German Abbreviations D-F
Deutsche Abkürzungen
German Abbreviations from AA to z.Z.
GENERAL ABBREVIATIONS
German - English
The following abbreviations are commonly found in German reading (books, letters, periodicals, business documents, etc.) and sometimes in conversation. In most cases, this glossary does not include German abbreviations that are identical or similar to English abbreviations (e.g., BMW, BSE, VW, etc.), although the German pronunciation may be different. (Audio files of some of these can be found on our Abc-Quiz page.) For other types of abbreviations and acronyms in German, also see the other pages and links below.
ALSO SEE:
• Brand Names & Abbreviations
• Countries & Nationalities
• 'MfG' Abbreviations
• Political Party Abbreviations
• Real Estate Ad Abbreviations
• Das Alphabet - German ABCs
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A-C | D-F | G-J | K-M | N-Q | R-T | U-Z
| Abkürzung | German | English |
| D | ||
| d.Ä. | der Ältere (also see d.J. below) |
senior, the elder, Sr. |
| DAAD | Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst | German Academic Exchange Service |
| DaF | Deutsch als Fremdsprache | German as a foreign lang. |
| DAG (ver.di) |
Deutsche Angestellten-Gewerkschaft (now called ver.di) |
German Employees Union |
| DB | Deutsche Bahn | German Rail |
| Also see: German Brand Names & Abbreviations | ||
| DDR | Deutsche Demokratische Republik | GDR (East Germany) German Democratic Republic |
| DFB | Deutscher Fußballbund | German Football (Soccer) Association |
| DGB | Deutscher Gewerkschaftsbund | German Federation of Unions |
| dgl. | dergleichen, desgleichen | the like |
| d.h. | das heißt | i.e., that is |
| Di | Dienstag | Tuesday |
| DIHK | Deutsche Industrie- und Handelskammer | German Chamber of Industry & Commerce |
| DIN | Deutsches Institut für Normung | German Institute for Standardization |
| Dipl.-Ing. | Diplom-Ingenieur | qualified engineer, M.S. |
| Dipl.-Kfm. | Diplom-Kaufmann | business school grad |
| Dir. | Direktion | administrative office |
| Dir. | Direktor | administrator, manager, principal |
| Dir. | Dirigent | conductor (music) |
| d.J. | der Jüngere (also see d.Ä. above) |
junior, the younger, Jr. |
| DJH | Deutsches Jugendherbergswerk | German Youth Hostel Association |
| DKP | Deutsche Kommunistische Partei | German Communist Party |
| DM | Deutsche Mark | German mark |
| Do | Donnerstag | Thursday |
| dpa | Deutsche Presse-Agentur | German Press Agency |
| DPD | Deutscher Paketdienst | a German UPS |
| DRK | Deutsches Rotes Kreuz | German Red Cross |
| Dr. med. | Doktor der Medizin | M.D., medical doctor |
| Dr. phil. | Doktor der Philosophie | PhD., doctor of philosophie |
| dt. | deutsch | German (adj.) |
| Dtzd. | Dutzend | dozen |
| DVU | Deutsche Volksunion | German People's Union |
| The DVU is a German far-right political party. For more see Political Party Abbreviations. | ||
| D-Zug | Direkt-Zug | fast, through train (stops only in larger cities) |
| E | ||
| EDV | elektronische Datenverarbeitung | elctronic data processing |
| EG | Europäische Gemeinschaft | EC, European Community (now the EU) |
| e.h. | ehrenhalber | hon., honorary (degree, etc.) |
| ehem. | ehemals/ehemalig | formerly/former |
| eigtl. | eigentlich | actually, really |
| einschl. | einschließlich | including, inclusive |
| EK | Eisernes Kreuz | Iron Cross |
| EKD | Evangelische Kirche in Deutschland | Protestant Church in Germany |
| EL | Esslöffel | tpsp., tablespoon |
| E-Literatur E-Musik |
erhobene Literatur erhobene Musik |
serious literature classical music |
| Opposite: U-Lit./U-Musik = Unterhaltungslit./Unterhaltungsmusik = light lit./music (pop music) | ||
| entspr. | entsprechend | corresponding, accordingly |
| erb. | erbaut | built, erected |
| erw. | erweitert | expanded, extended |
| Erw. | Erwachsene | adults |
| ev. | evangelisch | Protestant |
| e.V. | eingetragener Verein | registered organization not-for-profit organization |
| evtl. | eventuell | perhaps, possibly |
| e.Wz. | eingetragenes Warenzeichen | registered trademark |
| exkl. | exklusive | excluding, exclusive of |
| EZB | Europäische Zentralbank | ECB, European Central Bank |
| F | ||
| f. | und folgende(r, s) | and following |
| Fa. | Firma | company, firm |
| Fam. | Familie | family |
| In Addresses: "Fam. Schmidt" = The Schmidt Family | ||
| FAZ | Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung | Germany's "New York Times" |
| FC | Fußball Club | football (soccer) club |
| FCKW | Fluor-Chlor- Kohlenwasserstoff |
fluorohydrocarbons |
| FDP | Freie Demokratische Partei | Free Democratic Party "Die Liberalen" |
| F.f. | Fortsetzung folgt | to be continued |
| Ffm. | Frankfurt am Main | Frankurt on the Main |
| FH | Fachhochschule | college, tech. institute |
| FKK | Freikörperkultur | "free body culture," naturism, nudism |
| Forts. f. | Fortsetzung folgt | to be continued |
| Fr. | Frau | Mrs./Ms. |
| Fr | Freitag | Friday |
| FRA | Frankfurter Flughafen | Frankfurt Airport |
| Frl. | Fräulein | Miss |
| Note: Any German woman age 18 or above is addressed as Frau, whether she is married or not. | ||
| frz. | französisch | French (adj.) |
| FSK | Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle der Filmwirtschaft | Ger. movie rating system |
| FU | Freie Universität Berlin | Free University Berlin |
| NEXT > Abbreviations G-J - A-C | D-F | G-J | K-M | N-Q | R-T | U-Z | ||
More German Abbreviations
A-C < ZURÜCK | WEITER > G-J
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