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24 German Essay Phrases
We need to talk about your German essays.
Essay writing is a skill that you can learn in any language.
All you need is to brush up your vocabulary and follow a few simple strategies, and you’ll be well on your way to writing your first masterpiece.
This post will provide you with a list of useful German words and phrases to include in your next essay, plus the different types of German essays, a few writing strategies and even a sample essay at the end.
German Essay Phrases
General explaining, ordering facts and ideas, demonstrating contrast, expressing your opinion, summarizing and concluding, what are german essays like, the different types of german essays, how to write an essay in german in 4 steps, 1. write down a list of words , 2. do your research, 3. make an outline using transition words, 4. write directly in german, an example of a german essay, and one more thing....
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Let’s start with the words and phrases themselves. As you’ll see, they’re grouped according to how and when you’ll use them. Let’s start off with some that will help you explain your arguments.
1. Weil (Because)
Daniel muss lernen, weil er morgen einen Test hat.
(Daniel has to study because he has a test tomorrow.)
2. Da (Because)
Daniel muss lernen, da er morgen einen Test hat.
3. Denn (Because)
Daniel muss lernen, denn er hat morgen einen Test.
(Daniel has to study because tomorrow he has a test.)
A quick note: Weil, da and denn are generally interchangeable. Keep in mind though that denn requires a different word order.
4. Damit (In order to; So that)
Lisa lernt viel, damit sie den Test besteht.
(Lisa is studying a lot in order to pass the test.)
5. Um (To; In order to)
Lisa lernt viel, um den Test zu bestehen.
(Lisa is studying a lot to pass the test.)
6. Im Grunde (Basically; Fundamentally)
Im Grunde ist Deutsch keine schwierige Sprache.
(Fundamentally, German is not a difficult language.)
7. Eigentlich (Actually)
Eigentlich ist Deutsch nicht so schwierig, wie es scheint.
(Actually, German is not as difficult as it seems.)
8. Ein Beispiel anführen (To give an example)
Ich möchte ein Beispiel anführen .
(I would like to give an example.)
9. Dieses Beispiel zeigt, dass… (This example shows that…)
Dieses Beispiel zeigt, dass das Lernen einer Fremdsprache beim Reisen viele Vorteile hat.
(This example shows that studying a foreign language has many advantages when traveling.)
10. Erstens… zweitens… (Firstly… secondly…)
Erstens kann man sich auf Reisen besser verständigen und zweitens lernt man viele neue Leute kennen.
(Firstly, you can communicate better while traveling, and secondly, you meet many new people.)
11. Das Wichtigste ist… (T he most important thing is…)
Das Wichtigste ist , die Angst vor der Sprache zu verlieren.
(The most important thing is to lose your fear of the language.)
12. Außer dem (Furthermore)
Außerdem kann man beim Reisen seine Sprachkenntnisse verbessern.
(Furthermore, you can improve your language knowledge while traveling.)
13. Nicht nur… sondern auch… (Not only… but also…)
Nicht nur im Unterricht, sondern auch im Alltag kann man viel Deutsch lernen.
(Not only in class, but also in everyday life you can learn a lot of German.)
14. Obwohl (Even though)
Obwohl Anna viel lernt, hat sie Probleme mit der deutschen Grammatik.
(Even though Anna studies a lot, she has problems with German grammar.)
15. Allerdings (However)
Anna lernt gerne Deutsch, allerdings hat sie Probleme mit der Grammatik.
(Anna enjoys studying German; however, she has problems with the grammar.)
16. Trotz (Despite)
Trotz ihrer Probleme mit der Grammatik lernt Anna gerne Deutsch.
(Despite her problems with German grammar, Anna enjoys studying German.)
17. Im Vergleich zu (In comparison to)
Im Vergleich zu Russisch ist Deutsch eine einfache Sprache.
In comparison to Russian, German is an easy language.
18. Im Gegensatz zu (In contrast to; Unlike)
Im Gegensatz zu Anna lernt Paul gerne neue Vokabeln.
Unlike Anna, Paul enjoys learning new vocabulary.
