German for beginners: practical foundations with First contact
First contact is Loecsen’s German course for complete beginners who want to start communicating in everyday situations. You connect useful expressions with their meaning, their sound and the moment when you need them. The 17 chapters cover introductions, getting around, ordering, staying at a hotel and asking for help.
You do not have to master case endings before saying Ich möchte einen Kaffee, bitte — “I’d like a coffee, please.” Learn the request as a meaningful unit. Then notice how it works and how you can change part of it to say something new.
This guide introduces standard German, or Hochdeutsch, with explanations designed for English speakers. Familiar words provide useful footholds, but German has its own word order, sounds and grammatical patterns. The German courses page places this beginner course alongside the other learning options.
What can this course help you do?
Start a small conversation
A greeting, your name and a request for repetition already give you a way into an exchange. Guten Tag, Ich heiße… and Können Sie das bitte wiederholen? let you make contact before you can build every sentence yourself.
Learn how to explain your level, too: Ich spreche nur ein bisschen Deutsch means “I only speak a little German.” This gives the other person a reason to slow down or simplify. Managing an exchange is a skill in its own right, even when your vocabulary is small.
Prepare for travel or a new home
Choose the situations that matter to you: arriving at a station, checking in, buying food or asking directions. Pair each question with likely answers. Wo ist der Bahnhof? becomes more useful when you also recognize links, rechts and geradeaus: left, right and straight ahead.
If you are moving to a German-speaking area, these foundations can help you approach a neighbor or ask a straightforward question. Fast phone calls, meetings and official documents require further learning. Begin with the exchanges you are most likely to repeat, then expand them.
Understand the A1 goal
A1 concerns simple communication with a patient speaker’s help. First contact supports these early steps; completing its activities alone does not establish your full A1 level. 1
Set observable goals: introduce yourself without reading, confirm a price after hearing it again, or say that you have a reservation. These tell you more about usable progress than the number of screens you have opened.
What is covered in the 17 chapters?
The themes form six stages. Follow the sequence or begin with the situations you need most urgently.
| Chapters | Exchanges to prepare |
|---|---|
| Essentials, Conversation, Learning | Greet people, introduce yourself, ask for repetition and explain what you understand. |
| Colors, Numbers, Time | Identify something, understand a price and confirm a time. |
| Taxi, Transportation, Beach | Give a destination, organize a journey and ask practical questions. |
| Restaurant, Bar, Hotel | Order, pay, explain a reservation and ask about your stay. |
| Family, Feelings, Parting | Talk about people close to you, express a need and say goodbye. |
| In case of trouble, Looking for someone | Explain a simple difficulty, ask for help and find someone. |
Connect the themes
Checking in involves greetings, your name, numbers and times. Eating out may involve asking directions before ordering and paying. Rehearsing these scenes connects vocabulary from several chapters and gives you a reason to recall it.
One chapter may take several sessions. Choose a few related expressions and learn to retrieve them, rather than rushing through a whole theme. The additional examples in this guide illustrate German patterns; they are not a complete transcript of the recordings or a list of all quiz items.
How much time should you allow?
The course displays an indicative workload of 36–59 hours, including learning activities and review. That is the overall workload, not the waiting time before you can use your first expressions.
Your first fifteen minutes
Select four or five expressions: a greeting, thanks, your name and a request to repeat. Listen, check the meaning and repeat aloud. Then hide the text, imagine the situation and try to retrieve the German before playing it again.
The next day, return to the same situations first. Recalling a phrase after a break is a different achievement from repeating it immediately after the recording.
If you travel in two weeks
Fifteen to twenty minutes a day gives you 3 hours 30 minutes to 4 hours 40 minutes over fourteen days. Use that time for a small set of priority exchanges.
| Period | Focus |
|---|---|
| Days 1–3 | Greetings, courtesy, your name, languages and requests for repetition. |
| Days 4–6 | Numbers, prices, times and simple directions. |
| Days 7–10 | Transportation, meals and accommodation relevant to your trip. |
| Days 11–14 | Short exchanges without reading and review of difficult expressions. |
Keep your address and booking details in writing as well. You can show them while making a request. This practical preparation does not amount to completing the whole course or mastering A1 in two weeks.
