11/4/21, 11:07 AM The complete A-Z guide to German prefixes and what they mean

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The complete A-Z guide to German German word of the
prefixes and what they mean day: Das
Totschlagargument

Rachel Stern
rachel.stern@thelocal.com

@rthejournalist
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This Berlin raccoon is no longer 'versteckt' as it 'anschaut' from its hiding spot. Photo: DPA
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From 'an' to 'zer', we break down what those pesky prefixes mean, and show German words you
that they're not as hard to master once you start seeing the patterns in need to know: Die
Verschlimmbesseru
them.

Despite German’s reputation for being a complicated language with a

monstrous mass of rules (which it largely is), it’s also extremely logical.

One key example of this is the prefix, or the first parts of a verb, like the ver- Noticeboard
in verloren (lost), which you might feel at times when you grapple with
German.
30/09 City Bicycle for Sale
READ ALSO: Das ist ja mal wichtig: The complete guide to German 04/09 ONLINE TRANSFORMATIONAL
particles and what they mean LIFE COACHING SESSIONS & EFT
TAPPING
But fear not: here’s a breakdown of the most common prefixes auf Deutsch, View all notices

the idea or concept that they connote, and example sentences of where you Post a new notice
will hear them used.

See also on The Local:

Ab  Discussion forum
This short word
implies that 02/11 John Gunn & Partner -
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taken away – whether expats
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kilos you put on during 02/11 Pros and cons of renewable
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the coronavirus crisis. 
01/11 Make your own sausage rolls
Some examples are 30/10 Is living at Potsdamer Platz that
Why do Europeans Angela Merkel's Can 3D bad?
want a recreational…
recreational… funniest and most…
most… solve G abfahren (to depart),
abholen (to pick up), View all discussions
03:31 03:58 abreisen (to set off on
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11/4/21, 11:07 AM The complete A-Z guide to German prefixes and what they mean

a journey or leave), ablesen (to construe knowledge from reading

something), abnehmen (to decrease, to lose weight)

Example sentence: Ich hole das Paket von der Post ab. (I’m picking up the
package from the post office.)

An

This implies that you’re getting closer to a target, or generally moving in the
direction of an action, whether putting on clothes or attempting to grow a
tomato plant on your balcony.

Just anschauen (take a look, or look in this direction) at these other

examples such as angreifen (to seize, to attack), anbieten (to provide or
offer), anziehen (to attract, to pull, to get dressed), anbauen (to grow,
cultivate, add on something in a house)

Example: Sie hat ein neues Beet angelegt. (She created a new garden
patch.)

Das musst du dir unbedingt anschauen. (You really have to take a look at
that.).

This is what it could look like if you try to ‘anbauen’ tomatoes on your balcony. Photo: DPA

Auf

With this prefix, you’re opening something (aufmachen), or generally moving

upwards as seen with words such aufstehen (get up), aufkommen (arise) or
aufbauen (to construct, build, or establish).

Examples: Das Geschäft macht um 08:00 Uhr auf. (The store opens at 8am.)

Ich muss leider früh aufstehen. (Unfortunately I have to wake up early.)

Aus

You are either literally removing something – whether paper, as in the

example of ausdrucken (or printing out) or clothes (getting undressed) – or
figuratively as in ausnehmen (exclude). 

Example: Schalt doch bitte das Licht aus! (Please turn off the light!)

Be

This emphasises an action, such as beliebt (beloved) or the result of an

action such as besuchen (visit).

Example: Möchtest du mich zur Veranstaltung begleiten? (Would you like to

accompany me to the event?)

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This means to add on something, such as beitragen (contribute) or

figuratively, ie. beibringen (or teach). You can also beistehen (support, or
literally standing by) or beisteuern (contribute). 

Example: Rachel steuert €10 zum Geschenk bei. (Rachel contributed a gift

of €10.)

Ent

Something is being taken away, as implied by words like entführen

(kidnapped), entkommen (escaped) or entfernen (remove). But it’s not
always negative. Even in a philosophical sense, entdecken (discover) means
that something is no longer covered (decken) and entspannen (relax)
implies an ‘entfernen’ of Spannung (tension).

Example: Sie haben den Spreewald zum ersten Mal entdeckt. (They
discovered the Spreewald)

Ein

Essentially you are integrating something or looking inwards with ‘ein’. This
can be seen in words like einladen (an invite to something), einbrechen
(breaking in), or einkaufen (shopping, generally implying you are buying in
something for yourself).

Example: Ich würde dich gerne zum Abendessen einladen. (I would like to

invite you/treat you to dinner.)

Er

This shows the successful end result of an action such as erreichen (reach),
erraten (guess) erhellen (to light), erfahren (discover). It can also signify
either the beginning or end to something, such as erstarren (to freeze).

Example: Sam hat die richtige Antwort erraten. (Sam guessed the right
answer.)

Her

This implies moving from the inside to the outside, such as herkommen
(coming here) or something being produced or manufactured (herstellen).

Example: Komm her, ich muss dir etwas zeigen! (Come here, I have to show
you something!)

Hinein

This implies a transition of something from the outside to the inside, as

expressed in words such as hineinfahren, hineinsehen and hineingehen

Example: Möchtest du hineingehen oder lieber draußen sitzen? (Would you

like to go inside or sit outside?)

Los

This implies either the beginning of something such as losgehen or

losfahren, usually said when driving or heading off to something initially. 

Examples: Wir werden um 18 Uhr losgehen, kommst du mit? (We’re going to

get going at 6 pm, did you want to come?)

Jetzt geht’s los! (Here we go!)

Mit

This is an easy prefix to remember as it always has one meaning: doing

something together, whether mitfahren (driving together), mitmachen,
mitsingen (sing along) or mitbringen (bringing something along).

Example: Willst du zum Party mitkommen? (Do you want to come with me to
the party?)
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Ver

This expresses that a person or thing is changing, or that something is being

taken away, either in a positive or negative sense. You can fall in love
(verlieben) or fall into doubt (verzweifeln).

Example: Es tut mir Leid, dass wir uns verpasst haben. (I’m sorry we missed
each other.)

This couple at the Bodensee look ‘verliebt’. Photo: DPA

Vor

This implies doing something in advance, such as vorgreifen (anticipate), or

showing people something, as seen through verbs such as vorstellen
(introduce or imagine, depending on the context).

Example: Ich stelle mich mal vor: Mein Name ist Rachel. (I will introduce
myself: my name is Rachel.)

Weg

Like other prefixes on this list, it means tossing or moving something away,
as seen through wegwerfen or wegschmeißen. A person can also go away
(weggehen)

Example: Igitt, diese Dosensuppe ist 17 Jahre alt. Wirf sie weg! (Yuck, this
canned soup is 17 years old. Throw it away!)

Zu

This one is easy enough to remember: it means either closing something or

moving to a goal. Germans will often colloquially say that something is ‘zu’
to imply it’s closed.

Examples: “Habt ihr schon zu?” (Have you guys closed already?)

Sie schaute mit Begeisterung zu. (She watched with enthusiasm.)

Zer

This is usually a negative word, meaning that something is broken. Take the
examples of zerstören (destroy), zerschlagen (shattered), zerreißen (tear).
Without this prefix, these would be strong words anyways, but that ‘zer’ gives
them an extra punch. 

Example: Der Hund hat ihre Schuhe zerbissen. (The dog bit her shoes in
two.)

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