Today's words · 🚪 Quitting & new jobs
Handing in your notice: 10 German words for a fresh start
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The day you say ‘I quit’ in German might come sooner than you think.
Over lunch, a colleague quietly says, "Ich habe gekündigt." Should you congratulate her or comfort her? Turns out she's moving to a better job.
Today's ten words are about quitting, being let go and changing jobs. With them you can read the notice clause in your contract, follow office news and talk about your own fresh start in German. 🚪
📋 The ten words at a glance
- kündigen — to cancel (a contract); to quit (a job); to give notice, to dismiss
- die Kündigung — notice, termination; dismissal; resignation
- die Kündigungsfrist — notice period, period of notice
- wechseln — to change; to exchange (money)
- entlassen — to dismiss, lay off; to discharge (from hospital)
- rauswerfen — to throw out, to kick out; to fire; to throw away (colloquial)
- das Arbeitszeugnis — job reference, employer's reference
- die Abfindung — severance pay, redundancy payment
- arbeitslos — unemployed
- der Neuanfang — fresh start, new beginning
🧠 Words, examples and memory tricks
kündigen
[KÜN-di-gen]to cancel (a contract); to quit (a job); to give notice, to dismiss(kündigt – hat gekündigt)
📌 Er hat seine Stelle gekündigt.
→ He quit his job.
💡 Quit or get fired — both are kündigen 📮 Cancelling a phone contract too!
⚠ If you're the one let go: Mir wurde gekündigt. (passive)
die Kündigung
[KÜN-di-goong]notice, termination; dismissal; resignation(Pl. die Kündigungen)
📌 Er hat seine Kündigung schriftlich eingereicht.
→ He handed in his notice in writing.
💡 kündigen + -ung = resignation or dismissal letter ✉️ -ung means die.
Bonus die Kündigung einreichen = to hand in your notice
die Kündigungsfrist
[KÜN-di-goongs-frist]notice period, period of notice(Pl. die Kündigungsfristen)
📌 Die Kündigungsfrist beträgt in meinem Vertrag drei Monate.
→ The notice period in my contract is three months.
💡 Kündigung + s + Frist (deadline) = the time you wait before leaving ⏳
Bonus Frist is everywhere: die Frist verpassen = to miss the deadline
wechseln
[VEK-seln]to change; to exchange (money)(wechselt – hat gewechselt)
📌 Ich möchte Geld wechseln.
→ I'd like to change some money.
💡 The all-purpose ‘change’ verb 🔄 Money, jobs, nappies!
Bonus to change jobs = die Stelle wechseln / den Job wechseln
entlassen
[ent-LASS-en]to dismiss, lay off; to discharge (from hospital)(entlässt – hat entlassen)
📌 Die Firma hat 100 Mitarbeiter entlassen.
→ The company has laid off 100 employees.
💡 ent- (away) + lassen (let) = let go of someone 👋 Also for leaving hospital.
⚠ Irregular: entlässt – hat entlassen (no ge- in the participle)
rauswerfen
[ROWS-vair-fen]to throw out, to kick out; to fire; to throw away (colloquial)(wirft raus – warf raus – hat rausgeworfen)
📌 Der Wirt hat die betrunkenen Gäste rausgeworfen.
→ The landlord threw out the drunk customers.
💡 raus (out) + werfen (throw) = thrown out the door 🫠 Very casual ‘to fire’.
⚠ Separable and irregular: Er wirft ihn raus. · hat rausgeworfen
das Arbeitszeugnis
[AR-bites-tsoyk-nis]job reference, employer's reference(Pl. die Arbeitszeugnisse)
📌 Jeder Mitarbeiter hat beim Abschied Anspruch auf ein Arbeitszeugnis.
→ Every employee is entitled to a reference when they leave.
💡 Arbeit (work) + Zeugnis (report card) = your work report card 📄
Bonus Top-grade phrase: stets zu unserer vollsten Zufriedenheit
die Abfindung
[AP-fin-doong]severance pay, redundancy payment(Pl. die Abfindungen)
📌 Nach zwanzig Jahren im Betrieb erhielt sie eine hohe Abfindung.
→ After twenty years at the company she received a large severance payment.
💡 abfinden = to pay someone off 💰 -ung, so die.
Bonus eine Abfindung bekommen = to get a severance payment
arbeitslos
[AR-bites-lohs]unemployed📌 Seit März ist er arbeitslos.
→ He's been unemployed since March.
💡 Arbeit + -los = work-less 😶 German -los is English -less.
Bonus Noun: die Arbeitslosigkeit = unemployment
der Neuanfang
[NOY-an-fang]fresh start, new beginning(Pl. die Neuanfänge)
📌 Nach der Scheidung wagte sie einen Neuanfang in Berlin.
→ After the divorce she dared to make a fresh start in Berlin.
💡 neu (new) + Anfang (start) = fresh start 🌱 Leaving isn't the end — it's a Neuanfang!
⚠ Plural with umlaut: die Neuanfänge
🇩🇪 A spoonful of German culture
In Germany a resignation is usually handed in on paper with your signature. An email or text message often isn't legally valid, so be careful. The Kündigungsfrist depends on your contract and how long you've worked there.
When you leave, you can ask for an Arbeitszeugnis. These references have their own ‘code’: everything sounds positive, but small differences in wording signal very different grades.
And once you know you're leaving or being let go, it's best to contact the Agentur für Arbeit (employment agency) as early as you can. It's the first step towards your fresh start. 🌱
✅ Quick quiz
Q. Your colleague starts at another company tomorrow. How do you describe that?
- ① Er ist arbeitslos.
- ② Er hat ihn rausgeworfen.
- ③ Er wechselt die Stelle.
Show the answer
③ Er wechselt die Stelle.
die Stelle wechseln means to change jobs.
Say "Ich wechsle die Stelle." and "Ich habe gekündigt." out loud today. Here's to your Neuanfang, whenever it comes! 🚀
🔜 Tomorrow's topic: ⏰ Part-time jobs