I studied German for four years in high school and I still remember some simple phrases and use them regularly with my friends for fun. If you want to learn German, here are some basic phrases to get you started.

guten tag (pronounced gooten targ) – hello or good morning

auf wiedersehen (pronounced owf veedersane) – goodbye

danke schon (pronounced dunka sheern) – thank you very much

danke (pronounced dunka) – thank you

bitte (pronounced bit-te) – please

entshuldigen (pronounced entshooldigen) – excuse me

haben Sie cocoa? (pronounced harben See cocoa) – do you have any cocoa? (used if you are in a cafe and would like some cocoa or hot chocolate)

Have Sie coffee? (pronounced harben See coffee) – Do you have coffee? (used if you are in a cafe and would like to have a cup of coffee)

ich liebe du (pronounced ish liebe doo) – I love you

Now, if you have read those sentences, you may be wondering why in the sentence “haben Sie cocoa” “you” is “Sie” in German, and yet in the sentence “ich liebe du” “you” is ” du”. That’s because the German language has two different words for the English word “you.” “Sie” is the formal way of saying “you” and you would use “Sie” if you are talking to a stranger or a person in authority. “Du” is the informal way of saying “you” and you would use it when talking to friends and family.

That’s why if you’re in a German cafe and you want a cup of cocoa, you’d say “haben Sie cacao”. And if you’re telling your parents or girlfriend/boyfriend that you love them, you’d say, “ich liebe du”.

German is a pleasant language to learn. Once you’ve mastered these basic phrases, you’re ready to learn more!