Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday XIII: Was heißt...?

Was heißt...?: "What is called...?"; How do you say... (in German/English/whatever-other-language)?

The above translation is what I would consider the "traditional" translation. This is, however, another way to use this phrase, and it's something I seem to continue to think/say to myself all the time. It can be used in a sort of rhetorical manner to express that an adjective is a little excessive or not quite the right word. Let me explain.

Let's say you're talking to a friend about someone eating your lunch from the employee refrigerator at work (that's a very specific example, I know...). That conversation might go a little something like this:

Friend: Waaas? Wie dreist! Du warst bestimmt mega angepisst!
You: Naja, was heißt angepisst? Ich war einfach ein bisschen genervt, weil ich dann mir etwas von der Kantine holen musste. Und das Essen dort schmeckt einfach nicht so gut...

Friend: Whaaat? How rude! I bet you were pissed off!
You: Well, I wouldn't say 'pissed off'. I was just a little annoyed, because then I had to buy something from the cafeteria, and the food there just doesn't taste as good...

I hope that made sense!
Bis bald!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday XII: Sonst

sonst: "else", "otherwise", "or else"

Here is another super versatile word. Like na, it can be paired with a variety of other words to change its meaning.

Und sonst so? - How's it going otherwise? (Good to use after a friend tells you about a bad experience they had recently - you should, of course, console them first.)
umsonst - free of charge, in vain (I got these cookies umsonst for volunteering at the blood drive! I drove all the way back home umsonst because my phone ended up being in my car the whole time!)
sonst wo - elsewhere
Sonst noch etwas? - Anything else? (Usually a question posed by wait staff.)
Was sonst noch? - What next? (Here, it takes a kind of exasperated tone.)
Wer denn sonst? - Who else? (Typically rhetorical: I mean, she gave birth to me! Are you talking about your mom? Wer denn sonst?)

I hope this helps you know how to use this highly recurring word!

Bis bald!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday XI: Bleigießen

das Bleigießen

Since this term has no real translation, I'll just explain it to you. Bleigießen is a German New Year's Eve tradition (it may be done in other countries, but not to my knowledge). A candle or tea light is lit, and a piece of lead or tin is placed on a spoon and melted over the flame. Once the metal is fully liquefied, it is quickly poured into a bowl of cool water. Then, the cooled metal is removed, and the participants try to identify some sort of shape. The shape tells the person's fortune for the coming year.

Bleigießen kits can be inexpensively purchased, complete with spoon, tin pieces and a list of possible shapes and their meanings. Typically, the tin pieces come in the form of some good luck symbol (a pig, a bag of money, a mushroom, etc.).

Toward the end of my latest year in Germany, I purchased one such kit to share with my family back in the States. Since we knew we wouldn't all be together on New Year's Eve, we decided to it on Christmas day (close enough, right?). This is what my mushroom turned into:




I kind of think it looks like a jellyfish. Or maybe a squirrel?








 


Frohes Neues und einen guten Rutsch wünsch ich euch!
Bis bald!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday X: Na?

na: "well"

This is another word that is very versatile in the Germany language and can change meaning based on the context and inflection. It can be used as a greeting. You can use it to express surprise or agreement. It can even be used to express reluctant resignation. Let me give you some examples.

Na (du)? - Hey! (An appropriate response to this would be another na.)
Na ja... - Well... (This is a way to respond to a question you're reluctant to answer, like if you got your homework done or if you told your in-laws they can't spend the holidays at your house.)
Na und? - So? So what? Who cares?
Na ja! - Oh, well! (Missed the bus? Na ja! Burned your bread in the toaster? Na ja! Didn't study for the test tomorrow? Na ja!)
Na gut! - Fine! Very well! Fair enough! (Usually used to give in, but still make it clear you're not happy about it.)
Na klar! - Of course! (Can you help me wash my car? Na klar! Do you want to go shopping tomorrow? Na klar! Do you want to eat pizza for dinner tonight? Na klar!)

These are by no means all the ways you can use na, but they are some of the more common ones.

