There are a number of German words that may be translated as "before," in the temporal meaning of "at a previous time." Among the most common are vor, vorher, and bevor. Let's take a look today at these three German words that are commonly translated to English as "before."
The German word bevor is a subordinating conjunction that connects two independent clauses. Note that in most cases, where bevor appears in the last half of a sentence, the verb is usually at the end of the sentence:
Darf ich's Ihnen dann noch schnell erklären,
May I explain it to you quickly
bevor Sie Ihre Platten essen?
before you eat your platters?
Caption 62, 48 h in Innsbruck - Sehenswürdigkeiten & Tipps
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Drei Wochen lang betteln hier die Jungen,
For three weeks, the young beg here
bevor sie sich selber in die Fluten stürzen.
before they dive into the waters themselves.
Caption 23, Alpenseen - Kühle Schönheiten
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Aber bevor du jetzt schneidest,
But before you start cutting,
check erst mal, ob der Stoff passt.
first check whether the fabric is suitable.
Captions 77-78, Coronavirus - Schutzmasken zum Selbermachen
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The German word vor is a preposition and is usually placed in a sentence to modify a noun. Note that when vor is used in its temporal sense, the definite or indefinite article of its noun is usually dative. For clarity, the preposition, the article, and the noun are in bold print:
Du musst den Ball vor dem letzten Schlag der Zwölf verlassen haben.
You need to have left the ball before the last stroke of twelve.
Caption 52, Märchenstunde - Das Aschenputtel
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Soll er die Tabletten morgens,
Should he take the pills in the morning,
mittags und abends vor oder nach dem Essen nehmen?
at noon, and in the evening—and before or after eating?
Caption 17, Nicos Weg - A1 Folge 72: Nehmen Sie...
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Was bekommen wahlberechtigte Bürger und Bürgerinnen in Deutschland vor einer Wahl?
What do citizens who are eligible to vote in Germany receive before an election?
Caption 18, Bundesrepublik Deutschland - Einbürgerungstest
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The German word vorher is an adverb:
Alles andere kommt vorher.
Everything else comes before it.
Caption 35, Deutschkurs in Tübingen - Konjunktionen
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Und dann kam es wieder aus dem Gully raus
And then it came out of the storm drain again,
und noch viel größer und noch viel böser als vorher.
much bigger and much meaner than before.
Caption 54, Großstadtrevier - Von Monstern und Mördern
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Note that vorher is sometimes translated as "beforehand" and "previously," depending upon the context:
Es besteht die Möglichkeit, jedes Board vorher zu testen...
The possibility exists, to test every board beforehand...
Caption 41, Longboarding - mit Lassrollen
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Dann bekommt man Geld zurück, das man vorher dafür bezahlt hat.
Then you get the money back that you previously paid for them.
Caption 13, Diane - auf dem Weihnachtsmarkt
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Further Learning
To recap: bevor usually connects two sentences; vor is a preposition that usually uses the dative case when referring to time; and vorher is an adverb that, as we know, modifies a verb. The best way to get an understanding of which word is appropriate in which context is hear them being used, however. Go to Yabla German and search for each of the three words—be sure that the examples with vor that you find are related to time and not place—and see the different ways that people commonly use them.
You may be familiar with the verb rutschen ("to slip" or "to slide") from our previous newsletters about the phrase Guten Rutsch, which is used on New Year's Eve.
Er ist durch den Kamin gerutscht?
He slid down the chimney?
Caption 79, Peppa Wutz - Weihnachten
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You may also hear the verb ausrutschen, which means to slip (and possibly fall), and the command rutsch rüber, which is how you tell someone to "slide over" or "move over" so that you can have a seat.
Ich bin mal ausgerutscht auf der Bühne.
I once slipped on stage.
Caption 39, Live-Entertainment-Award - Glamouröse Preisverleihung
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When we talk about falling, common verbs are herunterfallen or its shortened colloquial form runterfallen (which are similar to "to fall down"), hinfallen and umfallen (a bit more like "to fall over"), and stürzen and abstürzen (these are often used to indicate a bad fall).
Er ist da bestimmt nicht zufällig runtergefallen. Das war kein Unfall.
He certainly didn't fall off accidentally. That was no accident.
Caption 10, Großstadtrevier - Von Monstern und Mördern
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Im Herbst sind die Blätter rot und orange.
In autumn, the leaves are red and orange.
Im Winter fallen sie herunter.
In winter, they fall down.
Captions 44-45, Deutsch mit Eylin - Pronomen
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Ich bin ja auch schon zweimal hingefallen, aber ist bis jetzt...
I've also already fallen two times, but up till now...
nichts passiert.
nothing has happened.
Captions 15-16, Jenny und Alena - Autos und Motorräder
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Und dann ist er bei einer Bergtour abgestürzt.
And then he fell during a mountain hike.
Caption 12, Lilly unter den Linden - Kapitel 2: Lilly und Tante Lena
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Nach Elmau, da ist ein Skifahrer gestürzt und hat eine
Toward Elmau, a skier has fallen and has a
Rückenverletzung.
back injury.
Caption 7, Rettungsflieger - Im Einsatz
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The verbs fallen and fallen lassen are used when you drop something. Look at how the following sentences are constructed:
Oje, Linus hat seine Gießkanne ins Wasser fallen lassen.
Oh dear, Linus has dropped his watering can into the water.
Caption 28, Peppa Wutz - Sport
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Dennis ist kein Stift runtergefallen.
Dennis didn't drop a pencil.
Caption 109, Kurzfilme - Das Tagebuch
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You will also see fallen or its past participle gefallen used with the meaning of "to fall." As you know, gefallen is also a completely different verb that is used when we like something. However, structural and contextual differences between the phrase Es hat mir gefallen ("I liked it") and a sentence like Ich bin ins Wasser gefallen ("I fell into the water") don't allow for much ambiguity.
