It's quite easy to get the similar-looking werden, wurden and würden confused, so we're taking a look today at the differences between them and the different contexts in which they are used.
To start with, wurden and würden are different grammatical moods of the verb werden.
Heute in unserer ersten Lektion werden wir die Buchstaben des deutschen Alphabets lernen.
Today in our first lesson, we will learn the letters of the German alphabet.
Caption 2, Deutsch mit Donna Blitz - Das Alphabet
Play Caption
Es soll bis über zwanzig Grad warm werden.
It should get warm, up to more than twenty degrees.
Caption 16, München - 180. Oktoberfest eröffnet
Play Caption
Schön, du musst mich nur küssen und dann werde ich eine wunderschöne Prinzessin.
Fine, you only have to kiss me and I will turn into a beautiful princess.
Caption 11, CHoE Rocker - Hunde-Prinzessin
Play Caption
Die Tage werden immer kürzer und immer kälter.
The days steadily become shorter and colder.
Caption 9, Alpenseen - Kühle Schönheiten
Play Caption
Oh, es wird sehr schwierig werden, meinen Titel zu verteidigen.
Oh, it is going to be very difficult to defend my title.
Caption 23, Wintersport - 7. Austrian Freeski Open
Play Caption
As you can see, werden can be used in a wide variety of contexts and can be translated variously as "will," "get," "will turn into," and "become." The last example uses the future tense of the verb, wird werden, which is translated as "going to be."
In contrast, wurden is the Indikativ mood (similar to the indicative or realis mood in English) of werden. This just means that the verb is used to express a known state of affairs.
Sie flohen aus dem Königreich und wurden nie wieder gesehen.
They fled from the kingdom and were never seen again.
Caption 85, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Das tapfere Schneiderlein
Play Caption
Here, wurden gesehen is the passive voice of the German Präteritum, as is common with the combination of werden and a past participle.
Wahrscheinlich wurden sie im hohen Norden auf dem Eis für die Jagd verwendet.
They were probably used for hunting on the ice in the far north.
Caption 17, Unterwegs mit Cettina - Schlittschuhlaufen
Play Caption
Thus, wurden is usually translated as "were," but it is also sometimes used in the same sense that the present tense werden is sometimes translated as "become." The sentence Aus Bauern wurden Arbeiter could be translated as "Farmers became workers," which has a very different verb structure but a similar meaning in the end.
Ähm, was würden Sie denn als ihre Stärken und Schwächen, ähm, beschreiben?
Um, what would you then, um, describe as your strengths and weaknesses?
Caption 34, Eva erklärt - Bewerbungen
Play Caption
Genau. -Würden Sie uns vielleicht 'n bisschen Ihren Stand vorstellen?
Exactly. -Would you maybe present your stand to us a little bit?
Caption 47, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
Thus, würden is in most contexts translated to English as "would."
Further Learning
Watch the Yabla video about the verb werden, which goes into detail about the verb's conjugation, moods, and tenses, and go to Yabla German and see many other examples of werden, wurden, and würden used in a wide variety of contexts.
This year, it has been an unusually warm fall in Germany. Even in early October, there were some days in the high 60s (Fahrenheit, between 17 and 21 degrees celsius). However, there have been some very chilly, windy days recently, and Germans have finally had to get out their winter clothing to be prepared for lower temperatures.
Let’s go from head to toe and take a look at what items you need to brave the German winter.
There are two words for “the hat” in German, but only one of them is associated with the wool knit caps that are worn in the cold months.
Und im Winter braucht man unbedingt eine Mütze.
And in the winter you absolutely need a cap.
Caption 24, Eva - zeigt uns Kleidungsstücke
Play Caption
Although some may prefer a daintier version (das Tuch, which is usually a thinner scarf or kerchief) even in the summer, a warm scarf or shawl (der Schal) is a must for the winter.
Was ist denn los? -Mir ist so kalt. Schenk mir doch deinen Schal!
What then is the matter? -I am so cold. Give me your shawl!
