In a recent lesson, we took a look at the German phrases zu Fuß, Kopf bis Fuß, ohne Hand und Fuß, Fuß fassen and der Fuß (the US and UK standard measurement "foot"). Today, let's check out some other German phrases using der Fuß.

Doch ich steh mittlerweile mehr als mit einem Fuß im Knast

But I've got more than one foot in jail now

Caption 39, Cro: Bad Chick

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The phrase mit einem Fuß im... is similar to the English phrase: "with one foot in the grave", and generally means "to be near" to whatever is referred to. German also uses mit einem Fuß im Grab and, with the same meaning, mit einem Fuß im Jenseits ("...in the afterlife"). The caption above means he was close to being in prison before, but is now actually in prison!

Doch dann stößt er am Fuß des Conturines-Massivs in 2.008 Metern auf eine riesige Höhle.

But then he comes across, at the foot of the Conturines massif at 2,008 meters, a huge cave.

Captions 5-6, Die letzten Paradiese: Schätze der Natur

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A "massif" is the main mass of a mountain, and indeed the expression "at the foot of the mountain" —that is to say, "the base of the mountain"—is the same as the German am Fuß des Berges.

Wenn wir da einen Fuß reinkriegen, dann ziehe ich ganz runter und schaffe mir einen Harem an.

When we get a foot in the door  then I'll move down there completely and get myself a harem.

Captions 8-9, Mama arbeitet wieder: Alle haben sich lieb

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The German idiom einen Fuß reinkriegen (literally "to get a foot in") means the same as the English idiom "to get one's foot in the door," a figurative way of saying "to gain entry" or "to get an opportunity."

Da haben Sie mich gerade auf dem falschen Fuß erwischt.

You have just caught me on the wrong foot.

Caption 34, Tanz in den Mai: "Ladies Get Wild"

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The German idiom auf dem falschen Fuß erwischt means "to be caught unprepared" or "to be surprised." This is somewhat different from the English expression "to get off on the wrong foot," which means "to have a bad start."

Ich will ja niemandem auf die Füße treten.

I don't want to step on anyone's feet.

Caption 10, Coronavirus: Nikolaus mit Mundschutz

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The German and English idioms are the same here: "to step on someone's feet" is a figurative way of saying "to upset someone."

Further Learning
It's always interesting how some languages have idioms that are the same as your native language. But it's especially interesting to learn the expressions that are different and sound very odd if you translate them directly! Take a look at the videos above on Yabla German to get a better feel for the contexts in which they are used.

It's typical in many languages to use phrases with animals as idiomatic expressions, such as the English expressions "to let the cat out of the bag" (to reveal a secret) or "Hold your horses!" (ordering someone to stop whatever they are doing). German has a number of animal expressions too, but in this lesson today, we'll only concern ourselves with those related to rabbits!

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…aber die alten Hasen trotzdem noch kommen, die „Die-hard“-Fans.

…but the old rabbits nevertheless still come, the die-hard fans.

Caption 44, Sons of Sounds - Open-Air in Karlsruhe

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Musikalisch könnten Ärzte, Rammstein und Co

Musically, the Ärzte, Rammstein and others could

von einem alten Hasen wie ihm noch richtig was lernen.

really still learn something from an old rabbit like him.

Captions 24-25, Heino - Neue Volkslieder

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The idiom ein alter Hase is equivalent to the English idiom "an old hand", meaning somebody who has a lot of experience at something. Judging from the videos above, the expression seems to be a particular favorite of musicians!

Hallöchen, ihr Hasen! Ich bin die kleine, süße Olivia Jones.

Hello [diminutive], you bunnies! I am sweet little Olivia Jones.

Caption 1, Hamburger Hafenrundfahrt - Schrill unterwegs mit Olivia Jones

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Tschüss, Prinzessin. -Tschüss, Mama. -Tschüss, mein Hase.

Bye, Princess. -Bye, Mama. -Bye, my bunny.

Caption 60, Mama arbeitet wieder - Kapitel 1: Alle haben sich lieb

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In the examples above, Hase has been translated as "bunny," in this case it means a term of endearment like "darling."

Damit ist der Hase wohl gelutscht und der Drops sitzt in der Falle [Redewendungen mit vertauschten Subjekten].

With that the rabbit has been sucked and the lozenge is in the trap [Expressions with subjects reversed].

Caption 66, Die Pierre-M.-Krause-Show - Classics

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The above example actually reversed the subjects of the sentence as a joke. The phrase should be: Der Hase sitzt in der Falle, which is not really an idiom at all, rather just a metaphorical phrase meaning they have caught the criminal they intended to arrest. 

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Further Learning
The following phrases are typical idiomatic expressions using der Hase. See if you can intuitively guess their meaning, then go to this Duden page and see if your guesses were correct! 

— ein heuriger Hase

— sehen, wie der Hase läuft

— da liegt der Hase im Pfeffer 

Afterwards, you can go to Yabla German and find other uses of der Hase in a real-world context.

Thank you for reading this. Keep up the good work! If you have any good ideas for lesson topics, please email them to us at newsletter@yabla.com, and you can tweet us @yabla.

The made-for-TV miniseries Mama arbeitet wieder explores the roles that men and women play at home and in the workplace in Germany. Studies show that for the fifth consecutive year, women earn on average 22% less than men in the same job positions, ranking Germany as one of the most wage discriminatory countries based on gender in the industrialized world.

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In one scene of part 4 of Mama arbeitet wieder, Mark tells his boss that his wife is going back to work and requests to delay his transfer to Dubai. His boss responds:

Wenn das Mädel [Umgangssprache] weiter Zicken macht,

If the girl continues to be bitchy,

dann schaff' dir ein Exemplar der alten Gattung an.

then get yourself an example of the old species [a more traditional woman].

Captions 23-24, Mama arbeitet wieder - Kapitel 1: Alle haben sich lieb

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This is misogynistic on several levels: first of all, he calls Mark's wife a Mädel, which is an ironic and often demeaning term for a woman (equivalent to "stupid girl"); he then employs the term Zicken (literally a "she-goat") to classify her behavior as bitchy; he then suggests that Mark find a more "traditional woman."

The message of the series is actually pro gender equality, and the scriptwriters purposefully use such provocative and sexist language to point out how common gender stereotyping is in Germany. The writers additionally added racial stereotyping to the script. Directly after telling Mark to get a more "traditional" wife, the boss says to a worker walking by, who was not privy to the conversation:

Da gibt's nämlich nie Probleme, was, Mehmet?

With that there are namely never problems, right, Mehmet?

Caption 25, Mama arbeitet wieder - Kapitel 1: Alle haben sich lieb

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The name "Mehmet" is Turkish, and the worker's appearance suggests that he or his family originally came from the Middle East. Mark's boss is putting forth racial, religious and gender stereotypes in a single sentence by suggesting that men from the Middle East, or Moslems, always force the women in their households into "traditional" subservient roles.

Racism is strictly taboo in Germany due to its Nazi past, and by equating sexism and racism, the scriptwriters are attempting to heighten awareness of the seriousness of the problems that Germany currently faces in regard to gender discrimination.

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Mama arbeitet wieder shows how a German man comes to terms in a positive way with modernizing his views and learning to drop stereotypes of a woman's role in the household and in the workplace. Watch the entire series on Yabla German.