Using the Telephone in German
An Annotated
English-German Glossary
German Telephone Vocabulary - Part 2
Am Telefon > Glossary A-K > Glossary L-Z
Noun genders indicated by: r (der, masc.), e (die, fem.), s (das, neu.)
Abbreviations: adj. (adjective), Br. (British), n. (noun), pl. (plural), v. (verb)
Related vocabulary: Computer and Internet Glossary
L
Das Handy
Foto: Hyde Flippo
line (phone) e Leitung
local call s Ortsgespräch
long distance call s Ferngespräch
to make a long distance call ein Ferngespräch führen
M
mailbox e Mailbox (for email)
message e Meldung, e Mitteilung, e Nachricht
new message neue Meldung
voice message e Sprachmeldung
mobile phone s Mobiltelefon, s Handy
modem s Modem
N
navigation key/button e Navigationstatste, e Wipptaste (rocker key)
network s Netz
number e Nummer, e Zahl
Not a working number. (Your call can't go through.) Kein Anschluß unter dieser Nummer.
Note: Also see the article Am Telefon.
O
operator s Fräulein von Amt (old-fashioned term), r Telefonist, e Telefonistin
| Keine Rückgabe |
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Caution: If you don't use the entire amount for your call, a German coin pay phone will not give you any change back! ("Keine Rückgabe des Restbetrags") This is one more advantage of using a phone card. You are only charged for the time you actually use. |
P
pay phone das öffentliche Telefon, ein öffentliches Telefon
See a PHOTO of a German phone booth
phone r Apparat, s Telefon
on the phone am Apparat, am Telefon
phone booth/box das öffentliche Telefon
See a PHOTO of a German phone booth
phone card e Telefonkarte
Note: German/European phone cards are so-called "smart cards" that keep track of a card's remaining value as it's used. Austrian card phones also print a visible mark on the card indicating the amount remaining. A German telephone card must be inserted in a card phone before the remaining amount can be read on the phone's screen.
pound sign e Raute (on phone)
"Please press the pound key." = Bitte drücken Sie die Rautetaste.
See PHOTO of cell phone key pad
press v. drücken (dial key)
public phone das öffentliche Telefon, der öffentliche Fernsprecher
R
receiver, handset r Hörer
redial v. wiederwählen
redial (function) e Wahlwiederholung
redial list (menu) e Wiederwahl-Liste
dial (a number) (eine Nummer) wählen
ring v. klingeln, läuten
The phone's ringing. Das Telefon klingelt/läutet.
ring n. r Klingelton, r Signalton
turn ringing on/off den Signalton ein-/ausschalten
roam v. roamen
roaming n. s Roaming, s Roamen
automatic roaming automatisches Roamen
S
send a text message eine Kurznachricht senden
send a text message simsen (German slang based on the letters SMS)
settings e Einstellungen (pl., in phone menu)
signal strength e Signalstärke (for cell phone)
SIM card e SIM-Karte (Chip used in GMS mobile phones)
SMS r SMS (Short Message Service)
SMS is a text messaging service that became very popular in Germany and Europe long before it caught on the U.S. It allows the display of a message of up to 160 characters on a GSM (see above) wireless phone, the type used in most of Europe. SMS has become extremely popular in Germany, where it supports an entire SMS industry.Also see this article: German SMS with SMS abbreviations
Speaking. (This is Herr Meier speaking.) Am Apparat. (Hier spricht Herr Meier.)
I'd like to speak with Herr Meier. = Ich möchte bitte Herrn Meier sprechen.
Note: Also see the article Am Telefon.
T
telephone n. s Telefon, r Apparat
The older and truly German term for telephone, der Fernsprecher, is rarely used today.
telephone, call up v. telefonieren, anrufen
telephone bill e Telefonrechnung
telephone book/directory s Telefonbuch
local telephone book das Örtliche
telephone booth/box e Telefonzelle
See a PHOTO of a German phone booth
telephone number e Telefonnummer
T-Mobile T-Mobile
T-Mobile is a division of Germany's Deutsche Telekom.
toll, tariff, fee e Gebühr, r Tarif
toll-free adj. gebührenfrei, zum Nulltarif
Toll-free numbers in Germany begin with either 0130 (old) or 0800, the new so-called "freecall" prefix. Actually, a trend seen in many magazine ads today is the use of a 180-number with a per-minute rate of 15 euro cents—not really that cheap. Some German dial-around services offer rates of between 5 and 10 euro cents/min.It is now possible to call 1-800 (and 888/877) toll-free numbers in North America from Europe, but you will be charged the normal long distance rate.
V
vibrate vibrieren (ring setting)
vibration e Vibration (ring setting)
voice mail e Sprachmeldungen (pl.), e Voicemail
voice message e Sprachmeldung (-n)
W
WAP s WAP (Wireless Application Protocol)
WAP is a protocol that allows Web pages to be displayed on WAP-capable wireless telephones. Web pages/sites must be specially formatted in order to function on a WAP phone.
wireless adj. drahtlos
wireless telephone s Handy, das drahtlose Telefon
wrong number die falsche Nummer/falsch verbunden
dial the wrong number = die falsche Nummer wählen/sich verwählen
Sorry, wrong number. Tut mir leid, falsch verbunden.
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PHOTOS > Telephone Photo Gallery
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