Planning the full course
| Daily practice | Time to accumulate 36–59 hours |
|---|---|
| 10 minutes | 216–354 days, roughly 7–12 months. |
| 15 minutes | 144–236 days, roughly 5–8 months. |
| 30 minutes | 72–118 days, roughly 2½–4 months. |
These are calculations based on daily practice, not predictions of your language level. Previous experience, breaks and opportunities to speak matter too. After a pause, restart with useful familiar expressions and adjust the pace.
How should you learn from zero?
Listen, understand and retrieve
Associate a phrase with an intention. Ich habe Hunger means “I’m hungry”: learn the whole expression before separating out Hunger. Listen without the written version, repeat it, then try to produce it from the situation rather than from the recording.
Recognition and recall are different. You may understand a phrase when you hear it but still struggle to say it yourself. Alternate listening with retrieval. For a fifteen-minute session, try five minutes of review, five of new expressions and five of speaking without a model.
Use quizzes and Super Memory
Quizzes help reveal which expressions are still uncertain. Super Memory supports further practice of material that needs attention. After an error, return to the sound and meaning. Avoid learning only where the correct option appears on the screen.
If everything starts to blur together, add fewer new items. Being able to ask for a ticket and recognize the departure time is more useful than vaguely recognizing many questions you cannot yet retrieve.
Change one part of a useful phrase
From Ich möchte einen Kaffee, try Ich möchte einen Tee. The request stays the same. Then compare Ich möchte ein Wasser: the article changes. A small variation creates a concrete grammar question you can understand in context.
Prepare the next turn, too. A coffee order might prompt Mit Milch? (“With milk?”) or Sonst noch etwas? (“Anything else?”). With a partner, swap roles. On your own, leave a pause after each question and supply an answer before checking it.
Work on one pronunciation feature at a time
Record a short phrase and compare it with the audio. Focus on one feature: the vowel in Sie, the beginning of sprechen or the ending of bitte. You can communicate while your pronunciation is still developing; the immediate goal is clear, understandable speech.
Which German sounds should you notice?
The alphabet is familiar, but English spelling habits can interfere. Use the recording as your model. Written comparisons are listening aids rather than exact substitutes for the sound.
| Spelling | Examples | Starting point for an English speaker |
|---|---|---|
| w and j | Wasser, ja | w sounds like English v; j like y in “yes.” |
| z and ß | Zeit, Straße | z is a ts sound; ß is an s sound, never b. |
| sch | Schule | Similar to sh in “shop.” |
| Initial sp and st | sprechen, Straße | Listen for shp and sht at the start. |
| ie and ei | Sie, ein | ie is a long ee; ei resembles the vowel movement in “eye.” |
| eu and äu | Deutsch, Häuser | A vowel combination resembling oy in “boy.” |
| ü and ö | fünf, schön | Rounded front vowels without exact equivalents in most English accents. |
| ch | ich, Buch | Two different friction sounds; neither is the ch of “cheese.” |
Rounded vowels and vowel length
To approach ü, begin with an ee-like tongue position and round your lips while keeping the tongue forward. For ö, start from a front e-like vowel and round the lips. Then compare with the recording: these instructions are a starting exercise, not a guarantee of the exact sound.
Listen to bieten and bitten. The vowels differ in quality as well as length. Avoid turning every long vowel into an English-style diphthong. Repeated listening to a short contrast is more useful than inventing an elaborate English spelling for it.
H, final consonants and rhythm
The h is heard at the beginning of Hallo and Hotel. The h in sehen does not introduce a fresh breath between the vowels. At the ends of words, some consonants lose voicing: the d in Hund sounds like t.
Do not add a vowel after a final consonant. Keep the final vowel of bitte light, and practice phrases with their rhythm rather than giving every word equal stress. Goethe-Institut pronunciation resources provide further listening exercises. 3
Which grammar patterns make your phrases reusable?
1. Learn nouns with articles and plurals
German nouns start with a capital letter: der Bahnhof, die Rechnung, das Zimmer. There are three grammatical genders. English “the” does not tell you which article to choose, and gender is not simply a description of male or female people.
Learn das Zimmer, die Zimmer as a pair. German plurals are not all formed with -s: compare der Zug, die Züge and die Fahrkarte, die Fahrkarten. A useful vocabulary note includes the article, the plural and a short example, not just an English translation.
