Bulgaria DZI German flashcards

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

halb drei

German clock time meaning 2:30, i.e. half an hour before three. It does not mean 3:30, unlike English 'half past three', so listen carefully in scheduling tasks.

Trennbare Verben in main clauses

Separable verbs split in main clauses: the conjugated part stays in second position and the stressed prefix moves to the end, as in Ich stehe um sechs Uhr auf.

Contrast markers in listening

Words such as aber, jedoch, eigentlich and stattdessen signal that the speaker corrects or replaces an earlier statement. The answer usually follows the marker, not the first claim.

Negation cues

Nicht, kein, nie, nichts and the prefix un- reverse meaning. In listening and reading items, note these before choosing an option, because they often flip the correct answer.

Numbers -zehn versus -zig

Endings -zehn (13-19) and -zig (20, 30, 40) sound similar. Sechzehn is 16 while sechzig is 60; dreißig is 30 and vierzig is 40.

Answer order in DZI reading

Reading questions normally follow the order of the text. Locate the first answer early, then progress through the text rather than searching randomly for each item.

Paraphrase versus word match

Correct options restate the text in different words, for example Arbeitsstelle becomes Job. Distractors often repeat exact words from the text while changing the meaning.

Scope words

Alle, viele, manche, kaum, nur and selten limit or expand a statement. An option claiming 'all' is false if the text says 'many' or 'some'.

Reading compounds from the right

In German compounds the final element carries the core meaning: Reisebüro is an office, Reisekosten are costs, Reiseziel is a destination. Parse unknown words from the last part.

Text type signals

Advertisements use abbreviations and prices, e-mails have greetings and closings, forms have field labels, and articles contain opinion markers. Identifying the type guides which details matter.

Reference words er/sie/es

Pronouns er, sie, es and words like dieser or dort refer back to the most recent matching noun. Resolve the reference before deciding whether a statement about the text is true.

Accusative prepositions

The prepositions durch, für, gegen, ohne and um always take the accusative: für den Vater, ohne eine Pause, gegen den Wind. Memorise this fixed group for case questions.

Dative prepositions

Aus, bei, mit, nach, seit and von always take the dative: mit dem Bus, nach der Arbeit, seit einem Jahr. They never change case regardless of meaning.

Two-way prepositions

An, auf, in, über, unter, vor, hinter and neben take accusative for direction (in die Stadt) and dative for location (in der Stadt). Test with wohin? versus wo?

Verb-second rule

In a German main clause the conjugated verb occupies the second position, even when the sentence starts with a time or place phrase: Heute fahre ich nach Berlin.

Subordinate clause verb final

After conjunctions such as weil, dass, wenn, obwohl and als, the conjugated verb moves to the end of the clause: Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich krank bin.

Sein in the perfect tense

The perfect tense uses sein with verbs of motion or state change (gehen, fahren, aufstehen, werden) and with sein, werden and bleiben: Ich bin früh aufgestanden.

Adjective endings after der-words

After der, die, das and similar articles the adjective takes -e in the nominative singular and -en in most other forms: der alte Mann, mit dem alten Mann.

Modal verb sentence frame

A modal verb is conjugated in second position and the main verb appears as an infinitive at the end: Ich muss heute länger arbeiten. In subordinate clauses both verbs move to the end.

Comparison with als and wie

Use als after the comparative (älter als ich) and wie for equality (so alt wie ich). Mixing them is a frequent error in grammar items and in writing.

Formal e-mail frame

Formal German e-mails open with Sehr geehrte Damen und Herren or Sehr geehrte Frau …, state the purpose with ich schreibe Ihnen bezüglich …, and close with Mit freundlichen Grüßen.

Informal e-mail frame

Informal messages use du-forms, open with Liebe Anna or Hallo Tom, and close with Viele Grüße or Bis bald. Never mix du and Sie in the same message.

Covering all prompt points

DZI writing scores task fulfilment, so address every bullet in the prompt with at least one sentence. A missing point costs more than a small grammar error.

Connectors for coherence

Weil, deshalb, obwohl, außerdem and trotzdem link ideas and raise the coherence score. Vary sentence length and avoid starting every sentence with und or dann.

Final writing check

Reserve a few minutes to check verb-second position, subject-verb agreement, capitalisation of all nouns and the case after prepositions before submitting the text.

Self-introduction formula

Give name, age, origin, place of residence, profession or training, languages, hobbies and plans in six to eight short sentences. This covers the opening part of the oral exam.

Describing a picture

Use a fixed frame: Auf dem Bild sehe ich …, im Vordergrund, im Hintergrund, links, rechts. Then add interpretation with ich glaube or vermutlich to extend the answer.

Buying time while speaking

Fillers such as also, na ja, Moment mal and ich meine keep the flow going instead of silence. Fluency scoring rewards continuous speech over pauses.

Paraphrasing unknown words

If a word is missing, describe it: ein Ding, mit dem man … or give an example. Paraphrasing in German preserves the score better than switching languages or stopping.

Dialogue role cards

In the oral dialogue task, use the role card prompts: ask a question back, react with Ach so or Das ist interessant, then add your own statement to keep the exchange going.

German final devoicing

Voiced consonants at the end of a word or syllable become voiceless: Tag sounds like tak, und like unt, lieb like liep. Applying this improves pronunciation accuracy.

ich-Laut versus ach-Laut

After front vowels and consonants the ch is soft (ich, Milch, Mädchen); after back vowels it is hard (ach, Buch, Nacht). Distinguishing them is a common pronunciation criterion.