19. Meiner Meinung nach (In my opinion)
Meiner Meinung nach sollte jeder eine Fremdsprache lernen.
(In my opinion, everybody should study a foreign language.)
20. Ich bin der Ansicht, dass… (I believe that…)
Ich bin der Ansicht, dass jeder eine Fremdsprache lernen sollte.
(I believe that everybody should study a foreign language.)
21. Ich finde es schade, dass… (I think it’s a pity that…)
Ich finde es schade, dass die Schulen keine anderen Fremdsprachen unterrichten.
(I think it’s a pity that schools don’t teach other foreign languages.)
22. Alles in Allem (Overall)
Alles in allem ist Deutsch nicht so schwierig, wie es scheint.
(Overall, German isn’t as difficult as it seems.)
23. Im Großen und Ganzen (Overall)
Im Großen und Ganzen ist Deutsch keine schwierige Sprache.
(Overall, German isn’t a difficult language.)
24. Zusammenfassend kann man sagen, dass… (In summary, it can be said that…)
Zusammenfassend kann man sagen, dass Sprachen beim Reisen sehr hilfreich sein können.
(In summary, it can be said that languages can be very helpful when traveling.)
Ok, let’s get a little deeper into the actual essays themselves. How do they compare to the essays that you’re probably used to writing?
- They have a similar structure to English essays. Remember how English essays have a beginning, middle and end? Good news: German essays contain those same parts. When you’re writing a German essay, you’ll want to include an opening paragraph with your argument, three supporting paragraphs that further your argument and a conclusion. German and English are often surprisingly similar, and essay structure is no exception.
- German essays are more to the point. Although German essays and English essays are structured similarly, German essays—just like German speakers—tend to be more blunt and to the point. You won’t need to dance around your conclusions or obfuscate in German: just say what you mean.
- German punctuation is different. Germans have different rules for punctuation than English speakers. For example, Germans introduce a direct quote with a colon instead of a comma. They use quotes instead of italics for the names of books, movies and newspapers. And they set off relative clauses beginning with dass (that) with a comma, unlike in American English. Understanding these differences between English and German punctuation will ensure you don’t give yourself away as a non-native speaker through punctuation marks alone!
Before you get started on your essay, make sure you know what type of essay you’re going to write. If it’s a school essay, be sure to read and understand the instructions.
Here are a few notes about the most common kinds of essays in German.
- An Erzählung is a narrative essay that tells a story. Your teacher might give you some keywords or pictures and ask you to create a story around it. An Erlebniserzählung (“experience story”) is about a personal experience and can be written in the first person.
- An Erörterung is an argumentative essay, a writing piece meant to persuade someone to think the way you do. This writing genre requires you to investigate your topic well and provide evidence to prove your point.
- In a Nacherzählung you summarize and recount a book, a film or an article you have read, from an objective perspective. Depending on the essay instructions, you might be asked for your personal opinion in the conclusion.
Are you ready to start writing? Use these four strategies to wow your teachers and write the perfect German essay.
You should look at any new activity as an opportunity to learn and master new vocabulary . Instead of using the same words that you use in your everyday German speech, use this essay as an opportunity to introduce new words into your German lexicon.
Besides, incorporating academic words that help you craft and shape your argument can make your essay sound more professional and polished. So before you start writing, write down a list of the German words you’d like to incorporate in your essay.
As with everything else, you should look at the research portion of the essay-writing process as an opportunity to learn more about Germany—this time, about German culture, history , politics or travel .
Chances are if you’re writing your essay for a language-learning class, you’ll be assigned a topic pertaining to one of these aspects of German life, so use this as a chance to learn more about Deutschland.
For example, Deutsche Welle offers information and resources about German history. Other newspapers such as Berliner Zeitung and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung offer another perspective on politics and daily life in Germany.
There’s nothing clunkier than an essay that doesn’t flow naturally from one point to the next. Besides, thinking about how your arguments and points interact with each other will help you organize your essay and make sure you get your point across. (Do they support each other? Counter each other? How exactly do they function to further your argument?)