Caption 23, Märchenstunde - Die Sterntaler
Play Caption
Of course, a warm coat (der Mantel) or a jacket (die Jacke) is essential to any winter outfit. There are many options depending on the weather conditions. You can likely recognize the words der Wollmantel, der Daunenmantel, die Daunenjacke, or die Regenjacke without our help!
Es ist kalt. Ich trage einen Mantel.
It is cold. I'm wearing a coat.
Caption 14, Deutschkurs in Tübingen - Fragen
Play Caption
Der Handschuh is the singular form, but unless you've lost one, generally the plural for of "the gloves" is what you will use. Here, compound nouns also abound: such as die Strickhandschuhe, die Fleece-Handschuhe, die Lederhandschuhe, among others.
Giada, ist dir kalt? -Ja. -Möchtest du Handschuhe haben?
Giada, are you cold? -Yes. -Would you like to have some gloves?
Caption 82, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt - Part 1
Play Caption
And for rain and snow, you will want a good pair of boots for those slippery cobblestone streets.
Und er trägt wirklich Stiefel? Das muss ich sehen!
And is he really wearing boots? This I have to see!
Caption 29, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Der gestiefelte Kater
Play Caption
Further Learning
Watch the video Eva: zeigt uns Kleidungsstücke in its entirety on Yabla German. To
to immerse yourself even more, take a look at a website that sells outerwear and do some window shopping. You will learn a lot of new words and compound nouns as you scroll through the various items.
Like English, 45% of which comes from French or Latin language sources, German has many French loan words or Gallicisms. If you can learn to recognize words in your native English as having a French origin, there is a fair chance that they are used in German.
In last week's lesson, we took a look at some of the more commonly used German words with a French origin. These have obvious French word endings such as -ment, -ion, or -age. This week, let's take a look at some more French-derived words in German that also have English counterparts.
Vor genau sechsundsechzig Jahren befreite die Rote Armee die Überlebenden des Nazi-Vernichtungslagers Auschwitz.
Exactly sixty-six years ago the Red Army liberated the survivors of the Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz.
Captions 1-2, Holocaust-Gedenktag - Gespräch mit jüdischen Schülern
Play Caption
The German word for "army," die Armee, comes from the French word armée. Note that the German capitalizes the noun as per German grammar rules and has dropped the accented letter E.
„Die Süßigkeit“ ist etwas Süßes: Gummibär, Kaugummi, Bonbon.
"Candy" is something sweet: a gummy bear, a [piece of] chewing gum, a bonbon.
Caption 6, Deutschkurs in Tübingen - Verben der 3. Kategorie - Part 2
Play Caption
The German Bonbon can be the masculine der but is most commonly the neuter das. The French bonbon is literally "good good," from what a child might say when they see some candy!
Aktualisieren Sie bitte das Budget.
Please update the budget.
Caption 47, Berufsleben - das Vorstellungsgespräch
Play Caption
Das Budget is the same word "budget" in French and English as well, though the French and German both render the T silent.
Ein bisschen Weihnachtsdekoration, so Engel... -Dekoration, ja.
A little bit of Christmas decoration, such angels... -Decoration, yes.
Captions 22-23, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
The word "decoration" in English is closer to the French décoration, but then most hard C sounds in German utilize the letter K!
Das ist tatsächlich ein Hotel in Berlin mit einem ganz verrückten Konzept.
This is, in fact, a hotel in Berlin with a completely crazy concept.
Caption 2, Berlin - Indoor-Camping im „Hüttenpalast“
Play Caption
The French word hôtel is spelled with a circumflex accent on the O, and of course pronounced entirely differently.
Ich bin bei der Firma SAC Applikations-Ingenieur.
I am an applications engineer for the company SAC.
Caption 2, Bildverarbeitung - Sirius Advanced Cybernetics in Pforzheim
Play Caption
The German der Ingenieur provides another fairly rare example of the soft G pronunciation in German. It's spelled nearly the same as the French ingénieur.
Further Learning
As a general rule, French words found in German are spelled the same, or nearly the same, as the French words found in English, but are pronounced in a German manner and written according to German grammatical rules—with nouns capitalized, for example. Take a look at this list of Gallicisms in German and go to Yabla German to find other real-world examples of the words used in videos.
