31 German Conversation Starters for Real-Life Situations
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How do you start a German conversation?
If you studied language while at school, chances are that your learning consisted of reading page after page from a textbook. While you may have eventually improved your reading skills, most of what you learned doesn’t really transfer very well to real life.
Do you go around asking people how old they are and telling everyone your trousers are blue in your native tongue? Of course not! You want to ask people how they’re feeling or what their interests are.
Here are 31 German conversation starters you can use in real situations, from asking for directions to chatting on a night out.
Before we get started, if you’re looking for an online German course, here’s the course I recommend: German Uncovered – Learn German Through the Power of Story, a course with a fascinating new method by my friend Olly. You can try it for free for 7 days!
Table of contents
German Conversation Starters: Breaking the Ice
The first thing you might want to start your conversations with is a simple “hello”, but what next?
I’ve compiled a list of possible scenarios to help you break the ice when striking up a German conversation with a stranger.
The most important thing to remember when starting a conversation is to say something. Once the words start flowing, you never know where you’ll end up.
One quick note before you use these: Sie is formal, while du is familiar. As a safe starting point, use Sie with adults you don’t know and in public situations, and du with friends. In casual settings you’ll often hear du, so follow the other person’s lead.
On the Street
- Entschuldigung, wie spät ist es? (“Excuse me, what time is it?”)
- Wo ist eine Bank? (“Where’s a bank?”)
- Wie weit ist es? (“How far is it?”)
- Können Sie es mir (auf der Karte) zeigen? (“Can you show me (on the map)?”)
At a Train Station
- Ist dieser Platz frei? (“Is this seat free?”)
- Hält dieser Zug in …? (“Does this train stop in …?”)
- Wie lange dauert die Fahrt? (“How long does the trip take?”)
- Welcher Bahnhof ist das? (“Which station is this?”)
In a Restaurant
- Gibt es noch etwas zu essen? (“Is there still anything to eat?”)
- Entschuldigung, kann ich die Karte sehen? (“Excuse me, can I please see the menu?”)
- Was empfehlen Sie? (“What would you recommend?”)
- Haben Sie vegetarisches Essen? (“Do you have vegetarian food?”)
- Wie groß sind die Portionen? (“How big are the portions?”)
- Kriege ich das auch ohne Tomaten? (“Can I get that without tomatoes?”)
- Ich bin allergisch gegen Nüsse. (“I’m allergic to nuts.”)
- Gibt’s auch Nachtisch? (“Do you have dessert too?”)
- Das hat hervorragend geschmeckt! (“That was delicious!”)
- Können Sie das einpacken? (“Can you wrap that up to go?”)
German Conversation: Asking About Interests
Once you’ve started a conversation, how can you keep it going?
A good way of doing this is to ask your conversation partner about their interests. You could ask:
- Hast du eine deutsche Lieblingsband? (“Do you have a favourite German band?”)
- Spielst du ein Instrument? (“Do you play an instrument?”)
- Welche Sportarten magst du? (“Which sports do you like?”)
- Was ist dein Lieblingsessen? (“What’s your favourite food?”)
German Conversation on a Night Out
When you’re out on the town, here are some German phrases you can use to start a conversation.
- Was gibt’s vom Fass? (“What’s on tap?”)
- Dieses Kleid steht dir sehr gut! (“That dress really suits you!”)
- Ich gebe Ihnen einen aus. (formal) / Ich gebe dir einen aus. (informal) (“I’ll buy you a drink.”)
- Was möchten Sie? (formal) / Was möchtest du? (informal) (“What would you like?”)
- Diese Runde geht auf mich. (“It’s my round.”)
- Kannst du Billard spielen? (“Do you know how to play pool/billiards?”)
- Ich hätte gern Orangensaft, bitte. (“I’ll have an orange juice, please.”)
- Können Sie Klubs empfehlen? (“Can you recommend clubs?”)
- Versuchst du mich anzumachen? (“Are you trying to pick me up/hit on me?”)
Ready to Start Speaking?
At Fluent in 3 Months, we’ve always encouraged speaking from day one. Regular speaking practice helps you become conversational, and these phrases give you somewhere practical to start.
The next step is finding someone you can speak with regularly.
Here are two places to find a tutor or conversation partner:
- Preply: Preply lets you book one-to-one online lessons with private tutors in its virtual classroom.
- Mundo Lingo: Mundo Lingo runs free weekly language socials in cities around the world.
Related learning: Listen to this Language Hacking Podcast episode with Kerstin Cable, the teacher behind German Uncovered.
She shares her approach to slow learning and building vocabulary over the long term.
Time to Say Goodbye
Before I became a polyglot, I thought I couldn’t learn foreign languages, but here I am.
In April 2023, I found an Indonesian edition of my Language Hacking German book.
I spent three months focused on German, then turned what I learned into the book.
You don’t have to wait until you feel fearless, so pick two or three conversation starters, use them this week and build from there.
Tschüss! (“Goodbye!”)
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