Further Learning
You will find many more examples of these phrases and verbs used in context on Yabla German. These will help you get a better grasp of which verb is appropriate in which context, and how they are implemented structurally.
The verb "to earn" in German is verdienen, and it is the verb we use when talking about earning money or making a living.
Die Schwestern im Kloster
The sisters in the cloister
verdienen damit einen großen Teil ihres Lebensunterhalts.
earn a large portion of their livelihood with that.
Caption 39, Hostien für den Papst - Abtei Sankt Gertrud in Alexanderdorf
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But, like in English, you can also "earn" things other than money, such as a break or success.
Das fühlt sich natürlich toll an,
Of course that feels great,
weil sich das auch so anfühlt, als hätte man sich das...
because it also feels as if we have...
verdient, weil man sich's erarbeitet hat.
earned it because we have worked for it.
Captions 15-16, Culcha Candela - zieht Bilanz
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Wenn man hier so viel ackert,
When you slog away here so much,
dann hat man mal eine Auszeit verdient.
you have at some point earned a break.
Caption 21, Großstadtrevier - Neben der Spur
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There are times when either the verb "to deserve" or "to earn" can be used in English, and in German verdienen is used in both cases. It is used for positive outcomes and negative circumstances alike. Note, however, that the tense may change in the translation.
Na und? Der hat auch seine Strafe verdient.
So what? He also deserves his punishment.
Caption 35, Großstadtrevier - Von Monstern und Mördern
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Also, ich finde, du hast den Preis echt verdient.
Well, I think you really deserved the prize.
Caption 91, Free Birds - Interview mit Nora Tschirner & Rick Kavanian
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Weil ich glaube, dass ein Typ wie Sie eine zweite Chance verdient hat.
Because I think a guy like you deserves a second chance.
Caption 35, Großstadtrevier - St. Pauli rettet HSV
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Further Learning
On Yabla German you can find the verb verdienen used to express both "to earn" and "to deserve." Pay attention to the tenses, which will not always align in English and German.
For the next two lessons, we’ll look at vocabulary for expressing different types of relationships in German. This week, let’s take a look at platonic relationships.
In professional settings, we often hear der Kollege / die Kollegin. This means “the colleague” or “the co-worker.”
Das ist der Kollege,
That is the colleague
der zusammen mit Jannik Sternberg auf dem Gerüst gearbeitet hat.
who was working with Jannik Sternberg on the scaffolding.
Caption 41, Großstadtrevier - Von Monstern und Mördern
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For young people who attend school together rather than work together, der Klassenkamerad / die Klassenkameradin is a term that means “classmate.” In university settings, der Kommilitone / die Kommilitonin is a common word for referring to one’s fellow students.
Ich hab' zusammen mit meiner ehemaligen Klassenkameradin
Together with a former classmate of mine, I
einen Abiturientenlehrgang besucht...
visited a high school graduate seminar...
Captions 8-9, Die Klasse - Berlin '61
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You may already know that der Bekannte / die Bekannte indicates an acquaintance, whereas der Freund / die Freundin means “friend” or in some cases even “boyfriend”/“girlfriend.” In this case, the context becomes very important.
und dann laden wir viele Bekannte und Freunde ein
and then we invite a lot of acquaintances and friends
Caption 18, Mode - mit Niklas
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To indicate a close relationship, enger Freund / enge Freundin (“close friend”) and guter Freund / gute Freundin (“good friend”) may be used. Men might also refer to a close friend as der Kumpel, which is more like “buddy” or “mate.”
Albrecht Mertz von Quirnheim,
Albrecht Mertz von Quirnheim,
ebenfalls Oberst im Bendlerblock,
also a colonel in the Bendlerblock,
ist enger Freund und Mitverschwörer.
is a close friend and co-conspirator.
Captions 4-6, Die Stunde der Offiziere - Dokudrama über den 20. Juli 1944
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Dann hat mein Kumpel gesagt:
Then my buddy said:
„Na, vielleicht wollten wir doch abhauen.“
"Well, but perhaps we indeed wanted to take off."
Caption 9, 25 Jahre Mauerfall - Radtour durch die Geschichte
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Further Learning
We’ll be back next week with vocabulary for various types of romantic relationships. In the meantime, you can learn the plural versions of these words (masculine and feminine), look for other examples on Yabla German, and practice any of the vocabulary above.
The German word for "dragon" is der Drache, but the word for "kite" is der Drachen, with an -n at the end. Since the plural for both "kites" and "dragons" is die Drachen, if the definite article is not mentioned, the only way you can tell which word is meant is from the context. This week's new installment of the TV series Großstadtrevier has a good example:
Er wollte die Küche streichen und Maries Drachen reparieren.
He wanted to paint the kitchen and repair Marie's kite.
Caption 8, Großstadtrevier - Von Monstern und Mördern
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Er fand überall welche, in Schlössern und Palästen,
He found them everywhere, in castles and palaces,
verhext von Hexen und gefangen von Drachen.
bewitched by witches and captured by dragons.
Captions 28-29, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die Prinzessin auf der Erbse
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It is pretty clear from the contexts above that it probably isn't Marie's dragon that is being repaired, nor that the people found in the castles were being captured by kites!
The singular genitive forms are different, however, with "of the dragon" written des Drachen and "of the kite" written des Drachens, with an -s at the end!
Wir haben einen Garten des friedvollen Drachen.
We have a "Garden of the Peaceful Dragon."
Caption 18, Das Tollwood-Festival - BAP und Clueso in der Musik-Arena
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Further Learning
Visit Yabla German and search for examples of der Drache and der Drachen as used in a real world—or perhaps a purely imaginary—context.
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