HSC German Continuers flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

das Selbstvertrauen

German noun meaning self-confidence, the belief in one's own abilities. Used in personal descriptions: Sie hat viel Selbstvertrauen. It is neuter, so the article is das.

sich verstehen mit

Reflexive verb plus dative meaning to get along with someone. Example: Ich verstehe mich gut mit meiner Schwester. The reflexive pronoun changes with the subject.

je ... desto

Comparative pair meaning the more ... the more. Word order: je plus comparative in a subordinate clause, then desto plus comparative and verb: Je älter ich werde, desto ruhiger bin ich.

Konjunktiv II hypotheticals

Form used for unreal conditions and polite wishes: hätte, wäre, würde. Example: Wenn ich mehr Zeit hätte, würde ich mehr lesen. It softens requests and expresses dreams.

Meiner Meinung nach

Formal opinion phrase meaning in my opinion. It is followed by verb second word order: Meiner Meinung nach ist Sport wichtig. Alternatives include Ich bin der Meinung, dass ...

die Erziehung

German noun for upbringing or education in the sense of how children are raised. Feminine: die Erziehung. Related verb erziehen means to bring up; der Erzieher is a preschool educator.

Deutschland, Österreich, die Schweiz

The three main German-speaking countries, with capitals Berlin, Wien and Bern. German is an official language in all three, though Austria and Switzerland have their own standard varieties.

der Schweizer

Noun for a male Swiss person. Unlike most masculine nouns ending in -er, it takes the ending -s in the genitive: des Schweizers. The adjective is schweizerisch.

das Goethe-Institut

German cultural organisation that promotes German language and culture abroad. It runs language courses, exams and cultural events worldwide. Named after writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Jause and Marille

Austrian German words. Jause means a snack or light meal; Marille means apricot, which in standard German is Aprikose. Austrian vocabulary often differs from German German.

Österreichs Bundesländer

Austria is a federal republic of nine Bundesländer, including Wien, Tirol and Steiermark. Its capital is Wien. The national parliament is the Nationalrat, and the head of state is the Bundespräsident.

die Schweiz als Konföderation

Switzerland is officially a confederation of 26 cantons with strong direct democracy. Citizens vote frequently in Volksabstimmungen. Its capital is Bern, and it has four official languages.

die Nachhaltigkeit

German noun meaning sustainability. It describes using resources so that future generations are not harmed. The adjective nachhaltig appears in phrases like nachhaltige Entwicklung.

die Energiewende

German term for the transition to renewable energy, including phasing out nuclear and coal power in favour of wind and solar. It is a central topic in German environmental debate.

der CO2-Ausstoß

German noun for carbon dioxide emissions. Masculine: der Ausstoß. Common collocations: den CO2-Ausstoß reduzieren, senken, verringern. It appears frequently in climate-change texts and reports.

das Passiv mit werden

Passive voice formed with werden plus past participle: Der Müll wird getrennt. For past events use wurde: Das Gesetz wurde 2019 eingeführt. The agent is given with von.

deshalb und trotzdem

Consequence and concession connectors. Deshalb means therefore and introduces a result; trotzdem means nevertheless and introduces contrast. Both are adverbs, so the verb follows immediately.

die Globalisierung

German noun meaning globalisation, the worldwide connection of economies, cultures and communication. Related terms: der Welthandel, die Vernetzung, der Strukturwandel, die internationale Zusammenarbeit.

halb acht

German time expression meaning half past seven, that is 7:30. German counts toward the next hour, so halb acht is not 8:30. Viertel vor acht is 7:45.

Signalwörter der Reihenfolge

Sequencing words in listening texts: zuerst, dann, danach, anschließend, schließlich. They mark the order of events, so they help you match answers to the correct stage of a dialogue.

vierzehn oder vierzig

Numbers easily confused in listening. Vierzehn means 14, ending in -zehn; vierzig means 40, ending in -zig. Listen for the final consonant and the vowel length.

Registermarker im Hörtext

Clues to formality: Sie versus du, titles like Herr Doktor, and phrases such as Könnten Sie bitte ...? These signal a service, office or formal request situation rather than a chat among friends.

Entscheidungsverben

Verbs that reveal a speaker's final choice in a listening task: ich nehme, ich entscheide mich für, am liebsten, lieber. They usually follow several mentioned options that act as distractors.

Textsorten erkennen

Reading strategy of identifying text type from layout and language: Anzeige, Blog, Bericht, Interview, Leserbrief, Rezension. Text type predicts register, tense and typical content.

trennbare Verben im Satz

Separable verbs split in main clauses: the prefix moves to the end. Ich stehe um sieben auf; Er ruft seine Mutter an. Find the prefix to decode the meaning.

Komposita und Genus

In German compound nouns, the last element determines both meaning and gender: die Umweltverschmutzung is die Verschmutzung der Umwelt, so it is feminine like die Verschmutzung.

weder ... noch

Correlative conjunction meaning neither ... nor. It negates both elements: Ich habe weder Zeit noch Geld. Word order stays normal, and the verb follows the second element.

formeller Briefrahmen

Standard frame for formal German letters: Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren, or Sehr geehrte Frau Müller, at the start, and Mit freundlichen Grüßen before the signature. Register uses Sie throughout.

Nebensatz Wortstellung

In subordinate clauses introduced by weil, dass, obwohl, wenn or damit, the conjugated verb goes to the end: Ich lerne Deutsch, weil ich in Berlin studieren will.

Perfekt mit sein

The perfect tense uses sein with verbs of movement and change of state: ich bin gefahren, sie ist geblieben, er ist eingeschlafen. Most other verbs take haben: ich habe gelesen.

Vorteile und Nachteile

Standard structure for discussion writing: state advantages (Vorteile), then disadvantages (Nachteile), then a conclusion. Useful phrases: Ein Vorteil ist, dass ...; Andererseits ...; Zusammenfassend ...

Pronunciation: ich-Laut and ach-Laut

After front vowels (i, e, ä) the -ch is soft [ç], as in ich and Milch. After back vowels (a, o, u) it is hard [x], as in Buch and Nacht. Final -er sounds like [ɐ].