Have you ever heard an someone say something in German, and you understand the vocabulary, but you really have no idea what the heck they are saying? Most likely, they are using an Idiom. An idiom is defined as “a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words” …. in other words… If you say “I put my foot in my mouth”, you don’t really MEAN that you are sucking on your toes (unless you are a flexible 4 month old) you mean that you said the wrong thing. This German Idioms List is loaded with somewhat confusing sayings or expressions (mostly about animals) that you can casually sprinkle throughout your speech, to sound more like a real German. Next time your German friend says “Da liegt der Hund begraben” (“that’s where the dog is buried), he’s not talking about an actual dog grave, you will know, he’s not talking about a dog grave… and you can reply… Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof!
German Idioms List
Learn these idioms, and you’ll no longer be the one saying “Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof- (I only understand train station)”.
While this sounds like someone trying to understand long convoluted directions, and all that was understand was Train Station, it’s actually an old expression from WW I… soldiers wanting to get home only understood the word Bahnhof. (Basically, this is how you respond if you have no idea what the heck someone is talking about.)
German Animal Idioms
Da Liegt der Hund begraben- (That’s where the dog is buried)
– no, no one’s dog died… this means, to get to the heart of the matter or the point of the issue.

Er hat einen Vogel- (He has a bird)
– If he DID have a bird, it would probably be a Parakeet named Hansi, but this one actually means you are a bit nuts. This is one of my FAVORITE German idioms (maybe because it has quite often been used on me by cousins…) and it comes with an interesting backstory. In the Middle Ages, it was thought that crazy people have BIRDS IN THEIR HEAD just flying around causing madness. (I guess that makes sense… and it makes me think about the song “Birdhouse in your Soul” by They Might be Giants. No connection, I’m almost sure)
and more birds…
Vogel friss oder stirb- (Bird eat or die)
– Pretty straight forward… it’s a do or die situation…
Weiß der Kuckuck- (What does the Cuckoo know)
-My Oma used this one a lot… I always had an idea of what it meant, but the translation didn’t make sense. Turns out, it’s based on 16th century superstition that you don’t mention the Devil’s name (think Voldemort in Harry Potter), and the Cuckoo (who is seldom seen, and has an eerie call).
Wo sich Hase und Fuchs Gute Nacht sagen- (Where the rabbit and the fox say good night)
– Where do rabbits and foxes co-exist? In the country. So, if you are describing a place out in the middle of nowhere (like my Oma’s house), you would use this one.
Das ist ein Katzensprung- (That’s a cat jump)
– How far can a cat jump? not too far. You use this expression to describe how close something is. The bar is just a Katzensprung away…
more about cats…
Sie hat einen Kater- (She has a tomcat)
– no, not a furry feline, she’s got a hangover.
Sich zum Affen Machen- Make a monkey of yourself
– I guess this one doesn’t need a lot of explanation. It means you are making a fool of yourself.
And this takes us right to….
Affentheater- (Monkey Theater)
– There is actually historical background to this one! Back in the 19th century, there were traveling shows where Monkeys would perform acrobatics or imitate humans. These wildly exaggerated comedy shows may have vanished into history, but the idiom remains, and is applied to outrageous behavior.
Zwei Fliegen mit einer Klatsche schlagen- (Kill two flies with one swatter)
– I don’t know about you, but killing 2 flies sounds much nicer than killing 2 birds with one stone. Either way, it’s multitasking.
Da steppt der Bär- (That’s where the bear dances)
– If you have a dancing bear, you have a great party!
Da liegt der Hase im Pfeffer!- (There’s a Rabbit in the Pepper!)
– Rabbits don’t belong in the pepper… it wrecks everything. This is the fly in the ointment, and the hair in the soup… the flaw in the plan. Total bummer.
Wie die Kuh vorm neuen Tor dastehen- (Like a cow standing in front of a new door)
– Cows really aren’t the cleverest of beasts, and according to this idiom, if you put them in front of a new door, they just get confused. Much like some people when faced a new situation.
Ich habe Schwein gehabt- (I’ve had a pig)
– In Germany a pig is lucky. Why? Well, if you own a pig, you and your family will probably survive the winter without starving. So, if you’ve had a pig, you got lucky!
Stochere nicht im Bienenstock (Don’t poke the Beehive)
– There are certain things you shouldn’t do… poking at beehives is one of them. And a tense or emotional situation can be a beehive. Leave it alone.
Moving on to Home and Village Life
Er fällt immer mit der Tür ins Häuschen- (He always falls into the House with the door)
– Do you know anyone who just blurts things out without introduction? Or just jumps right in without starting with pleasantries? That’s what this one means. The guy just opens the door an BAM starts talking.
Man soll den Tag nicht vor dem Abend loben- (Don’t praise the day before night)
– This is a don’t count your chickens before they are hatched expression. You can’t say it’s been a great day, until the day is over… for all you know, it will end in tragedy.
Die Kirche im Dorf Lassen- (Leave the church in the Village)
– I had to do some digging for this one. The usage is “don’t exaggerate”, but what does that have to do with a church and a village? One source cleared it up a bit. It seems that in early days the Church (Kirche) would have processions through the Dorf (village) … and when the processions got to long and loud, and worked their way out of the village, people in surrounding areas would complain. So, maybe, the idea is, keep your church procession in your own village, and don’t get it so big that it disturbs the rest of us?
