In German, der Klang (the sound) and das Geräusch (the noise) are the words for individual sounds, while words such as der Krach or der Lärm describe general noise that people are bothered by.  

banner3 PLACEHOLDER

Let's look at the words for certain types of sounds and noises in German. Because there are many words, today we'll only look at sounds that occur in nature, including animal sounds. Next week, we'll look at sounds produced by humans and machines. There is, of course, some overlap. 

For example, humans and bees can both hum, and humans whistle too, of course. 

Das Geräusch erinnert an das Summen einer Biene.

The sound is reminiscent of the buzz of a bee.

Caption 26, Deutsch mit Eylin: s, ß und ss

 Play Caption

Pfeifen, Zwitschern, Tirilieren

Whistling, chirping, trilling

Caption 4, Kinderlieder zum Mitsingen: Alle Vögel sind schon da

 Play Caption

Here are some examples with the common verbs quietschen, piepen, rascheln, and rauschen.

Während die einen mutig ihr Spielzeug aus dem Wasser retten, hoffen die anderen, dass die Bälle und Quietscheknochen durch ihr Bellen auf magische Art und Weise an den Rand zurückkommen.

While some bravely rescue their toys from the water, the others hope that the balls and squeaky bones will, through their barking, magically come back to the edge.

Captions 3-5, Rheinmain im Blick: Hundeschwimmen

 Play Caption

Mäuse kenne ich. Sie wohnen in Erdlöchern und piepen.

Mice I know. They live in burrows and squeak.

Caption 11, Piggeldy und Frederick: Katze

 Play Caption

Es raschelte manchmal außerhalb des Zeltes,und der Wind rauschte laut in den Bäumen. 

Sometimes there was a rustle outside the tent, and the wind rustled loudly in the trees. 

Captions 20-21, Deutsch mit Eylin: Urlaub im Präteritum

 Play Caption

You may have noticed that the nouns that refer to these sounds are mostly nominalized verbs. These are then neuter. Once you know the noun, it's not at all difficult to remember the related verb and adjective/adverb. 

Rauschend und gurgelnd vereinigen sich viele kleine Rinnsale zu immer größeren Bächen.

Rushing and gurgling, many small brooks combine into increasingly larger streams.

Caption 7, Alpenseen Kühle: Schönheiten

 Play Caption

Die Mutter bat den Bären hinein und der legte sich vor das knisternde Feuer.

The mother asked the bear in and he lay down in front of the crackling fire.

Caption 17, Märchen: Sagenhaft Schneeweißchen und Rosenrot

 Play Caption

Further Learning
You can find more examples of these words on Yabla German, and also look up a few more, such as das Zirpen, das Plätschern, das Brutzeln, or das Knarren. 

The verb schätzen has two different meanings, and the only way to know which you are looking at is to examine the context.

BANNER PLACEHOLDER

In the lyrics of the first example below, the verb schätzen means "to value," or "to treasure." As you can see, in some cases the translation "to appreciate" is more appropriate. The noun der Schatz refers to a treasured object, and it can also be used as a term of endearment, similar to "dear," "darling," or "treasure" in English.

Ich schätze Wegbegleiter, auch wenn alles seine Zeit hat.

I treasure companions, even if everything happens in its own time.

Caption 22, Mark Forster - Sowieso

 Play Caption

Das wird vor allem von den jüngeren Gästen geschätzt.

This is especially appreciated by the younger guests.

Caption 41, Reiseland Deutschland - Vielfalt im Herzen Europas

 Play Caption

Als es Frühling wurde, erklärte der Bär, er müsse jetzt gehen, um seine Schätze zu hüten.

When it was spring, the Bear explained that he had to go now to tend to his treasures.

Caption 29, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Schneeweißchen und Rosenrot

 Play Caption

Nacht, Papa. -Nacht, mein Schatz.

Night, Papa. -Night, my treasure.

Caption 43, Die Pfefferkörner - Gerüchteküche

 Play Caption

However, the other meaning of schätzen, which is equally common, is "to guess" or "to estimate."

Ich schätze mal, dass wir dann nächstes Jahr irgendwann ernsthaft anfangen.

I estimate then that we'll seriously start sometime next year.

Caption 67, Madsen - auf dem Hessentag

 Play Caption

Was schätzt du denn? -Ich schätze neununddreißig.

What do you guess then? -I guess thirty-nine.

Captions 10-11, rheinmain Szene - Unheilig - „Der Graf“

 Play Caption

Man schätzt, dass Schlittschuhe schon seit dreitausend Jahren verwendet werden.

It is estimated that ice skates have been used for over three thousand years.

Caption 15, Unterwegs mit Cettina - Schlittschuhlaufen

 Play Caption

BANNER PLACEHOLDER

Further Learning
There are many examples of this verb used in both contexts on Yabla German. See if you can use it one way or another (or both!) in the next conversation you have in German, or at your next German class.