ich
- I (first person singular nominative (subject) pronoun)
Ich kenne ihn.
I know him.
Kenne ich ihn?
Do I know him?
Ich hatte es.
I had it.
Vocabulary · A1 Beginner
German A1 Vocabulary
The 378 words German A1 adds, commonest first — with articles and plurals, principal parts, English senses, examples and native audio.
Sie
- you (polite, singular and plural)
Ich kenne ihn.
I know him.
Fragen Sie mich!
Ask me.
Öffnen Sie es!
Open it.
das
- nominative/accusative neuter singular of der
Das dachte ich mir.
I thought so.
Ich wusste das.
I knew it.
Ich mag das.
I enjoy it.
du
- you (singular familiar), thou
Ich kenne ihn.
I know him.
Warst du das?
Did you do it?
Verstehst du mich?
Do you get me?
nicht
- not, non- (negates the meaning of a verb, adjective, or adverb)
Er ist nicht der, für den du ihn hältst.
He is not who you think he is.
Er ist nicht da.
He's not in.
Ich bin nicht du.
I'm not you.
die
- nominative/accusative singular feminine of der
- nominative/accusative plural of der
Die verstehen das nicht.
They don't get it.
Es ist die Wahrheit.
It's the truth.
Ist das die Wahrheit?
Is it the truth?
es
- Refers to a neuter noun (person, animal, thing or abstract)
- it, that, there (used to refer to statements, activities, the environment etc., or as a placeholder/dummy pronoun)
Ist es das?
Is that it?
Das ist es.
This is it.
Wir sind es nicht.
It's not us.
und
- and
- links two nouns, often a person and an activity, in rhetoric questions to express an opposition between them
Versuchen Sie es und machen Sie es!
Try and do it.
Na, und du?
How about you?
Sie ist mir lieb und teuer.
She is dear to me.
der
- that
- him, he (in informal speech not necessarily emphasizing anything)
- the one, him
Das ist nicht der Grund.
That's not why.
Das ist der Junge.
This is the boy.
Das ist der Saturn.
That's Saturn.
wir
- we
Er ist nicht wie wir.
He's not like us.
Wir sind es nicht.
It's not us.
Ich kenne ihn.
I know him.
was
- what
- which; referring to the entire preceding clause
- that, which; referring to das, alles, etwas, nichts, and neuter substantival adjectives
- that, which; referring to neuter singular nouns, instead of standard das
Es ist, was es ist.
It is what it is.
Das ist es, was ich will.
It's what I want.
Es ist das, was ich will.
It's what I want.
zu
- to, towards (indicates directionality)
- with respect to; regarding
- along with; with (accompanying (the main thing in question))
- at, on (indicates location)
Sie ist zu.
It's closed.
Er ist nicht zu Hause.
He's not in.
Zu was ist es gut?
What's the use?
er
- he
- it (when the grammatical gender of the object/article/thing/animal etc., being referred to, is masculine (der))
- she (when the grammatical gender of the noun being referred to and designating a female person, is masculine (der))
- Used in reference to a computer or other machine when personifying it; it
Das ist er, oder nicht?
That's it, isn't it?
Er ist nicht zu Hause.
He's not in.
Ist er freundlich zu Ihnen?
Is he kind to you?
ein
- one
- the same
Ein Hund ist es nicht.
It's not a dog.
Das ist ein Ende.
This is an end.
Es ist ein Junge.
It's a boy.
= derselbe
in
- [with dative] in, inside, within, at (inside a building)
- [with dative] in (pertaining to)
- [with dative] in, at, by (at the end of or during a period of time)
- [with accusative] into, to (going inside (of))
Er ist in meiner Klasse.
He's in my class.
Er ist in einem Café.
He is at a coffee shop.
Es ist in der Nähe.
It's close by.
ja
- yes; yea; yeah; aye
Das ist es ja, was ich nicht weiß.
That's what I don't know.
Das ist es ja, was du nicht verstehst.
That's what you don't understand.
Ich schätze, das ist ein ja.
I guess that's a yes.
= jawohl≠ nein
mit
- with (in the company of, alongside)
- with, by (using as an instrument, by means of)
- with (having a property, accessory or possession)
- with, at (coinciding with a specific condition or event)
Was ist mit mir?
What about me?
Was ist mit Ihnen?
How about you?
Was ist mit uns?
What about us?
≠ ohne
wie
- like
- as
- than
- when (referring to the past)
Er ist nicht wie wir.
He's not like us.
Es ist wie es ist.
It is what it is.
Es ist gut, wie es ist.
It's fine as it is.
= als
auf
- [with dative] on, upon (positioned at the top of)
- [with accusative] on, onto, up (moving to the top of)
- [with accusative] on (indicating responsibility)
- Introduces a word, usually an adjective, acting as context or a condition for the whole sentence.