Happy German-ing!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday IX: Wichteln

wichteln: "imping"; to do a Secret Santa (gift exchange)

I thought this term was very fitting to the season (and needs little explanation, so it's perfect for a two-post day).

Get? 'Cause it's a secret Santa...

In case you are unfamiliar with either of these terms, wichteln is when you get a group of people together who want to play a fun, gift-giving game. Everyone puts their own name on a piece of paper, and the slips get folded up and put into a hat. Then, each person draws one name from the hat (if you get your own, you get to put it back in an pull another). Then, on a certain date, you all get together again to exchange your gifts. Often, the youngest or oldest will start by giving a gift to the person they drew. Then, the one who just received a present gives to their person, and so on. Some variations include secretly giving small presents leading up to the main gift exchange. Hence the term "Secret Santa". You are not supposed to know who pulled your name until the reveal at the end.

My family used to do it all the time, when us grandkids were younger, and the extended family wasn't so extended. I've also done it a few times in grade school with my classmates, as well as in high school with just a couple of friends. At any age, it's definitely a fun way to get into the gift-giving spirit!

Bis morgen!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday VIII: Pfand

das Pfand: deposit, collateral

This is something I know is used in some states, but I think it should be in place in all of them. Pfand is something applied to most cans and bottles in Germany. You pay a few cents more when you buy bottled water or soda. Then, you bring the empty bottles back to the grocery store, put them into this nifty little (it's actually usually kind of big) and get a receipt. Bring that slip of paper to the checkout after you've done your shopping, and you get those extra cents back! It's genius! It motivates people to recycle and not litter! There are even people that make a living from collecting these bottles at music festivals.



Very important to know about, if you plan on going to Germany. Don't throw away bottles with the Pfandflasche symbol! I mean, you wouldn't throw away money, would you?

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesdays VII: Weihnachten

(das) Weihnachten: "hallowed nights" (more or less); Christmas

I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that this term doesn't need much clarification, and instead, I'm going to use this as an opportunity to talk about Christmassy things. ('Cause it's my blog, and I make the rules here!)

Christmas markets in Germany are almost magical (to me, anyway). Cold air. Twinkling lights. Cinnamon-roasted nuts. Pretty ornaments and decorations of glass and wood. Snow (if you're lucky). They are definitely part of what makes me love Germany, and they're something the US (or at least my corner of it) hasn't quite figured out.

See? See?! Lederhosen!!

Over the past couple of weeks, I've been to two different Christkindlmarkets (as they call them here). One was a total flop. All in-doors. Very few vendors. No roasted nuts. The other was quite a bit better. More vendors, at least half of which were outdoors. A nice-sized beer tent, with a great atmosphere. Roasted nuts. Despite all those positives, there was one negative: it felt quite Oktoberfest-y to me. Lots of polka and Lederhosen. I know these events are mostly a celebration of the area's German heritage, but still. I've yet to find a close match to the markets of Germany. I guess I'll just have to keep looking!

Apparently, German-themed events and Hofbrau go hand-in-hand.

Bis bald!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday VI: "Vokuhila"

(der) Vokuhila: short for "vorne kurz hinten lang"; mullet

Since this one is pretty self-explanatory, all I have to say is, "Business in the front, party in the back."
Also:

Bis bald!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday V: "Irgendwie"

irgendwie: "somehow"; kind of, sorta, somehow, like

Irgendwie is very similar to the word "like". It comes up in conversation all the time, and 90% of the time it's a filler. I guess, to be fair, irgendwie isn't technically used as a filler. But, in my experience, the sentence and the point being made would lose no validity by dropping the word.

Here's a short German text to illustrate what I mean:

Ich hatte irgendwie das Gefühl, dass ich irgendwie beobachtet wurde. Weißt du? Es war irgendwie als ob hinter jedem Busch stände irgendwie ein Typ oder so. Irgendwie wollte ich nur da weg. Ich fühlte mich irgendwie völlig wohl. Keine Ahnung. Es war alles irgendwie komisch.