In des Teufels Küche sein- (To Be in the Devil’s Kitchen)
– Things are going to get hot, and you are in big trouble if you are in the devil’s kitchen.
Wenn man dem Teufel den kleinen Finger gibt, so nimmt er die ganze Hand- (If you give the devil your little finger, he will take your whole hand)
– There is no making a small deal with the devil, you always have to pay more.
This goes hand in hand (see how I did that?) with…
Man reicht den kleinen Finger, und er nimmt die ganze Hand- (You offer your little finger, and he takes the whole hand.
– If you offer some people a little help, they will take more. Remember the book “If you give a Mouse a cookie?”
And of course… German FOOD Idioms
Senf dazu geben- (adding your mustard )
– You know that person who always has to add his or her opinion to everything… in Germany they add mustard.
Weggehen wie warme Semmeln- (Go like warm rolls)
– In America we would say, “going like Hotcakes”, but truth is, I’d rather have a Brötchen than a pancake any day… Basically, it’s something popular that is disappearing quickly.
In den sauren Apfel beißen- (to bite into the sour apple)
– A bit like diving into a swimming pool, you just do it. The apple might be sour, but you have to get it eaten.
Tomaten auf den Augen Haben- (To have tomatoes on your eyes)
-Can you see through tomatoes? no. If you have tomatoes on your eyes, you are missing the obvious things going on around you.
Das ist nicht dein Bier!-( That’s not your Beer!)
-Basically, mind your own business….
Die Radieschen von unten anschauen- (To view the Radisches from underneath)
– Radisches are root vegetables, if you can see them from underneath, you are buried underground and dead.
And, these are the Wurst Idioms….
heehee… They’re the WORST!

Die beleidigte Leberwurst spielen- (To play the insulted liver sausage)
– Why is the liverwurst insulted? Because it’s the last one in the pot when all the other yummy sausages are eaten.
Es geht um die Wurst- (It’s all about the sausage)
– This relates to heavy decisions. But WHY? according to one site, people in the Middle Ages were rewarded with sausage in competition. In a time when meat was a luxury, it was a huge deal. And so you will find sausages playing heavily in many German idioms…
for example-
Das ist mir Wurst- (That is sausage to me!)
-I love the explanation of this one. Das ist mir Wurst is used to say “it’s all the same to me”… but why? Think about it… both ends of the sausage look the same.
which brings us to our last one…
Alles hat ein Ende nur die Wurst hat zwei- (Everything has an end, only a Sausage has two.)
-Pretty self explanatory….
What are some of YOUR Favorite Idioms?
Learn HUNDREDS more German Idioms and Phrases HERE
German Idioms (Barron’s Idioms Series)Scheisse! The Real German You Were Never Taught in School
101 German Phrases You Won’t Learn in School: The Key to Sounding like a Native Speaker: Idioms & Popular Phrases You Don’t Learn from Textbooks
An idiom I learned from my brother when he married a Black Forest girl and moved there to live and work. (We are English by the way). I once observed in a restaurant that a fellow diner was, as drunk as a newt, )a n English idiom), John said that in Germany, the term would be , Blau wie ein veilchen, (blue as a violet!!)
Good one!
Hello Karen,
I just loved to read this post about German idioms – actually I am learning German language these day.
German is very tough language in itself and German idioms makes it more tougher – also we planning to add German idioms on our website too.
Well, I would like to thank you for this valuable post to the world. I’ve learn a lot.
Keep up the Good work!
Veronica Scott, UK
theidioms.com
you are quite welcome!
This was very interesting keep up the good work????
I am German and some of the customs are familiar to me
I had heard all but one
Nice to read them again
Love your posts! I am Canadian who grew up with German parents so can totally relate.
Went to German school, etc. Thanks!
Thank you!
Is there one about wrestling a horse into a sweater?
I will have to do some digging…
There is just one misstake which is very common for non native German speaker and which I see even more and more often with native Germans but which drives me crazy if Germans do this misstake. When you talk “einen” mostly sounds like “ein” which is why German learners mostly write “ein” everywhere. Grammatically correct is “einen Kater haben” and “einen Vogel haben” or “der hat doch einen Vogel” or “du hast echt einen Vogel” what would be the most common way to use this one. And your first expression “nur Bahnhof verstehen” actually has its roots in World War I. People fighting wanted to go home so much that when they were told that they could go home for some weeks of “vacation” they didn’t really listen all they could hear was “Bahnhof” which meant going home.
Oh! Thanks! Fixed
This really a nice list, thank you for posting it. However, i would like to offer constructive criticism. Don’t take it personal, it’s just for the folks that are trying to learn German, wich can be very hard and confusing on it’s own. Please do me a favor and change some idioms to the correct grammar. For example it is supposed to be: sie hat EINEN Vogel/ Kater … instead of : sie hat EIN Vogel / Kater. It is very important to learn it correct right away, because it’s really hard to change it afterworlds. I hope I have not offended you in any way. Keep up the good work.
Thanks! fixed… (no offense taken, I grew up with a German Mother, and have a thick skin)