Today's words · 🏖️ Beach & lakes
Sun, sand and lakes: 10 German words for summer
A1A2B1B2
In a German summer, the real star might be the lake, not the sea.
When summer arrives in Berlin, friends start asking every weekend: ‘Shall we go to the See?’ Do they mean the sea or a lake? You pack your towel and swimsuit, still not quite sure.
Today's ten words are for the beach and the lake. With them you can make weekend swimming plans, ask about the waves, and explain your sunburn at the pharmacy. 🏖️
📋 The ten words at a glance
🧠 Words, examples and memory tricks
das Meer
[MAIR]sea(Pl. die Meere)
📌 Im Urlaub fahren wir ans Meer.
→ On holiday we're going to the seaside.
💡 Say it slowly — ‘MAIR’ — and picture a sea stretching out forever 🌊
Bonus ans Meer fahren = to go to the seaside · am Meer = by the sea
der See
[ZAY]lake(Pl. die Seen)
📌 Der See ist im Sommer warm genug zum Schwimmen.
→ In summer the lake is warm enough for swimming.
💡 One little article changes the size of the water 🏞️ der See is a lake.
⚠ der See = lake, die See = sea. Plural: die Seen
der Strand
[SHTRANT]beach(Pl. die Strände)
📌 Wir liegen den ganzen Tag am Strand.
→ We lie on the beach all day.
💡 When a ship gets stuck on the Strand, it's stranded 🏖️
Bonus am Strand liegen = to lie on the beach
⚠ The plural has an umlaut: die Strände
schwimmen
[SHVIM-en]to swim(schwimmt – ist geschwommen)
📌 Im Sommer schwimme ich im See.
→ In summer I swim in the lake.
💡 A sibling of swim 🏊 Just say the w like a v.
⚠ The perfect tense uses sein: Ich bin geschwommen.
baden
[BAH-den]to bathe, have a bath; to swim(badet – hat gebadet)
📌 Im Sommer baden wir im See.
→ In summer we swim in the lake.
💡 The verb from das Bad (bath) 🛁 In the tub or in the lake, it's baden.
Bonus baden gehen = to go for a swim · a swimming lake = der Badesee
der Bikini
[bee-KEE-nee]bikini(Pl. die Bikinis)
📌 Für den Urlaub am Meer habe ich einen neuen Bikini gekauft.
→ I bought a new bikini for my holiday by the sea.
💡 Named after Bikini Atoll in the Pacific 👙
Bonus a swimsuit = der Badeanzug · swimming trunks = die Badehose
die Welle
[VEL-uh]wave(Pl. die Wellen)
📌 Die Wellen sind heute sehr hoch.
→ The waves are very high today.
💡 Think of the sea swelling up — Welle, wave 🌊
Bonus die Hitzewelle = heatwave · also used for a ‘wave’ of trends.
der Sand
[ZANT]sand(Sg.)
📌 Die Kinder spielen im Sand.
→ The children are playing in the sand.
💡 Same as English sand, but the s buzzes like a z ⏳
Bonus a sandcastle = die Sandburg
die Sonnenbrille
[ZON-en-bril-uh]sunglasses(Pl. die Sonnenbrillen)
📌 Hast du deine Sonnenbrille dabei?
→ Have you got your sunglasses with you?
💡 Sonne (sun) + Brille (glasses) = sun glasses, literally 😎
⚠ One pair is singular: eine Sonnenbrille
der Sonnenbrand
[ZON-en-brant]sunburn(Pl. die Sonnenbrände)
📌 Ohne Sonnencreme hatte ich nach einer Stunde am Strand einen Sonnenbrand.
→ Without sun cream I got sunburnt after an hour on the beach.
💡 Sonne + Brand (fire) = skin set on fire by the sun 🔥
Bonus sun cream = die Sonnencreme · Ich habe einen Sonnenbrand. = I'm sunburnt.
🇩🇪 A spoonful of German culture
Germans love heading to a nearby swimming lake (Badesee) in summer. Many regions are far from the coast, so spreading out a towel by a lake for the whole day is a classic weekend.
On North Sea (Nordsee) and Baltic (Ostsee) beaches you'll see rows of hooded wicker beach chairs (Strandkorb) that shelter you from the wind. You can usually rent one by the day or the week.
And don't be surprised: some beaches and lakes have FKK (Freikörperkultur) areas where people swim and sunbathe naked. Just keep an eye on the signs. 😎
✅ Quick quiz
Q. You went swimming in a lake at the weekend. What do you tell your friend?
- ① Ich war am Meer.
- ② Ich war an der See.
- ③ Ich war am See.
Show the answer
③ Ich war am See.
der See is a lake; das Meer and die See both mean the sea.
Say ‘der See, die See, das Meer’ out loud three times today. Then try making this summer's swimming plans in German! 🌞
🔜 Tomorrow's topic: 🚲 Cycling