2. Understand cases through a situation
A case marks a grammatical role or is required by a particular verb or preposition. Begin with three useful patterns rather than trying to memorize every ending at once.
| Role | Example | What to notice |
|---|---|---|
| Subject: nominative | Der Bus kommt. — The bus is coming. | der marks this masculine subject. |
| Direct object: accusative | Ich nehme den Bus. — I’m taking the bus. | der changes to den. |
| After mit: dative | Ich fahre mit dem Bus. — I’m traveling by bus. | mit requires the dative: dem. |
| Feminine direct object | Ich brauche eine Fahrkarte. — I need a ticket. | eine stays eine. |
| Neuter direct object | Ich suche ein Hotel. — I’m looking for a hotel. | ein stays ein. |
Start with chunks such as einen Kaffee, ein Zimmer and mit dem Bus. Dative does not simply mean “a person receiving something”: the bus example shows why that shortcut fails. Learn a verb with its construction; German suchen does not need an equivalent of English “for” here.
3. Keep the subject and learn the verb form
An ordinary statement normally includes its subject. Learn ich bin (“I am”), ich habe (“I have”) and ich möchte (“I would like”) as usable units.
| Subject | sein: be | haben: have | sprechen: speak |
|---|---|---|---|
| ich | bin | habe | spreche |
| du | bist | hast | sprichst |
| er, sie, es | ist | hat | spricht |
| wir | sind | haben | sprechen |
| ihr | seid | habt | sprecht |
| sie, Sie | sind | haben | sprechen |
Notice the vowel in du sprichst. Learn frequent forms within exchanges: Ich spreche Englisch. Sprechen Sie Englisch? German does not add an auxiliary equivalent to “do” to build that question.
4. Choose du or Sie
English “you” covers several German forms. du addresses one person informally; ihr addresses an informal group. Capitalized Sie is the polite form for one or several people. Können Sie mir helfen? is a useful model when approaching a stranger in a formal setting.
Compare Wie heißt du? with Wie heißen Sie? Both ask someone’s name, but the relationship and verb form differ. Lowercase sie sind means “they are,” while Sie sind can mean polite “you are.” In speech, the context tells you which is intended.
5. Put the conjugated verb in second position
Compare Ich fahre morgen nach Berlin and Morgen fahre ich nach Berlin. In a straightforward statement, the conjugated verb keeps the second position. This means the second unit, not necessarily the second word: Am Montag fahre ich nach Berlin.
If a time expression comes first, the subject follows the verb. Do not copy English “Tomorrow I travel” word for word. Practice moving morgen to the front and moving ich after fahre. 5
6. Build questions without English do
For a yes-or-no question, put the conjugated verb first: Haben Sie ein Zimmer? For a question with an interrogative, begin with that word: Wo ist das Hotel?
| Information | Question | Possible answer |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Wo ist der Bahnhof? | Dort. — Over there. |
| Destination | Wohin fahren Sie? | Nach Berlin. — To Berlin. |
| Origin | Woher kommen Sie? | Aus Kanada. — From Canada. |
| Time | Wann fährt der Zug? | Um neun Uhr. — At nine. |
| Price | Wie viel kostet das? | Fünf Euro. — Five euros. |
wo, wohin and woher distinguish location, destination and origin. Learning the difference helps you recognize what answer is expected.
7. Make polite requests with möchte and können
Ich möchte… is a practical way to order or express a wish. Können Sie…? asks someone to do something. In Können Sie das bitte wiederholen?, the conjugated verb comes first and the infinitive wiederholen comes at the end.
The same frame appears in Ich kann mit Karte bezahlen: “I can pay by card.” Learn both ends of the sentence. Ich will… expresses wanting, not English future “will”; ich möchte… is usually a more tactful starting point for an order.
8. Distinguish nicht and kein
| What you negate | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| A noun with an indefinite article | Ich habe keine Reservierung. | I don’t have a reservation. |
| A noun without an article | Ich habe kein Geld. | I don’t have any money. |
| A quality | Das ist nicht teuer. | That isn’t expensive. |
| Understanding or an action | Ich verstehe das nicht. | I don’t understand that. |
kein has endings: kein Zimmer, keine Fahrkarte, keinen Kaffee in the accusative. The position of nicht depends on what is being negated. It is not “always the last word”: in Ich kann nicht kommen, the infinitive follows it.
