…

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How to Pronounce the Ach-Laut in German

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The long-awaited Ach-Laut video is here! Hurra!

The "Ach-Laut" means the "ach sound" and it is the airy, throaty sound you hear in the words "ach" and "machen."

Phonetically, this sound is written as /X/ and to that we say "ach." In this video I've broken down for you:

1. What the sound /X/ is and what it isn't.

2. How to feel where it takes place and

3. How to practice the sound, first slowly and then speeding it up step-by-step.

The words we concentrate on in this video are Ach, Bach, Sa…

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