Wendy Foster

Wendy Foster is a language instructor and the author of Intermediate German For Dummies.

Articles & Books From Wendy Foster

German For Dummies
It's easy to speak and understand German with the Dummies language method German For Dummies is a clear and easy introduction to German that speeds up the process of speaking the language. The trusted Dummies language learning method is quick and practical, so you'll know what to say and do when traveling to a German-speaking country or interacting with German speakers in your community.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-21-2025
Whether you’re planning a trip to Germany or another German-speaking country, you’ve heard an unfamiliar German phrase and want to know what it means, or you just want to get into the spirit for your town’s annual Oktoberfest, knowing some basic German can give you the confidence you need.The first part of this Cheat Sheet includes basic German expressions, questions that let you gather information or ask for help, phrases to use when ordering from a menu, and German numbers and dates.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-22-2022
All languages have ways of showing what role a noun plays in a sentence. In English, a noun’s position in the sentence tells you how it’s being used. In German, the endings on the adjectives and articles that accompany the noun, which are based on case, tell you the noun’s function in the sentence. Here’s a quick overview of the German cases and the relationship they have with nouns, articles, and pronouns.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-09-2023
Maybe you're familiar with some basics of German grammar, but you want to become more confident in both writing and speaking in German. This quick overview will reacquaint you with personal pronouns — try to memorize these and be sure you know all three cases — and help you brush up on present tense verb construction.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Because German and English are both Germanic languages, quite a few words are either identical or similar in the two languages. Words that share a common source are called cognates. Another group of words common to German and English stem from Latin-based words that English speakers are familiar with. Many of these words have direct equivalents in German (for example, nouns that end in -tion).
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
The biggest difference between German personal pronouns and English personal pronouns is that you have to distinguish among three ways to say you: du, ihr, and Sie. Other personal pronouns, like ich and mich (I and me) or wir and uns (we and us), bear a closer resemblance to English. The genitive case isn’t represented among the personal pronouns because it indicates possession; the personal pronouns represent only people, not something those people possess.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
In German, vowels (a, e, i, o, and u) can generally be pronounced in two ways — as short or long vowel sounds. The short vowel sounds are “clipped,” meaning they’re pronounced shorter than their English equivalents. Long vowel sounds are “steady-state” or “pure,” meaning the sound quality doesn’t change even though it’s a long sound.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Just like English, German has many idioms, or expressions typical of a language and culture. When you translate these idioms word for word, they may sound obscure, silly, or just plain meaningless, so to use them appropriately, you need to find out what they really mean. Some expressions have an English equivalent that’s recognizable, so using them correctly isn’t too hard.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you travel to a German-speaking country and need to know the time or where something is located, or you just want to get some basic information, a few common questions can come in very handy. English German Pronunciation Do you speak English? Sprechen Sie Englisch? shprêH-en zee êng-lish? How are you? Wie geht es Ihnen?
Article / Updated 01-13-2020
Getting your hellos and goodbyes straight in German is a matter of keeping in mind how well you know someone. If you’re on formal terms — in other words, if you’re addressing one or more people with Sie (zee) (you, formal) — then you have one set of expressions. When you’re on du (dooh) (you, informal) terms of address, you go with conversational expressions.