9. Recognize separable verbs
abfahren means to depart, for a vehicle. In Der Zug fährt um neun Uhr ab, the prefix ab appears at the end. It belongs to the verb, so keep listening through the end of the sentence.
With a modal, the infinitive stays together: Der Zug kann jetzt abfahren. Record pairs such as ankommen → Der Zug kommt an. You are learning how a pattern works through a recognizable travel situation.
10. Separate location from destination
Ich bin im Hotel tells you where someone is. Ich gehe ins Hotel tells you where someone is going. im combines in dem, and ins combines in das. Some prepositions use different cases for location and destination.
That does not mean all movement requires the accusative. Ich gehe im Park spazieren describes walking within the park and uses the dative. Also learn zum Bahnhof, nach Berlin and nach Hause as useful destination phrases: English “to” has several German counterparts.
11. Learn the German construction for a need
Ich habe Hunger and Ich habe Durst mean “I’m hungry” and “I’m thirsty.” German uses haben here. “I’m cold” is Mir ist kalt; copying the English structure as Ich bin kalt does not normally express the same physical feeling.
Age uses sein: Ich bin dreißig Jahre alt. Do not assume that every English adjective-like need follows one German pattern. Personal examples are an effective way to remember which construction belongs to each meaning.
12. Read numbers and understand times
From 21 onward, units precede tens: einundzwanzig is literally one-and-twenty. Hear the whole number before deciding what it is. Pay particular attention to dreizehn and dreißig, thirteen and thirty.
| Expression | Meaning | Useful detail |
|---|---|---|
| einundzwanzig | 21 | Units come before tens. |
| neun Uhr dreißig | 9:30 | A precise form useful for schedules. |
| halb zehn | 9:30 | Halfway toward ten, not half past ten. |
| um neun Uhr | at nine | um introduces a clock time. |
| am Montag | on Monday | am introduces this day expression. |
| heute, morgen, gestern | today, tomorrow, yesterday | der Morgen means “the morning.” |
Confirm a time with Um neun Uhr? and wait for the answer. A short check is better than silently accepting a time you may have misheard.
13. Mention the past and future plans
Ich habe reserviert means “I have booked” or “I booked,” depending on context. Ich bin angekommen means “I have arrived.” The German perfect combines an auxiliary with a participle near the end. Learn the auxiliary together with the phrase.
For an upcoming plan, a present form plus a time expression often works: Morgen fahre ich nach Berlin. You can talk about tomorrow before studying every future construction. Recognize war in Das war gut: “That was good.” German tense choices do not map exactly onto English ones.
14. Watch for familiar-looking words
| German word | Useful meaning | English trap |
|---|---|---|
| bekommen | receive, get | “Become” is werden. |
| eventuell | perhaps, possibly | It does not mean “eventually.” |
| aktuell | current, up to date | Not “actual” in the sense of real. |
| das Gift | poison | A present is das Geschenk. |
| der Chef | boss | A cook is der Koch or die Köchin. |
English and German share many recognizable words, but a whole sentence is safer than a resemblance. The grammar resources at the end offer further reference when you want to explore a form. 24
Which German is useful in Germany, Austria and Switzerland?
Standard German is the foundation of this course. It is a useful common starting point, alongside the regional vocabulary, accents and dialects you will encounter.
You may hear Grüß Gott in Austria and southern Germany, or Grüezi in German-speaking Switzerland. Recognizing a local greeting is useful; you can begin with standard expressions without reproducing every regional feature.
Everyday Swiss German can differ considerably from standard German. Difficulty following a local conversation is not proof that your beginner work has failed. You can ask Können Sie bitte Hochdeutsch sprechen? — “Could you speak standard German, please?” 6
How can you use these foundations in short dialogues?
At a café
You: Guten Tag. Ich möchte einen Kaffee, bitte. — Hello. I’d like a coffee, please.
Server: Mit Milch? — With milk?
You: Nein, danke. Ohne Milch. — No, thanks. Without milk.
Server: Sonst noch etwas? — Anything else?
You: Nein, danke. Das ist alles. — No, thanks. That’s everything.
Repeat the scene with tea. Check that you can answer the follow-up question as well as deliver the initial request.
At the station
You: Entschuldigung, wann fährt der Zug nach Berlin? — Excuse me, when does the train to Berlin leave?
