Today's words · 🛒 Supermarket
Your German shopping list: 10 supermarket words
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German checkouts are fast, so pack these words before you go.
On your first trip to a German supermarket, the trolleys are all chained together and won't come loose. You finally get to the checkout, the cashier asks you something quickly, and the next person's shopping is already sliding towards you.
Today's ten words cover the whole trip: getting a trolley, spotting special offers, answering the cashier and returning your empty bottles. With them, you can shop without panic. 🛒
📋 The ten words at a glance
- der Supermarkt — supermarket
- die Lebensmittel — food, groceries
- der Einkaufswagen — shopping trolley, shopping cart
- die Einkaufsliste — shopping list
- das Sonderangebot — special offer
- die Kasse — checkout, till; ticket office
- die Tüte — bag (paper or plastic)
- das Pfand — deposit (on bottles/cans); pledge
- die Pfandflasche — deposit bottle, returnable bottle
- das Haltbarkeitsdatum — best-before date, expiration date
🧠 Words, examples and memory tricks
der Supermarkt
[ZOO-per-markt]supermarket(Pl. die Supermärkte)
📌 Ich kaufe Milch im Supermarkt.
→ I buy milk at the supermarket.
💡 super + Markt (market) = supermarket 🏪 Easy — just start it with a Z sound.
⚠ The plural gets an umlaut: die Supermärkte.
die Lebensmittel
[LAY-bens-mit-el]food, groceries((mostly pl.) Sg. das Lebensmittel)
📌 Lebensmittel kaufe ich im Supermarkt.
→ I buy groceries at the supermarket.
💡 Leben (life) + Mittel (means) = what keeps you alive: food 🥖
⚠ Usually plural: die Lebensmittel.
der Einkaufswagen
[INE-kowfs-vah-gen]shopping trolley, shopping cart(Pl. die Einkaufswagen)
📌 Für den Einkaufswagen brauchst du eine Münze.
→ You need a coin for the shopping trolley.
💡 einkaufen (to shop) + Wagen (cart, like wagon) = trolley 🛒
Bonus A shopping basket is der Korb (Einkaufskorb).
die Einkaufsliste
[INE-kowfs-lis-tuh]shopping list(Pl. die Einkaufslisten)
📌 Ich habe die Einkaufsliste zu Hause vergessen.
→ I left the shopping list at home.
💡 Einkauf (shopping) + Liste (list) 📝 The last part is die Liste, so the whole word is die.
Bonus einkaufen gehen = to go shopping
das Sonderangebot
[ZON-der-an-guh-boat]special offer(Pl. die Sonderangebote)
📌 Die Erdbeeren sind heute im Sonderangebot.
→ Strawberries are on special offer today.
💡 sonder- (special) + Angebot (offer) = special offer 🏷️ Look for the bright price tags.
Bonus im Sonderangebot sein = to be on offer
die Kasse
[KASS-uh]checkout, till; ticket office(Pl. die Kassen)
📌 Bitte bezahlen Sie an der Kasse.
→ Please pay at the checkout.
💡 Same root as English cash 💶 The box with the money = the till.
Bonus You'll also see it in ticket offices and in die Krankenkasse (health insurer).
die Tüte
[TUE-tuh]bag (paper or plastic)(Pl. die Tüten)
📌 Brauchen Sie eine Tüte?
→ Do you need a bag?
💡 Say it and hear the bag rustle 🛍️ Brauchen Sie eine Tüte?
Bonus A cloth shopping bag is der Beutel or die Tasche.
das Pfand
[PFANT]deposit (on bottles/cans); pledge((plural rare))
📌 Auf diese Flasche gibt es Pfand.
→ There's a deposit on this bottle.
💡 Related to English pawn ♻️ You hand over the bottle, you get your money back.
Bonus The bottle return machine = der Pfandautomat
die Pfandflasche
[PFANT-flash-uh]deposit bottle, returnable bottle(Pl. die Pfandflaschen)
📌 Die Pfandflaschen bringe ich zurück in den Supermarkt.
→ I take the deposit bottles back to the supermarket.
💡 Pfand + Flasche (bottle, like flask) = a bottle worth money 🍾 Don't bin it!
Bonus The machine prints a receipt (Pfandbon) that you cash in at the till.
das Haltbarkeitsdatum
[HALT-bar-kites-dah-toom]best-before date, expiration date(Pl. die Haltbarkeitsdaten)
📌 Der Joghurt hat das Haltbarkeitsdatum schon überschritten.
→ The yogurt is already past its best-before date.
💡 halten (keep) + -bar + -keit + Datum (date) = the keep-until date 📅 It ends in das Datum, so it's das.
⚠ Packs usually say MHD (Mindesthaltbarkeitsdatum). Plural: die Haltbarkeitsdaten.
🇩🇪 A spoonful of German culture
German trolleys are usually locked together, and you free one with a coin or a trolley token. Put it back and the coin pops out again. Lots of people keep a token on their keyring.
Checkouts move quickly. Many shoppers put everything straight back into the trolley and pack it calmly at a shelf after paying. Bags usually cost money, so most people bring their own.
Also, most supermarkets close on Sundays. Shops in big railway stations are the main exception, which is why Saturday evenings are always busy. 🧺
✅ Quick quiz
Q. At the checkout, which question asks if you need a bag?
- ① Haben Sie Pfand?
- ② Brauchen Sie eine Tüte?
- ③ Ist das im Sonderangebot?
Show the answer
② Brauchen Sie eine Tüte?
Brauchen Sie eine Tüte? means ‘Do you need a bag?’ — you'll hear it at almost every till.
Before your next shop, write your Einkaufsliste in German. Bonus points for a confident Nein, danke! at the till. 🥨
🔜 Tomorrow's topic: 🥐 At the bakery