For this week’s lesson, we wanted to look at some more examples from the video Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt. One of the lovely things about these markets is the fact that one can find so many “homemade” and “handmade” items, which was expressed in a number of different ways in the video. In a spirit of solidarity with the people of Berlin and German holiday traditions, let’s take a look at some of the phrases that were used for our future Weihnachtsmarkt visits!
Ah, OK.
Oh, OK.
-Und alles selbst gebastelt natürlich.
-And everything is handmade, of course.
Captions 49-50, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
...selbst gebacken... -Alles selbst...
...home-baked... -Everything yourselves...
Caption 51, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
You may have also seen "selber" used instead of "selbst." This is not incorrect, but certainly more of a slang expression.
Oh, super. OK, also alles... -Ja, also, isch [ist] alles selber gemacht.
Oh, super. OK, so everything... -Yes, so it's all homemade.
Caption 19, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
Ist alles von den Eltern und von den Omas selber gebastelt.
It is all made by the parents and the grandmothers themselves.
Caption 17, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
Selber gebackene Plätzchen. -Oh, lecker.
Home baked [Homemade] cookies. -Oh, delicious.
Caption 16, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
In these examples, we can note that there are specific ways to express “homemade” or “handmade” based on the item in question and how it is created. It is good to familiarize yourself with these various phrases, because the adjective hausgemacht is actually more specific than the English word "homemade." This word is particularly used by restaurants or cafés for items that are baked or cooked on the premises.
According to Duden, it is preferable to write adjectives other than hausgemacht as two words when they precede a noun, for example die selbst gebackenen Kekse ("the homemade cookies") or der selbst gebastelte Engel ("the handmade angel"). Most importantly, don't forget the appropriate ending (declension) for the adjective!
Further Learning
Go to Yabla German and review examples of selber and selbst as they are used in other contexts. Indeed, these words are more often used completely removed from this context to describe an action a person has carried out themselves personally.
Although Christmas decorations started appearing in the shops at the end of October, the holiday season in Germany really begins with the first Sunday of Advent. A clear sign of this is the opening of a Christmas market in most towns and cities. This is referred to as either der Weihnachtsmarkt, der Adventsmarkt, or der Christkindlesmarkt.
Hallo, ich bin auf dem Karlsruher Weihnachtsmarkt.
Hello, I am at the Karlsruhe Christmas Market.
Caption 1, Diane - auf dem Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
Der Advent, das ist die Zeit vor Weihnachten.
Advent, that is the time before Christmas.
Caption 3, Weihnachtsmärkte - mit Eva
Play Caption
In the evenings, people gather on the town square or in an enclosed market hall to do Christmas shopping, listen to music, and eat and drink a number of winter specialties. These include savory dishes, but also many types of sweets, such as almonds roasted with sugar, which are served in a small paper bag.
... eine Tüte gebrannte Mandeln.
... a bag of almonds roasted with sugar.
Caption 48, Rhein-Main-TV - Eva Padberg beim Weihnachtseinkauf
Play Caption
Selber gebackene Plätzchen. -Oh, lecker.
Home baked cookies. -Oh, delicious.
Caption 16, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
A typical Weihnachtsmarkt has small wooden cabins or tables with heaters, stands selling assorted gifts and sweets, and rides for children. And of course, we should not forget the centerpiece: a large Christmas tree, known as der Tannenbaum or der Weihnachtsbaum.
Hier kann man schöne Weihnachtsgeschenke kaufen.
You can buy beautiful Christmas presents here.
Caption 14, Diane - auf dem Weihnachtsmarkt
Play Caption
Einen Tannenbaum im Wasser zu schmücken...
To decorate a Christmas tree in the water...
Caption 7, Weihnachten geht baden - Tannenbaum unter Wasser
Play Caption
Further Learning
Watch the Yabla German videos that have featured a Weihnachtsmarkt and take note of vocabulary related to things to eat and do there. This article on Wikipedia has an interesting overview of the history of the traditional Christmas market in Germany, as well as the tradition as it exists in other countries.
Spanish
French
Italian
Chinese
English
English 
Español
Français
Italiano
Português
Deutsch
