Today's words · 🧺 Parks & picnics
Sunshine German: 10 words for a day in the park
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Germans head for the park the moment the sun comes out. Pack these words and join them.
The sun is out for the first time in weeks. The grass in the park is covered with blankets, and someone somewhere is grilling sausages. Your friend texts: ‘Picknick im Park?’
Today's ten words are all about parks and picnics. With them you can plan a picnic, decide what to bring and tell your friends exactly where to find you. 🧺
📋 The ten words at a glance
🧠 Words, examples and memory tricks
der Park
[PARK]park(Pl. die Parks)
📌 Wir gehen im Park spazieren.
→ We go for a walk in the park.
💡 Exactly like English park 🌳 Just roll the r a little.
Bonus im Park spazieren gehen = to go for a walk in the park
die Wiese
[VEE-zuh]meadow(Pl. die Wiesen)
📌 Die Kinder spielen auf der Wiese Fußball.
→ The children are playing football on the meadow.
💡 Hear the grass swaying in the wind: VEE-zuh 🌾 Ends in -e, so die.
Bonus In Munich, the Oktoberfest is simply called die Wiesn.
das Picknick
[PICK-nick]picnic(Pl. die Picknicks)
📌 Am Sonntag machen wir ein Picknick im Park.
→ On Sunday we're having a picnic in the park.
💡 Sounds just like picnic 🥪 Only the spelling is German: ck, ck.
Bonus ein Picknick machen = to have a picnic
die Decke
[DECK-uh]blanket; ceiling(Pl. die Decken)
📌 Mir ist kalt, hast du eine Decke?
→ I'm cold, have you got a blanket?
💡 From decken (to cover) 🛏️ A blanket covers you; a ceiling covers the room.
⚠ It also means ceiling: an der Decke = on the ceiling.
der Korb
[KORP]basket; rejection(Pl. die Körbe)
📌 Sie trägt einen Korb mit Äpfeln.
→ She is carrying a basket of apples.
💡 Plop it in the basket: KORP 🧺 A final b sounds like p.
Bonus jemandem einen Korb geben = to turn someone down
die Bank
[BAHNK]bank; bench(Pl. die Banken (bench: die Bänke))
📌 Ich gehe heute zur Bank.
→ I'm going to the bank today.
💡 A bench and a bank are both Bank 🪑 Money changers once worked at benches.
⚠ Plural trap: benches = die Bänke, banks = die Banken.
grillen
[GRILL-en]to barbecue, grill(grillt – hat gegrillt · Swiss: grillieren)
📌 Am Samstag grillen wir im Park.
→ On Saturday we're having a barbecue in the park.
💡 English grill + -en = a German verb 🔥
Bonus The grill itself is der Grill — and the star is die Wurst.
der Spielplatz
[SHPEEL-plats]playground(Pl. die Spielplätze)
📌 Die Kinder spielen auf dem Spielplatz.
→ The children are playing in the playground.
💡 spielen (play) + Platz (place) = playground 🛝
Bonus swing = die Schaukel · slide = die Rutsche
der Baum
[BOWM]tree(Pl. die Bäume)
📌 Vor dem Haus steht ein großer Baum.
→ There's a big tree in front of the house.
💡 Same root as English beam 🌳 Beams were made from trees.
⚠ Umlaut in the plural: die Bäume.
der Teich
[TYKH]pond(Pl. die Teiche)
📌 Im Teich im Stadtpark schwimmen Enten und Fische.
→ Ducks and fish swim in the pond in the city park.
💡 A little pond where ducks paddle 🦆 Related to English ditch.
⚠ Teich = pond. A lake is der See.
🇩🇪 A spoonful of German culture
As soon as the weather is nice, German parks fill up with people lying on blankets on the grass (Wiese), reading, napping or chatting. A bottle of beer in the park is a very normal sight.
If you want to barbecue, check the signs first. In many cities grilling is only allowed in marked areas (Grillplatz), and the rules vary from city to city and park to park.
And take your rubbish home. Empty bottles can be returned to supermarkets for a deposit (Pfand), so some people leave them next to the bin for collectors. ♻️
✅ Quick quiz
Q. Your legs are tired after a walk in the park. How do you suggest sitting on a bench?
- ① Setzen wir uns an den Teich!
- ② Setzen wir uns auf die Bank!
- ③ Setzen wir uns in den Korb!
Show the answer
② Setzen wir uns auf die Bank!
die Bank means bench as well as bank, and auf die Bank = onto the bench.
Next time you're in a park, name what you see out loud: der Baum, die Bank, der Teich… 🌳
🔜 Tomorrow's topic: 🎢 Theme parks & zoos