Staff member: Um neun Uhr dreißig, von Gleis vier. — At nine thirty, from platform four.
You: Gleis vier? — Platform four?
Staff member: Ja, genau. — Yes, exactly.
You: Vielen Dank. — Thank you very much.
The key information is the time and platform. Practice confirming these details instead of trying to translate every word before responding.
At a hotel
You: Guten Abend. Ich habe eine Reservierung auf den Namen Martin. — Good evening. I have a reservation under the name Martin.
Receptionist: Für zwei Nächte? — For two nights?
You: Ja. Ist das Frühstück inbegriffen? — Yes. Is breakfast included?
Receptionist: Ja, von sieben bis zehn Uhr. — Yes, from seven until ten.
You: Danke. Wo ist mein Zimmer? — Thank you. Where is my room?
| Reply you might hear | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Einen Moment, bitte. | Wait a moment, please. |
| Hier, bitte. | Someone is showing or handing you something: here you are. |
| Nur bar. | Cash only. |
| Mit Karte? | A question about paying by card. |
| Das weiß ich nicht. | The person does not know. |
| Bitte langsam. | A short request to slow down. |
How can you check your progress?
Close the text and imagine arriving somewhere. Speak aloud, then repeat the activity the following day with a different name, destination or time.
| Situation | Practical check |
|---|---|
| First meeting | Greet someone, give your name and say which language you speak. |
| Difficulty understanding | Ask for repetition or slower speech. |
| Getting around | Ask where something is and recognize a simple direction. |
| Shopping | Ask the price and confirm a number. |
| Café | Order and answer a short follow-up question. |
| Hotel | Explain a reservation and ask about a time. |
If you recognize a phrase but cannot retrieve it, practice speaking without a model. If you can ask the question but cannot understand the reply, add listening practice. This distinction helps you choose the next useful session without restarting everything.
What comes after First contact?
As these exchanges become easier, broaden the situations and sentence patterns you can use. Independent in 6 months in German offers a continuation toward greater independence and A2–B1 goals.
Add conversations with another person, short written messages and accessible listening material. Someone may change an answer, ask a follow-up question or use an unfamiliar expression. These variations help you move beyond a memorized script.
If you need an exam qualification, practice its reading, writing, listening and speaking tasks too. Official Goethe-Institut sample materials introduce the format. A course-completion certificate and an exam-based language qualification serve different purposes. 7
Frequently asked questions about beginner German
Can I start with no German at all?
Yes. Begin with essential expressions and their audio. Return to a grammar explanation when a phrase gives you a concrete reason to understand that pattern.
Is German difficult for English speakers?
Articles, cases and verb positions require new habits. Related vocabulary also provides useful support. Learn one usable sentence, then observe what changes when you adapt it.
Must I memorize all the case endings first?
No. Start with chunks such as einen Kaffee and mit dem Bus, then connect them with the explanations. Understanding a familiar construction makes the wider pattern easier to learn.
How many minutes should I practice daily?
Ten to fifteen minutes can support a short session with review. The full workload remains 36–59 hours, so a small daily commitment spreads the course over several months.
Can I prepare for a trip in two weeks?
Yes, by focusing on arrival, transportation, meals and accommodation. Prepare likely answers as well as questions. This is targeted travel preparation, not a promise of full A1 proficiency.
Is the course free?
Free access includes lessons, in-player audio, quizzes and Super Memory within Loecsen’s usage limits. Check the conditions shown on the site for available learning time and the number of simultaneous courses.
What does a subscription add?
A subscription extends access and provides the features described in the current offer, including MP3 and PDF downloads and ad-free options. Check the displayed offer when deciding; you can start with the free activities.
Can I use this German in Austria and Switzerland?
Standard German is a useful foundation. Expect regional words and accents, and a potentially substantial listening adjustment for everyday Swiss German dialects.
Should I use du or Sie?
Learn requests with Sie for first formal exchanges and many situations involving unfamiliar adults. Use du where the relationship or setting supports it, changing the verb form too.
What if I forget after a few days?
Revisit a short scene, attempt the phrase, then listen and correct it. Reduce new material if needed. Retrieving and repairing a forgotten expression is part of learning.
Resources for further learning
These references cover proficiency levels, grammar, pronunciation, regional diversity and exam formats. Use them to investigate a question or extend your practice; you do not need to read them all before starting.
