Tag Archives: German
German of the day: Verbale sexuelle Belästigung
That means catcalling.

No wonder Germans prefer using the English word catcalling now too.
Sexual harassment: Germany debates ban on catcalling – While it is illegal in Germany to give a one-fingered salute, making obscene sexual remarks and gestures is not. The center-left Social Democrats want to change that.
Suggestive gestures or noises, graphically obscene remarks — an everyday experience for many women across the world. In some European countries such behavior can land you with a fine or even a jail sentence.
But in Germany, verbal sexual harassment in public is not criminalized under sexual offences legislation passed in 2016, which made non-consensual sexualized acts of touching like groping a crime for the first time.
German of the day: Eskalationsfalle
That means escalation trap.

Berlin calls for strengthening defenses without falling into Putin’s “escalation trap” – The German Minister of Defense, Boris Pistorius, said Sunday that Germany must strengthen its defense capabilities, particularly against drones, while avoiding falling into what he called “the escalation trap” set by the Russian president Vladimir Putin.
During a defense exercise in Hamburg, the minister stressed the need for Berlin to invest in anti-drone and electronic jamming systems, as incursions into European airspace have increased since the start of the war in Ukraine.
“We must build strong defenses, but without responding precipitously to every provocation. This is exactly what Putin wants: a spiral of reactions that would lead to a direct confrontation,” Pistorius warned.
German of the day: Das waren Zeiten!
That means “those were the days!”

When everything still worked in Germany. Before German reunification.
5 facts about German Unity Day – On October 3, Germany celebrates the reunification of East and West. How did it come about — and how is it celebrated? How do Germans feel about reunification today?
Following the end of World War II in 1945, a defeated Germany was divided into four occupation zones, controlled by the Allied powers: the United States, France, Great Britain and the Soviet Union.
In 1949, two states emerged: the democratic Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) in the West, and the socialist German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the East, with the latter being under Soviet control. From that point on, Germany was divided…
German of the day: Drohnenschwarm
That means drone swarm.

Test reactions and agitate – According to security authorities, the recent drone flights in Schleswig-Holstein are not so much for espionage as for other purposes. The perpetrators presumably also want to send a warning...
Last week, drones flew over a power plant in Kiel, the university hospital, the Thyssenkrupp marine division’s factory premises, the state parliament in Kiel, and other buildings.
It’s called Zeitgeist
Jimmy Kimmel in German?
He’s certainly not funny in English. Go for it, Jimmy.

When can we book your flight?
Jimmy Kimmel says ‘Germany offered’ him a job as he slams Trump in show return – Late-night talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! returned to ABC on September 23, almost a week after the network pulled it off the air last week.
“The guy in Germany offered me a job. Can you imagine?”
In his comments on the Sept. 15 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Kimmel suggested that Tyler Robinson, the man accused of fatally shooting Charlie Kirk at his Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University on September 10, was “one of” President Donald Trump’s MAGA, Make America Great Again, movement.
German of the day (2025): Hausverbot
That means house ban.

“Nothing personal, nor is this anti-Semitism, I just can’t stand you.”
“Jews are not allowed here!!!!”
German shop sign banning Jews sparks wide condemnation, police action – Flensburg store owner claims ban ‘not even antisemitism. I just can’t stand you’; Israeli envoy: ‘The 1930s are back’; German official slams sign as Jew hatred ‘in its purest form.’
That’s also how you learn to speak Klingon
Well it’s how I learned.

Ig Nobel prize for study showing that drunk Germans speak Dutch better than sober ones – Dutch Courage can help you speak a foreign language, according to a study by Dutch, English, and German researchers that was awarded an Ig Nobel prize on Thursday. They showed that alcohol consumption sometimes improves a person’s ability to speak a foreign language. “We made an important discovery. Drunk Germans usually pronounce Dutch better than sober Germans.”
German of the day: Verdreifachen
That means to triple.

Support for far-right triples in western German vote, early forecasts show – Support for Germany’s far right surged in local elections in the country’s most populous state on Sunday, sending a warning to conservative Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s four-month-old national coalition with the Social Democrats, early projections showed.
Initial forecasts from pollster infratest dimap for broadcaster ARD after voting ended for councils, districts and mayors in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia showed support for the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party had more than tripled to 16.5% from 2020.