Examples of transition words:
- Vorher (prior)
- zur gleichen Zeit (at the same time)
- dann (then)
- trotzdem (nevertheless)
- noch (still)
Writing an essay in English and then translating it into German often results in stilted, poorly formed sentences and unnatural constructions.
For example, remember that German word order is different from English. If you write “He didn’t read the book,” a one-to-one literal translation would be Er hat gelesen nicht das Buch . But the correct translation is actually Er hat nicht das Buch gelesen. In this example, translating word for word leads to errors.
There’s another, less tangible reason why it’s not a good idea to write in English and translate to German. Sure, you could just remember that you need to change the word order when translating into German. But isn’t it better to adapt your brain so that German word order seems fluid and natural?
Learning to think and write off-the-cuff in German is an essential step towards fluency, and devising sentences in German, instead of sentences in translation, will help you learn to do that.
One good way to learn to think in a language is to hear it spoken in natural contexts. You can hear German spoken naturally in German language TV shows , movies and YouTube videos .
FluentU takes authentic videos—like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks—and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.
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Listening to German spoken at a natural speed and native accent will help get you thinking in the language in real time. This will help get you to the point where you can come up with your own sentences in German, rather than thinking in English sentences first and then translating them in your head before you speak or write. That will greatly improve your speed and fluency when writing in German.
So, simply start writing the essay in German. Look up any words you’re not sure of and double-check any grammatical constructions that you’re not familiar with. After you finish writing, ask a German-speaking friend to look over the essay to make sure it sounds natural.
Now that we’ve explored strategies and phrases for writing top-notch German essays, let’s take a look at an example.
World War I doesn’t get as much coverage in the States as World War II (where it was more directly involved). But for Europe, World War I was a devastating example of the dangers of modern technological warfare and the horrors of violence.
Let’s take a look at an example opening paragraph and outline of an essay about the effect of World War I on German government and life.
Opening paragraph:
Der Erste Weltkrieg war ein totaler Krieg, der Deutschland völlig veränderte. Dieser Krieg hat 1914 angefangen, und 1918, als der Krieg zu Ende kam, waren die deutsche Gesellschaft, Regierung und Kultur nicht mehr erkennbar. Am Anfang hat der Erste Weltkrieg altväterliche Ideen und Systeme verstärkt. Am Ende hat dieser Krieg dagegen diese altväterlichen Dinge zerstört.
(The First World War was a total war that completely changed Germany. This war began in 1914 and in 1918, when the war came to an end, German society, government and culture were no longer recognizable. At the beginning, the First World War strengthened old-fashioned ideas and systems. However, by the end, this war destroyed these old-fashioned things.)
Notice that this opening paragraph is not very different at all from the first paragraph of an English essay. You can use the same structure you’ve always used to write your German essay, leaving you free to focus on grammar and vocabulary.
Notice also the use of phrases such as Am Anfang (at the beginning) and Dagegen (however). Words like these can help you make a point and counterpoint in your opening paragraph (or anywhere in your essay, for that matter).
I. Am Anfang (at the beginning):
– Dieser Krieg hat Deutschland vereint . (This war united Germany.) – Menschen hatten ein patriotisches Gefühl. (People had a patriotic feeling.) – Menschen dachten, dass der Krieg bald zu Ende kommen würde. (People thought that the war would soon come to an end.)
Notice that these points employ words like dachten (thought). Written German often relies on Präteritum , a form of the past tense that’s rarely used in spoken Deutsch. It’s often called “literary past tense” for this reason. Check out this guide to the Präteritum to include this tense in your essay.
II. Andrerseits (on the other hand):
– Bald gab es kein Essen mehr . (Soon there was no more food.) – Menschen wurden krank und desillusioniert . (People became sick and disillusioned.) – Es gab Proteste und Unruhen. (There was protest and unrest.)
Like in an English essay, your second and third paragraphs can include supporting points or counterpoints that contribute to the overall theme of your piece. The word Andrerseits (on the other hand) is an ideal transition word to show that you’re moving into another section of your essay.
