Prefixes & Prepositions

aus, raus, draußen – Words for “out” in German

aus, raus, draußen and außen - they all mean "out" in German, but they're all different. Today, we'll learn what they mean and we'll look at aus as a prefix.

Vocab: aus, ausmachen, ausgehen, ausfallen, raus, draußen, außen, außer, äußerlich, äußern, veräußern

The Meanings of “aus” – Prefix and Preposition

"aus" is German for "out". But it's not that simple because like "out" it can be used for a variety of ideas. We'll look at all of them with plenty of examples.

Vocab: aus, raus, ausgehen, ausmachen, ausfallen, aussehen, ausziehen, ausstellen

German Prefixes Explained – “ent-” Part II

In part two of the article about "ent-" we'll find out where it comes from, and why it can also be about beginnings.

Vocab: entscheiden, antworten, entsprechen, entzünden, empfehlen, empfangen, empfinden, un-

German Prefixes Explained – “ent-“

We'll take a good look at the prefix "ent-" and see how its core theme gets modified and twisted by the various ent-verbs.

The Prefix “er-” Explained – Part Two

After checking out the practical meaning of "er-" in part one, today, we'll take a look at the origin and find the REAL core meaning of the prefix "er-"

Vocab: der Urlaub, der Urknall, der Urmensch, erlauben, erfinden, erhalten...

The German Prefix “er-” explained

The Iseparable Prefix "er-" has one main underlying theme: reaching a goal. The many meanings it seems to have are just results of different types of goals.

Vocab: erzählen, erfahren, erlauben, ertrinken, erschlagen, erkennen, erregen, erdrücken, erleuchten

Non-Separable Prefixes – Not a German Invention

We'll take a nerdy look at the origin of German non-separable prefixes and compare them to prefix verbs across other languages like English or Russian.

German Separable Prefixes – What Are They, Actually

In this article, we'll explore where German separable prefix verbs come from and meet their English cousin that has been hidden in plain sight.

Verb Prefixes – What they actually do

German is famous for its prefix verbs, but many languages have them, and English is full of them. We'll find out what they all have in common across languages.

The meaning of “hin”

The German word "hin" means "there", but it's better to think of it as a generic marker - like #destination. And it sounds really wrong if you forget it.

German Verbs with Prepositions – An Exercise

A fun exercise about some of the most important German verbs and the prepositions they so desire :). Special guests: da- and wo-compounds and some really really dumb puns.

The Meanings of “durch” – Prefix and Preposition

A detailed look at the German preposition "durch". We'll see what it means, when to use it and we'll collect the most important prefix verbs with "durch"

Vocab: durchsetzen, durchhalten, durchmachen, durcheinander, der Durchschnitt, durchdrehen

The Meaning of “von” – Usage Guide

The core idea of "von" is origin. And that can manifest as a location, possession or even as cause. Or just the source of something. Today, we'll explore this.

Vocab: von, halten von, denken von, träumen von, abhängen von, von + location

The Preposition “zu” Explained – Part 2

"zu" is used for location and in the sense of "closed". It's also used for phrasings like "trying to" and it's used for "too much" and with verbs like gehören.

The Preposition “zu” Explained

A thorough look at the German preposition 'zu' - what's its core idea, how does it work as a prefix and which verbs and phrases want "zu" as a preposition.

Vocab: zu, zugeben, zuhaben, zu sein, zugehen, zuhören, zumachen

Verbs with “auf” and “drauf” – Meanings and Use

We'll talk about all the verbs that take "auf" as a preposition and we'll see if there's some logic somewhere. Also: a few really common phrases with "drauf"

Vocab: warten auf, freuen auf, achten auf, drauf, drauf sein, drauf kommen, ...

The Preposition “auf” – All Meanings and Uses

The German preposition "auf" can mean "on" and "for", but also "open". And in combinations like "warten auf", it has a sense of targeting. Let's explore that.

Vocab: auf, aufgehen, aufmachen, aufgehen, warten auf, stehen auf, aufhaben

German Prepositions Explained – “vor”

The core idea of "vor" is "in front" but it's used in various abstract ways as a prefix and combined with verbs. Today, we'll find out all about it.

Vocab: vorgehen, vorhaben, vormachen, Angst haben vor, warnen vor, vor Lachen

German Two-Way Prepositions Explained

Two way prepositions are prepositions that can go with Accusative or Dative. And which one to use depends on what YOU want to say (and if that makes sense).

“mit” – Prefix and Preposition Explained

A fun ride along the prefix verbs with "mit-" in German. Definitely a bunch of verbs to bring with you to a conversation :). Mit lots of audio examples.

Vocab: mitnehmen, mitkommen, mitbringen, mitmachen, mitgehen, mithaben

German Prepositions Explained – “nach”

"nach" can mean "to" and "after". Today, we'll explore the common core of this, and explore the various uses of "nach", both alone and as a prefix.

Vocab: nach, nachmachen, nachlaufen, nachlassen, nachgehen, nach

Word of the Day – “weiter”

"weiter" means "further" and just like "further" in English, it can express the idea of "continuing" something. That's why it's a super common verb prefix.

Vocab: weiter, weit, soweit, weitermachen, weiterschlafen, weitergeben, weiter so, bis auf Weiteres,

Verbs With the prefix “ver-” – The Ultimate Overview

In part one, we discovered the core idea of the prefix 'ver' and saw how we can bend it. Today, we'll go over the most common ver-verbs and make sense of them.

Vocab: verstehen, vergessen, verlieben, verführen, vergeben, vertrauen,

The German Prefix “ver-” – Its One Core Idea

'ver' is the most common prefix in German and there seems to be no logic to it. In this article, we'll discover its one core meaning and what we can do with it.

Word of the Day – “zwischen”

A quick look at the meaning of "zwischen" and some related words, particularly "zwischendurch" and "inzwischen" and how that's different to "während".

Vocab: zwischen, dazwischen, inzwischen, zwischendurch, der Zwischenstop, während, derweil

Word of the Day – “los”

'los' can be an ending. Then, it means '-less'. And it can be a prefix. Then, it expresses a sense of starting. And these two ideas are actually related.

Vocab: los, lose, das Los, los sein, loslassen, losgehen,

German Prefixes Explained – “zer”

A fun look at the meaning of the "zer-" prefix and the most important verbs with it. Book coming soon, guys :)

Vocab: zerstreuen, zerfließen, zerspringen, zerschlagen, zerreden,

German Prefixes Explained – “um”

In this episode, we'll learn about the 2 meanings of "um-" and go over the most important prefix verbs together.

Vocab: umgehen, umfahren, umstellen, umfallen, umziehen, umschreiben

German Prefixes Explained – “be-“

An enlightening look at the German non-separable verb prefix "be-". We'll find out how it modifies a verb and talk about the most common be-verbs.

Vocab: bestellen, bekommen, sich benehmen, behalten, begreifen, anbehalten, beneiden, vorbereiten, beeindrucken

The meaning of German “her”

A thorough look at the confusing German word "her". We'll see what it means and why and learn how to use it properly with lots of examples.