Halten Sie ihn nicht auf.
Don't stop him.
Die Tür ist auf.
The door is open.
Das geht auf mich!
It is on me.
aber
- but; however; though
Das ist aber eine Überraschung!
This is a surprise.
Das ist aber ein Zufall!
What a coincidence!
Das ist aber nicht das, was ich bestellt habe.
This isn't what I ordered.
eine
- nominative/accusative feminine singular of ein
Das ist ein Ende.
This is an end.
Was ist eine Katze?
What's a cat?
Ist das eine Katze?
Is that a cat?
hier
- here; in this place; refers to an environment one is currently in, or to something within reach
- there; right there; in that place; refers to something that is considered nearby, or can be seen and pointed at
- here (within this context)
- used with the definite article or the determiner dieser (“this, that”) to express proximity (“this”)
Es ist hier.
It's here.
Er ist hier!
He is here!
Was ist das hier?
What's this?
= da
haben
- forms the perfect aspect (have)
- to have; to own (to possess, have ownership of; to possess a certain characteristic)
- to have; to hold (to contain within itself/oneself)
- to have, get (to obtain, acquire)
- Present (er/sie/es)
- hat
- Preterite
- hatte
- Past participle
- hat gehabt
Wir haben ihn.
We've got it.
Haben wir einen?
Do we have one?
Haben wir eine?
Do we have one?
für
- describes an abstract directionality towards a person or matter
- describes an exchange or exchangeability
- for (for a certain duration)
- for, at (planned for a certain date or time)
Was hast du vor?
What's your plan?
Es ist für mich.
It's for me.
Es ist für uns.
It's for us.
= um= statt
von
- from
- of, belonging to (often replacing genitive; see usage note below)
- by; denotes the agent in passive voice
- about, of (a topic)
Wir sind von hier.
We're from here.
Es ist nicht von mir.
It isn't from me.
Das ist nicht von mir.
It's not from me.
= durch
wenn
- when, whenever
- if (on the condition that)
Was ist, wenn du nicht recht hast?
What if you're wrong?
Was ist, wenn ihr nicht recht habt?
What if you're wrong?
Was ist, wenn Sie nicht recht haben?
What if you're wrong?
ihr
- her (possessive)
- its (when the owning object/article/thing/animal etc., referred to, is feminine)
Ich habe mit ihr geredet.
I talked to her.
Ihr habt es mir versprochen.
You promised me.
Habt ihr es gesehen?
Did you see it?
dasNein
- a no
- Article
- das Nein
- Plural
- die Nein (unchanged)
- Genitive
- des Neines
War das ein Nein?
Was that a no?
Nein, ich war es nicht.
No, I'm not!
Hat sie einen Hund?" "Nein, hat sie nicht.
Does she have a dog?" "No, she doesn't.
≠ Ja
an
- on, upon, at, in, against
- by, near, close to, next to
- on; in; at
- a, per, only used with the word Tag (“day”), otherwise use in
Es ist an uns.
It's up to us.
Es ist an der Zeit.
It's about time.
Ich war an ihrer Seite.
I was at her side.
noch
- nor; function word introducing each except the first term or series, indicating none of them is true
Er ist noch hier.
He is still here.
Ich habe sie noch.
I still have them.
Er ist noch nicht hier.
He isn't here yet.
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30 graded A1 texts
Short German texts chosen so you already know most of the words, with a sentence-by-sentence translation.
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Practice
279 A1 questions
Gap-fill, articles, grammar and reading comprehension — answers and explanations on every item.
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Overview
Everything at A1
Your first German: everyday words, der/die/das, and short sentences you can use on day one.
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Common questions
How many words are in German A1 vocabulary?
This A1 list adds 378 words — 182 nouns, 45 verbs and 151 others. Counting everything from A1 up to A1, that is 378 words in total, which is the figure exam syllabuses usually quote.
What does A1 mean in German?
A1 is the beginner level of the Common European Framework (CEFR), also called "Breakthrough". At A1 you understand and use familiar everyday expressions and very basic phrases.
How long does it take to learn A1 German vocabulary?
At a couple of dozen words a session, 378 words is a few weeks of steady work. Most learners need several passes before recall is reliable, so plan on going back over ground you have covered rather than only ever moving forward.
In what order should I learn these A1 words?
Top to bottom. The whole level is one list sorted by how often the word appears in a large corpus of spoken German, so the words you meet first are the ones that earn their keep fastest and the rarest sit at the end.
Word data, examples and audio from Wiktionary, Tatoeba and OpenSubtitles, used under CC BY-SA 4.0. See sources.