Also notice that this essay will rely on vocabulary words that the average language learner might not have come across in his or her learning. After all, who learns the words for “disillusioned” and “unrest” in their intermediate German class? But don’t be daunted by the fact that your essay might include eclectic vocabulary. Instead, use this as an opportunity for more learning.
III. zum Schluss (in conclusion):
– Der Kaiser hat abgedankt . (The Emperor abdicated.) – Eine Republik wurde geboren. (A Republic was born.) – Die alten Werte waren weg. (The old values were gone.)
Once again, abgedankt (abdicated) is an example of the literary past tense (and an example of a word that you probably haven’t come across in your previous German studies!)
IV. Schließlich (finally)
– Der Erste Weltkrieg hat Deutschland verändert . (The First World War completely changed Germany.)
Again, like in an English essay, you should use this paragraph to summarize your main point.
Feeling a bit more confident about your next German essay now?
Just make a great essay plan, write down some new words and phrases that you want to include and off you go!
By sprinkling these bits of flair into your German essays, you’re sure to make your writing better and more effective.
Enjoy writing!
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German Essay Phrases: 24 Useful Expressions to Write an Essay in German
As we often think in English first, translating our ideas into useful German phrases can be tricky.
This handy blog post includes 24 essential German essay phrases to help make your writing flow more smoothly and sound more natural. Whether you’re preparing for the Goethe exam, a GCSE test, or just want to improve your written German for real-life situations, these chunks and phrases will help you. Easy German has a great video on useful German expression:
From organizing your thoughts with transitions like “ zudem ” and “ außerdem “, to expressing your opinion with phrases like “ meiner Meinung nach ” and “ ich denke, dass… “, this post has you covered.
Write an essay with German essay phrases: learn how to structure your story
Goethe tests love a clear and logical format. They follow the same structure throughout the different levels. The good news is, when you’re learning a language, you can use these German essay phrases with these structures even in your real-life dialogues. Then, gradually, you can shift your focus to a more natural-sounding speaking.
First, begin with an engaging introduction to get the reader’s attention. This intro paragraph should also include a short thesis statement that outlines the central argument you’ll be taking.
In the body of your essay, organize your thoughts into separate paragraphs. Use transitional phrases like “ außerdem ” (furthermore) and “ zudem ” (moreover) to connect your paragraphs and create a flow.
After that, summarize your main points and restate your thesis. But! Avoid introducing new information. Leave the reader with a compelling final thought or even a call to action that makes your central argument stronger.
If you’re not certain enough, check the following list and learn about the must-have go-to German essay phrases now!
1. Erstens – Firstly
This German essay phrase is used to introduce the first point in your essay.
Erstens werden wir die Hauptargumente diskutieren. [Firstly, we will discuss the main arguments.]
2. Zweitens – Secondly
Normally, this phrase is there for you when you want to introduce the second point in a structured manner.
Zweitens betrachten wir einige Gegenbeispiele. [Secondly, we will look at some counterexamples.]
3. Drittens – Thirdly
Used to signal the third point for clarity in your argument.
Drittens ziehen wir eine Schlussfolgerung. [Thirdly, we will draw a conclusion.]
4. Einleitend muss man sagen… – To begin with, one has to say…
Start your essay with this phrase to introduce your key points.
Einleitend muss man sagen, dass dieses Thema komplex ist. [To begin with, one has to say that this topic is complex.]
5. Man muss … in Betracht ziehen – One needs to take … into consideration
When you want to consider a specific aspect in your discussion.
Man muss den historischen Kontext in Betracht ziehen. [One needs to take the historical context into consideration.]
6. Ein wichtiger Aspekt von X ist … – An important aspect of X is …
To highlight an important part…
Ein wichtiger Aspekt von Nachhaltigkeit ist die Ressourcenschonung. [An important aspect of sustainability is resource conservation.]
7. Man muss erwähnen, dass… – One must mention that …
Used to emphasize a point that need acknowledgement.
Man muss erwähnen, dass es verschiedene Ansichten gibt. [One must mention that there are different viewpoints.]
