Today's words · 🛋️ Home & furniture
10 German words to feel at home in a German flat
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A German flat advert says ‘3 Zimmer’ — but that doesn't mean three bedrooms.
Your first flat viewing in Germany: the landlord rattles off ‘Das ist das Wohnzimmer, hier ist das Bad…’ and you just nod. Later, at the furniture shop, you end up pointing at things because you don't know their names.
Today's ten words cover rooms and furniture. With them you can read a flat advert, follow a viewing and ask where the bathroom is at a friend's place. Learn each one with its article! 🛋️
📋 The ten words at a glance
🧠 Words, examples and memory tricks
die Möbel
[MER-bel]furniture((mostly pl.) Sg. das Möbel(stück))
📌 Wir brauchen neue Möbel.
→ We need new furniture.
💡 From French meuble, ‘movable thing’ 🪑 Furniture is what you carry when you move.
⚠ Usually plural: die Möbel. One piece of furniture is das Möbelstück.
das Zimmer
[TSIM-er]room(Pl. die Zimmer)
📌 Mein Zimmer ist klein, aber hell.
→ My room is small but bright.
💡 A cousin of English timber 🪵 Rooms used to be made of wood.
Bonus Wie viele Zimmer hat die Wohnung? = How many rooms does the flat have?
das Wohnzimmer
[VOHN-tsim-er]living room(Pl. die Wohnzimmer)
📌 Wir sitzen im Wohnzimmer.
→ We're sitting in the living room.
💡 wohnen (to live) + Zimmer = the living room 🛋️ Ends in Zimmer, so it's das.
Bonus A flat is die Wohnung, from the same verb wohnen.
das Schlafzimmer
[SHLAHF-tsim-er]bedroom(Pl. die Schlafzimmer)
📌 Das Schlafzimmer ist sehr klein.
→ The bedroom is very small.
💡 schlafen sounds like sleep 😴 The sleep room = bedroom.
Bonus to go to bed = ins Bett gehen
das Bad
[BAHT]bathroom; bath(Pl. die Bäder)
📌 Das Bad ist gleich links.
→ The bathroom is just on the left.
💡 English bath with a d at the end 🛁 Where you have a bath.
⚠ Not English ‘bad’! If you just need the loo, ask for die Toilette. Plural: die Bäder.
der Tisch
[TISH]table(Pl. die Tische)
📌 Das Essen steht schon auf dem Tisch.
→ The food is already on the table.
💡 Same root as English dish and desk 🍽️ The place where you put your dishes.
Bonus desk = der Schreibtisch · dining table = der Esstisch
der Stuhl
[SHTOOL]chair(Pl. die Stühle)
📌 Nimm dir einen Stuhl!
→ Take a chair!
💡 It's English stool, upgraded with a backrest 🪑
⚠ The plural gets an umlaut: die Stühle
das Sofa
[ZOH-fah]sofa(Pl. die Sofas)
📌 Ich liege auf dem Sofa.
→ I'm lying on the sofa.
💡 A German s before a vowel sounds like z 💤 Flop onto the ‘zofa’.
Bonus die Couch means the same and is very common.
der Schrank
[SHRANK]cupboard, wardrobe, cabinet(Pl. die Schränke)
📌 Die Teller sind im Schrank.
→ The plates are in the cupboard.
💡 A fridge is a Kühlschrank, a ‘cool cupboard’ 🧊 Two words for the price of one.
Bonus wardrobe = der Kleiderschrank · plural: die Schränke
das Bett
[BET]bed(Pl. die Betten)
📌 Das Kind geht um acht Uhr ins Bett.
→ The child goes to bed at eight o'clock.
💡 English bed with a double t 🛏️ Nearly identical.
Bonus Gute Nacht, ab ins Bett! = Good night, off to bed!
🇩🇪 A spoonful of German culture
In a German flat advert, ‘3-Zimmer-Wohnung’ means three rooms including the living room. The kitchen and bathroom aren't counted. So it's usually one living room and two bedrooms.
A surprise for many newcomers: depending on the region, rented flats sometimes come without a fitted kitchen (Einbauküche). Outgoing tenants may take theirs with them or sell it to the next tenant.
You can't just leave big furniture on the street. Usually you book a bulky waste collection (Sperrmüll) with the city, and how it works depends on where you live. 🛋️
✅ Quick quiz
Q. You're at a friend's flat and want to wash your hands. What do you ask?
- ① Wo ist das Schlafzimmer?
- ② Wo ist das Bad?
- ③ Wo ist der Schrank?
Show the answer
② Wo ist das Bad?
das Bad is the bathroom — the place to wash your hands.
Look around the room you're in and name every piece of furniture out loud, with its article: der Tisch, der Stuhl, das Bett! 🏠
🔜 Tomorrow's topic: ☀️ Weather