Category: German Language

Learning German with the Duolingo App

August 2, 2018
Posted by Don Bender

Duolingo’s language instruction app provides an entertaining way for you to enhance your German language skills anytime and anywhere. The company’s bright, engaging, and gamified PC interface is well replicated in its free app that is available for both Android and iOS.

If you already use Duolingo with a PC, you can simply log in to the app. If not, all that is needed to sign up is a valid email address and a password. Duolingo is free to use and the company’s tagline states: “Learn a language for free. Forever”.

The app helps you learn German through a series of sequential modules. Users must correctly complete a series of exercises in order to advance to a higher level. Duolingo is also highly “gamified” providing users with a game-like experience that can help to make learning more enjoyable. In addition to German, Duolingo offers language instruction in nearly thirty other languages.

To get the Duolingo app, visit the Google Play Store  or iTunes.

▸ Image by Don Bender
 

The Goethe Institut eLibrary

August 1, 2018
Posted by Don Bender

Would you like to have online access to roughly 20,000 German language eBooks, audiobooks, videos, newspapers and magazines? Try the Goethe Institut’s eLibrary!

Signing up for the Goethe Institut’s eLibrary is easy. Simply visit their eLibrary page and follow the directions. Once you are signed up, you can borrow eBooks, digital videos and more – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – regardless of your location. Access to the Goethe Institut’s eLibrary is free.

To learn more, or to sign up and begin searching the catalog, visit the Goethe Institut’s eLibrary page.

The Goethe Institut is a worldwide cultural organization funded primarily by the German government. It offers German language classes, language testing and certification, and facilitates cultural exchanges. Presently, there are 159 Goethe Institutes located in 98 countries worldwide.

▸ Photo by Aliis Sinisalu on Unsplash

Stammtisch? What’s a Stammtisch?

July 27, 2018
Posted by Don Bender

What exactly does the name of our website – German Stammtisch – mean?

The German word Stammtisch is composed of two individual words: Stamm and Tisch. Tisch refers to a table. The word Stamm, related to the English word Stem, can refer either to a tree trunk or to a group of people, for example, a group of regular customers.

Stammtisch, then, refers to a “regular’s table”. This could refer to a table, for example, in a restaurant where a group of people meet on a regular basis. Somewhat less literally, the word Stammtisch refers simply to an informal meeting. A good example of this concept can be seen in the vintage American television series Cheers.

The name of our website combines the notion of the Stammtisch or informal meeting with the word German. It suggests a group that meets regularly to converse in German. Unlike Cheers, however, the only drinks we occasionally serve are limited to Sprudelwasser – sparkling spring water!

▸ Photo by Mitchell Hollander on Unsplash
 

Word of the Week

July 16, 2018
Posted by Don Bender

The German language possesses many colorful words and expressions. You can learn more about them by visiting the fun and informative Word of the Week feature published by the German Embassy in Washington, DC.

Recent words and expressions featured here include: Sauwetter (literally “pig weather”) meaning lousy or unpleasant weather; Katzenwäsche (“cat washes”) signifying a quick wash in the sink as an alternative taking a shower, and, Tante-Emma-Laden (“Aunt Emma Store”) referring to a “Mom and Pop” grocery store.

Want to learn what Schneidersitz, Dreikäsehoch and Erbsenzähler mean? Visit the German Embassy’s Word of the Week for yourself!

▸ Photo by Wokandapix on Pixabay