"I kinda had the feeling that I was, like, being watched. Ya know? It was sorta like there was a guy, like, standing behind every bush, or something. I, like, just wanted to get outta there. I felt, like, totally uncomfortable. I don't know. It was all, like, weird."


Who knows? I might be wrong with this one. That's the way it always seemed to me, though.

Bis dann!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday IV: "So was von"

so was von (so etwas von): "so something of"; so, so very, very, extremely

This is another phrase I keeping wanting to pop into my English thoughts/conversations. Just the other day, I wanted to say to my dog, "You are so was von naughty!" Helps get more frustration out than just saying, "You are so naughty!" The longer the sentence, the more aggression gets out, right? That's just me? Oh... Well, then...

I'll give you guys a few examples in German:
Du bist so was von schön! You are so pretty!
Ich bin so was von müde! I am extremely tired!
Er war so was von heiß! He was so hot!

This phrase can pretty much always replace the word sehr (very) in any sentence. I find it to be much more expressive and puts a lot more emphasis on what you're saying.

Also, "so was von" is a shortened version of "so etwas von". Jus' so ya know.

Another short one, but I hope it was informative and fun, anyway! :-)

Bis dann!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday III: "Jein"

jein: "yes-no"; kind of/kinda, sort of/sort, yes and no, more or less

I actually didn't use this word too often, but the one time I did was kind of funny. It was near the end of my exchange, and I had just met some new people. We, meaning my friends, these new acquaintances and myself, were sitting around, enjoy a few choice beverages (as young people are wont to do). One of the new people asked me a question, and I answered with "jein". They responded with, "WHAAA?? You even know jein???" I have a habit of surprising German people with my German-speaking prowess. ^_^

Bis dann!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday II: "Ohne Witz!"

ohne Witz: "without joke"; no joke, not kidding, seriously (I think you get the picture.)

I think "ohne Witz" is pretty clear. There shouldn't really be too much confusion as to when and how to use this phrase. I'm just talking about it, because I think it's fun to say. Oohhhh-neWitz! Plus, it's something one of my hostsisters would say all the time. And, since I thought it was so much fun to say, I would repeat it every time she said it. I was doing it so much, it started to become an automatic response! Ohne Witz!



Also, I just wanted to clarify what each of the parts of the first line are.
German word/phrase: "literal translation (if there is one)"; our English equivalent

Bis bald!

Witzige/Wichtige Worte on Wednesday I: "Doch!"

doch: still, yet, however, on the contrary (can mean any one of these or multiple/all at the same time)

"Doch" is honestly one of the most useful words in the German language. You can stick in nearly countless sentences and phrases to add emphasis and/or cut corners. It's primarily used to negate a negative statement. This word is so pragmatic in the German language, I have to stop myself from using it in English conversations nearly every day. Let me give you an example from a few weekends ago.

My brother and his girlfriend were introducing me to an old high school friend of his. The conversation went something like this. (Parts written in italics were thoughts.)

Brother: Hey, Friend, this is my sister.
Friend: What? No way! I didn't know you had a sister!!!
Brother: Yeah, a lot of people don't.
Friend: I don't believe you! She's not your sister!
Me: Doch! I'm totally his sister.
Friend: Nuh-uh!
Me: Doch. No, really.
Brother: Dude, she's my sister.
Friend: She might be a cousin, but not your sister!
Me: Doch!
Girlfriend: Seriously, she's his sister.
Friend: No way!
Me: Doch!
It took showing this guy my and my brother's driver's licenses to convince him we're actually siblings.

But, that's not the only way to use doch. You can use it to put emphasis on something. Take the sentence "So you do want me to pick up dinner on the way home." The emphasis on "do" implies that the other person didn't want it at first, but changed their mind. If the English language had a direct and accurate translation of doch there would be no need for verbal emphasis, and the sentence would like this "So you want me to doch pick up dinner on the way home." Practical, no?

Doch. Very handy. Very versatile. Definitely a word we should adopt. I mean, we've already taken words like Doppelgänger, Zeitgeist and Sauerkraut. Doch is just the next logical step.