10 original German expressions

Here are 10 original German expressions, their translations and meanings.

Use these to add colour to your everyday conversations and inject a touch of humour.

Someone bring me a stork!

• • Literal translation: «Someone fry me a stork!»
  • Meaning: This is an exclamation of surprise or disbelief, similar to «I can't believe my eyes!» or «I'm flabbergasted!’

Everything's fine!

• • Literal translation: «It's all in the butter!»
  • Meaning: Everything is fine, everything is in order, everything is perfect. The expression comes from the fact that butter was an excellent preservative for fragile foods during transport.

Let the cat out of the bag.

• • Literal translation: «Let the cat out of the bag.»
  • Meaning: To reveal a secret, to disclose something that was hidden. It is equivalent to the English expression «to spill the beans».

To get on someone's nerves.

• • Literal translation: «Go on someone's biscuit.»
  • Meaning: To annoy someone, to get on someone's nerves. It's like saying «Me taper sur le système» in French.

I couldn't care less!

• • Literal translation: «That's sausage for me!»
  • Meaning: I don't care at all, I don't give a damn. This is a very informal and disinterested way of saying that something is of no importance to you.

To have a hangover.

• • Literal translation: «To have a cat.»
  • Meaning: To have a hangover. The origin is uncertain, but a popular theory is that the word «Kater» in this context derives from «Katarrh» (catarrh), a medical term for inflammation of the mucous membranes, which is often accompanied by symptoms similar to those of a hangover.

To tease someone.

• • Literal translation: «To take someone on the arm.»
  • Meaning: To gently mock someone, tease them, or play a joke on them. It is equivalent to «faire marcher quelqu'un» or «se payer la tête de quelqu'un» in French.

Only understand the station.

• • Literal translation: «Only understand the station.»
  • Meaning: To understand nothing at all, to be completely lost. The expression comes from the fact that during the war, the station was a place of departure and confusion where people understood nothing other than the fact that they were leaving.

Kill two birds with one stone.

• • Literal translation: «Kill two birds with one stone.»
  • Meaning: To kill two birds with one stone, to achieve two objectives with a single action. It is the perfect equivalent of our English expression.

To kick the bucket.

• • Literal translation: «Return the spoon.»
  • Meaning: To die, to kick the bucket. The origin is uncertain, but one interpretation is that after death, you no longer need your spoon to eat.

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