12 common mistakes in the process of learning German

Introduction

When learning German, it's common to encounter various mistakes that should be avoided. This lesson covers 12 frequent errors that learners might make to improve their German.

1. Genitive with -s

In German, the genitive formation for names uses an -s at the end, but this only occurs in front of names and not before other nouns.
Example:

• Annas Freund (Anna's friend)

When a noun is in the genitive, it should either follow the possessive noun or use the structure "von + dative".
Example:

• Der Mann (von) meiner Schwester heißt Peter. (The man of my sister is called Peter.)

2. When or as

Use "as" for events that happened only once in the past.
Example:

• Als ich 10 Jahre alt war, habe ich Klavier gespielt. (When I was 10 years old, I played piano.)
  Here, "when" would be inappropriate.

3. Sentence structure with accusative and dative objects

The dative always comes before the accusative unless the accusative is a pronoun.
Examples:

• Der Chef hat meinem Kollegen einen besseren Job angeboten. (The boss offered my colleague a better job.)
• Der Chef hat mir keinen neuen Job angeboten. (The boss didn't offer me a new job.)

4. Future or Passive?

In the future tense, the verb "werden" and the infinitive are used, while in the passive voice, "werden" plus the past participle is applied.
Examples:

• Die Post wird das Paket morgen liefern. (The post will deliver the package tomorrow.)
• Das Paket wird morgen geliefert. (The package will be delivered tomorrow.)

5. Articles before job titles

In German, no article is used before job titles.
Example:

• Als Kind wollte ich Lehrer werden. (As a child, I wanted to become a teacher.)

6. To like vs. to please

"Mögen" is used when expressing fondness for a person or liking something.
Examples:

• Ich mag Jim. (I like Jim.)
• Ich mag Käse. (I like cheese.) "Gefallen" is used to express a sense of beauty.
  Example:
• Dein Sofa gefällt mir. (I like your sofa.)

7. My friend / My girlfriend

Be careful as "meine Freundin" often describes a romantic relationship in German.
Example:

• Anna ist eine Freundin von mir. (Anna is a friend of mine.)

8. To go and to drive

"Gehen" means to go on foot in German, while "fahren" is used for traveling with a vehicle.
Example:

• Am Wochenende fahre ich in die Schweiz. (On the weekend, I'm traveling to Switzerland.)

9. Stress in words from Latin

In German, many Latin loanwords have stress on the last syllable.
Example:

• Student (student), Hotel (hotel), Balkon (balcony).

10. St and sp at the beginning of words

When words begin with "st" or "sp", they are pronounced with "scht" and "schp".
Example:

• Auf der Straße spielen Kinder. (Children are playing on the street.)

11. S, ss, and ß

After long vowels or diphthongs, "ß" is used instead of "ss" or "s".
Example:

• Weißt du, wo die Schillerstraße ist? (Do you know where Schiller Street is?)

12. Comma in forms of address

In German, a comma is never used in the address at the end of a letter.
Example:

• Mit freundlichen Grüßen (With kind regards)

Summary

After this lesson, learners will be able to recognize and avoid common mistakes in German.