Working in a translation agency has its benefits – you come across so many languages as translators mumble in multiple tongues. I’ve been at Locate Translate for many months now. During my tenure, I’d discuss languages with translators. And one of the pleasant surprises has been speaking to fellow workers and never knowing what language they might pull out from their bag of languages. Collectively, one gets the feeling of being surrounded by polyglots! I confess I’m no polyglot myself, though I’m bilingual! I tried my luck learning German words from German-speaking translators working with us but to no avail. My inability to pick up the language has to do with complex grammar and the lack of English equivalents for certain German words that I came across. I’m talking about German words that don’t exist in English but describe complex human emotions. Or that the English translation of these words fails to capture their depth in meaning.
So without further ado, let’s discuss German words that don’t translate easily into English.
1. Ohrwurm
Literal Meaning – “Earworm.”
Explanation – This is where it gets strange. The literal translation of Ohrwurm says ‘ear worm’, but it isn’t! Ohrwurm depicts the emotion of loving a song so much that it gets stuck to your head. And by all standards, it’s contrary to ‘ear worm’ by miles! So the nearest descriptive equivalent I can think of Ohrwurm is keeping grooving and singing along to your favourite song over and again.
2. Sturmfrei
Literal Meaning – “When your parents are away, and you have the whole house to yourself.”
Explanation – Now, it won’t be wrong to say Sturmfrei is one of the German words for emotions. From its literal translation, one can conclude it’s an emotion of happiness and freedom and falls under the category of unique German words. Of course, there’s no precise translation of it in English, but we have our way of saying just the same: “party time”, “home alone,” or more descriptive, “When the cat’s away, the mice will play.”
3. Backpfeifengesicht
Literal Meaning – “A face begging for a slap.”
Explanation – Simply put, Backpfeifengesicht means a “slappable face”. But the truth is, it has no equivalent in the English language. Backpfeifengesicht is a German word whose English translation falls short of conveying its true meaning. You can, however, use Backpfeifengesicht to label anyone as such that fits in the description.
4. Handschuhschneeballwerfer
Literal Meaning – “Glove snowball thrower.”
Explanation – Almost in every discussion we have with our native-speaking German linguists, Handschuhschneeballwerfer pops. They say they can think of no English equivalent of German word – Handschuhschneeballwerfer. So it’s someone not daring enough to throw snowball with bare hands, but due to their cowardice resorting to a glove to do so.
5. Erbsenzähler
Literal Meaning – “Someone who is obsessed with details and a bit of a control freak.”
Explanation – The literal meaning of Erbsenzähler is someone obsessed with or eye for the smallest of details. Like they can’t breathe without digging to the very bottom! Breaking Erbsenzähler into its components – Erbsen and Zähler, we get the following meaning – “peas” and “count,” respectively.
6. Dreikäsehoch
Literal Meaning – “Three cheese high.”
Explanation – Again, one of the untranslatable German words, Dreikäsehoch, means the exact opposite of its literal meaning. Though the word has got nothing to do with cheese, it portrays the state of an undergrown child perfectly. So if the child hasn’t grown big enough as he should have been, Dreikäsehoch is the word to describe such a child. Its meaning comes to something like this: His height is akin to the three cheese rolls piled one upon another – meaning not enough tall or grown-up!
7. Sprachgefühl
Literal Meaning – “Language feeling.”
Explanation – Sprachgefühl, though a cool-sounding German word, finds no equivalent in English in terms of its meaning. However, that doesn’t mean it’s indescribable. On the contrary, it describes a person who’s a knack for learning languages and mastering their grammar, syntax, terminology, etc. Indeed, Sprachgefühl is a unique word, but so are the people who can learn a second language!
8. Gemütlich
Literal Meaning – “Heart, mind, temper, feeling.”
Explanation – What’s unique about Gemütlich is that it’s an encapsulating adjective. That’s to say, it contains within it many adjectives and feelings, such as cosiness and comfort one finds at home.
9. Schadenfreude
Literal Meaning – “Damage joy.”
Explanation – Schadenfreude is something you won’t want to associate yourself with as it means gaining joy out of other persons’ distress. Schadenfreude is an interesting German word exemplifying the ugly satisfaction one draws when misfortune befalls someone else.
10. Fernweh
Literal Meaning – “Far sickness.”
Explanation – Far sickness truly represents an unsatiated longing for faraway places. As opposed to homesickness, Fernweh expresses a person’s want to travel.
11. Verschlimmbessern
Literal Meaning – “To make something worse by trying to improve it.”
Explanation – Obsession with perfection can be counterproductive sometimes. The experience of trying to do something with utter perfection but ending up doing it wrong is nothing new to many of us! We’ve all messed up things doing so! And you’ve had this experience recently Verschlimmbessern is the word for you!
12. Innerer Schweinehund
Literal Meaning – “Inner pig dog.”
Explanation – Sometimes, you’re all pumped up to sweat it out in the gym, but then suddenly a mysterious voice lulls your inner spirit into inactivity. The culprit is your Innerer Schweinehund which makes staying home more attractive than going to the gym to work out.