8. Im Vergleich zu – In comparison to…
To compare different elements in your essay.
Im Vergleich zu konventionellen Autos sind Elektrofahrzeuge umweltfreundlicher. [In comparison to conventional cars, electric vehicles are more eco-friendly.]
9. Im Gegensatz zu – In contrast to…
When you want to present an alternative viewpoint or argument.
Im Gegensatz zu optimistischen Prognosen ist die Realität ernüchternd. [In contrast to optimistic forecasts, reality is sobering.]
10. Auf der einen Seite – On the one hand
To add a new perspective.
Auf der einen Seite gibt es finanzielle Vorteile. [On the one hand, there are financial benefits.]
11. Auf der anderen Seite – On the other hand
Present an alternative viewpoint.
Auf der anderen Seite bestehen ethische Bedenken. [On the other hand, ethical concerns exist.]
12. Gleichzeitig – At the same time
When you want to show a simultaneous relationship between ideas.
Gleichzeitig müssen wir Kompromisse eingehen. [At the same time, we must make compromises.]
13. Angeblich – Supposedly
If you want to add information that is claimed but not confirmed.
Angeblich wurde der Konflikt beigelegt. [Supposedly, the conflict was resolved.]
14. Vermutlich – Presumably
Used when discussing something that is presumed but not certain.
Vermutlich wird sich die Situation verbessern. [Presumably, the situation will improve.]
15. In der Tat – In fact
To add a fact or truth in your essay.
In der Tat sind die Herausforderungen groß. [In fact, the challenges are great.]
16. Tatsächlich – Indeed
Emphasize a point or a fact.
Tatsächlich haben wir Fortschritte gemacht. [Indeed, we have made progress.]
17. Im Allgemeinen – In general
When discussing something in a general context.
Im Allgemeinen ist das System reformbedürftig. [In general, the system needs reform.]
18. Möglicherweise – Possibly
Spice your essay with a possibility or potential scenario.
Möglicherweise finden wir einen Konsens. [Possibly, we will find a consensus.]
19. Eventuell – Possibly
To suggest a potential outcome or situation.
Eventuell müssen wir unsere Strategie überdenken. [Possibly, we need to rethink our strategy.]
20. In jedem Fall / Jedenfalls – In any case
Used to emphasize a point regardless of circumstances.
In jedem Fall müssen wir handeln. [In any case, we must take action.]
21. Das Wichtigste ist – The most important thing is
If you want to highlight the most important thing in your saying.
Das Wichtigste ist, dass wir zusammenarbeiten. [The most important thing is that we cooperate.]
22. Ohne Zweifel – Without a doubt
To introduce a statement that is unquestionably trues.
Ohne Zweifel ist Bildung der Schlüssel zum Erfolg. [Without a doubt, education is the key to success.]
23. Zweifellos – Doubtless
Just as the previous one, when you want say something that is, without a doubt, true.
Zweifellos gibt es noch viel zu tun. [Doubtless, there is still a lot to be done.]
24. Verständlicherweise – Understandably
If you want to add a thing that is understandable in the given context.
Verständlicherweise sind einige Menschen besorgt. [Understandably, some people are concerned.]
Practice the most important German essay phrases
Practice the German essay phrases now!
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Learn the language and more German essay words and sentences with Conversation Based Chunking
Conversation Based Chunking represents a powerful approach to learning language skills. It’s especially useful for productive purposes like essay writing.
By learning phrases and expressions used in natural discourse, students internalize vocabulary and grammar in context rather than as isolated rules. This method helps you achieve fluency and helps you develop a ‘feel’ for a an authentic patterns.
Chunking common multi-word units accelerates progress by reducing cognitive load compared to consciously constructing each sentence from individual words. Sign up now to get access to your German Conversation Based Chunking Guide.
Lukas is the founder of Effortless Conversations and the creator of the Conversation Based Chunking™ method for learning languages. He's a linguist and wrote a popular book about learning languages through "chunks". He also co-founded the language education company Spring Languages, which creates online language courses and YouTube content.
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