German for Beginners
Lesson 18.2

Haus und Hof: Möbel

House and Home: Furniture

A German lesson about housing and real estate in Germany

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Ein Reihenhaus in
Frankfurt am Main.
Foto © H. Flippo

Before we move on to furniture and appliances in German, let's talk about what is outside the house. The front yard (Brit., front garden) is called der Vorgarten or just der Garten. The back yard is der Hintergarten. German-speakers often use the word Garten in a general way to refer to a lawn (der Rasen) or yard, a flower garden (der Blumengarten) or a vegetable garden (der Gemüsegarten), just as the word Haus can refer to a house or a building.

If they have a yard or garden, they may also have einen englischen Rasen, a well-trimmed lawn. Although the adjective englisch means "rare" when talking about a steak, it means "well manicured" when referring to a lawn or garden. (The Englischer Garten in Munich got its name from the fact that it is an artificial park made to look like nature.) Many Germans prefer a more German lawn, that is, one that looks more like a natural meadow. (Most Americans would want to get rid of the dandelions right away!) They use their Rasenmäher (lawn mower) less frequently than someone who has einen englischen Rasen.

Möbel und Haushaltsgeräte Furniture and Household Appliances
der Anrufbeantworter answering machine
der Backofen oven
das Bett bed
das Bücherregal bookshelf
der Computer der Rechner computer
die Couch couch
der Fernseher das Fernsehgerät TV set
die Geschirrspülmaschine dish washer
der Herd range, stove
die Kaffeemaschine coffee maker
der Kleiderschrank clothes closet/cabinet
die Kommode chest of drawers
der Kühlschrank refrigerator
die Lampe lamp, light
der Nachttisch night stand
der Schreibtisch desk
der Sessel easy chair
das Sofa sofa
die Stehlampe floor lamp
der Staubsauger vacuum cleaner
der Stuhl chair
das Telefon telephone
der Trockner drier
die Waschmaschine washer
Andere Wörter Other Words
das Bild (-er) picture
das Dach (Dächer) roof
das Fenster (-) window
der Spiegel (-) mirror
die Treppe (-n) stairway, stairs
die Tür (-en) door
die Wand (Wände) wall (inside)

Big-city apartment dwellers in Germany sometimes have a Schrebergarten or Kleingarten. This is a small garden plot in a group of such mini-gardens located away from the apartment complex, often alongside a railway. They are regulated in size and may have a small shed for part-time use. Some people turn their Kleingarten into a miniature vacation spot for weekends and holidays. It is just another way that Germans cope with their densely populated country.

The Germans are great believers in the adage “good fences make good neighbors.” A yard or garden without a fence (der Zaun) is rare. Sometimes a trimmed hedge (die Hecke) stands in for a fence. But we'll have to save gardening and lawn care for another lesson. Time to go back inside.

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WAS IST WO?

On the left is an alphabetical list of items found in a typical home. Study these words for furniture and appliances, since we'll be using them in this part of the lesson. You may also want to review the vocabulary for rooms in Part One, because we'll be using those, too.

This exercise also requires the use of the two-way preposition in, for which we'll offer a brief overview. (If you need to, see more detailed info in the article The Two-Way Prepositions and the grammar section on Accusative Prepositions.)

Wo findet man das? - We'll start by asking in which room you might find a particular item. Since the German preposition in is a two-way preposition, remember that when you answer the question wo, you'll need a dative phrase. For example, if something is “in the kitchen,” it's in der Küche because the dative of die Küche is der Küche. All die nouns will change to der in the dative. If we're talking about a room that is not feminine (das or der), the dative phrase will be im, as in im Wohnzimmer (in the living room).

Here are two more examples before we start:

• Wo ist der Fernseher? Er ist im Wohnzimmer.
   (Where is the TV set? - It's in the living room.)

• Wo finde ich die Kaffeemaschine? Sie ist in der Küche.
   (Where will I find the coffeemaker? - It's in the kitchen.)

Now, see if you can answer these 8 questions in German. Give a logical answer following the model above.

1. Wo ist der Trockner? _____________

2. Wo ist der Staubsauger? _____________

3. Wo finde ich den Rechner? _____________

4. Wo ist der Sessel? _____________

5. Wo finde ich die Kommode? _____________

6. Wo ist der Kleiderschrank? _____________

7. Wo finde ich den Anrufbeantworter? _____________

8. Wo ist der Herd? _____________

  > Antworten (Answer Key)

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On the next page, we'll discuss activities and the present perfect tense.

You are here:
  Lesson 18: Part 1 > Part 2 > Part 3 > Web Links

Also see:
Wohnungssuche und Immobilien
An annotated English-German glossary about housing and finding a place to live.

Previous Lesson (Lektion 17)

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