Today's words · 🔑 Living alone
Your own place in Germany: 10 words for living alone
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Some words feel as exciting as getting your very first set of keys.
Your name is finally on a letterbox, and the little flat behind it is all yours. Then the questions start. "Do you live alone?" "Do you cook?" "Don't you get lonely?" You want to answer, but the words won't come.
These ten words let you talk about life on your own in German. You can describe your flat, chat about housework and be honest about how you feel. 🔑
📋 The ten words at a glance
- allein — alone
- eigen — own
- die Wohnung — flat, apartment
- der Single — single (person)
- unabhängig — independent; regardless of, irrespective of (von + dat.)
- selbstständig — independent, self-reliant; self-employed
- der Haushalt — household, housekeeping; (state) budget
- die Portion — portion, serving
- das Fertiggericht — ready meal, convenience food
- einsam — lonely
🧠 Words, examples and memory tricks
allein
[ah-LINE]alone📌 Ich wohne allein.
→ I live alone.
💡 all + ein = totally one 🧍 English alone was built the same way: all + one.
Bonus Opposite: zusammen = together
eigen
[EYE-gen]own📌 Ich habe jetzt eine eigene Wohnung.
→ I now have my own apartment.
💡 Same root as English own 🏠 eine eigene Wohnung = a place of your own.
⚠ It's an adjective, so it takes endings: mein eigenes Zimmer, meine eigene Küche.
die Wohnung
[VOH-noong]flat, apartment(Pl. die Wohnungen)
📌 Die Wohnung hat drei Zimmer.
→ The apartment has three rooms.
💡 wohnen (to live) + -ung = the place you live 🛋️ -ung means it's always die.
Bonus flat-hunting = eine Wohnung suchen
der Single
[SING-gul]single (person)(Pl. die Singles)
📌 Sie ist seit einem Jahr Single.
→ She's been single for a year.
💡 Straight from English single 💁 Ich bin Single. Done.
⚠ der Single is a single person, die Single is a single record. The article changes the meaning.
unabhängig
[OON-ap-heng-ikh]independent; regardless of, irrespective of (von + dat.)(unabhängig – unabhängiger – am unabhängigsten)
📌 Mit zwanzig wollte ich endlich finanziell unabhängig sein.
→ At twenty I finally wanted to be financially independent.
💡 un- (not) + abhängig (hanging on) = not hanging on anyone 🦅 Free as a bird.
Bonus Opposite: abhängig von + dative = dependent on
selbstständig
[ZELPST-shten-dikh]independent, self-reliant; self-employed(selbstständiger – am selbstständigsten)
📌 Sie arbeitet seit drei Jahren selbstständig als Grafikerin.
→ She's been working freelance as a graphic designer for three years.
💡 selbst (self) + Stand (standing) = standing on your own feet 💪 Freelancers are selbstständig too.
Bonus The spelling selbständig is also correct.
der Haushalt
[HOWS-halt]household, housekeeping; (state) budget(Pl. die Haushalte)
📌 Der Bundestag hat den Haushalt für das kommende Jahr verabschiedet.
→ The Bundestag passed the budget for the coming year.
💡 Haus (house) + halten (to keep) = keeping the house going 🧹 That's housekeeping.
Bonus to do the housework = den Haushalt machen
die Portion
[por-TSYOHN]portion, serving(Pl. die Portionen)
📌 Eine Portion Pommes, bitte.
→ One portion of fries, please.
💡 Just like English portion 🍟 but -tion sounds like ‘tsyohn’.
Bonus cooking for one = eine Portion für eine Person
das Fertiggericht
[FAIR-tikh-guh-rikht]ready meal, convenience food(Pl. die Fertiggerichte)
📌 Wer wenig Zeit hat, greift oft zu Fertiggerichten.
→ People who are short of time often reach for ready meals.
💡 fertig (ready) + Gericht (dish) = a dish that's already done 🍱 Just microwave it.
⚠ das Gericht means ‘dish’ but also ‘court of law’.
einsam
[INE-zahm]lonely(einsam – einsamer – am einsamsten)
📌 Am Anfang habe ich mich einsam gefühlt.
→ At first I felt lonely.
💡 ein (one) + -sam (like English -some) = lonesome 🥺 Nearly the same build.
⚠ allein = alone, einsam = lonely. You can live alone without feeling lonely!
🇩🇪 A spoonful of German culture
Lots of people in Germany live on their own, especially in big cities. But many start out in a WG (Wohngemeinschaft), a shared flat where everyone has their own room and shares the kitchen and bathroom.
One thing to remember when you live alone: most supermarkets in Germany are closed on Sundays. So people get into the habit of doing a big shop on Saturday. In an emergency, shops in big train stations and petrol stations can save the day.
Sorting your rubbish (Mülltrennung) and returning bottles for the deposit (Pfand) are basic life skills too. Feed your empty bottles and cans into the machine at the supermarket and you get money back. ♻️
✅ Quick quiz
Q. A new friend asks, "Wohnst du mit jemandem zusammen?" You live on your own. What do you say?
- ① Ich fühle mich einsam.
- ② Eine Portion, bitte.
- ③ Nein, ich wohne allein.
Show the answer
③ Nein, ich wohne allein.
Nein, ich wohne allein. = No, I live alone — allein means alone, while einsam means lonely.
Walk around your room today and introduce it in German. Das ist meine eigene Wohnung! 🏡
🔜 Tomorrow's topic: 🏛️ Registration & offices