Today's words · 👅 Describing taste
Beyond „lecker“: 10 German words for taste
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When a German waiter asks „Hat's geschmeckt?“, it would be nice to say more than „Ja“.
You're invited to a German friend's place. You try their homemade soup and they watch you, hopeful. You want to be nice, but honestly it's a bit bland… How do you say any of that in German?
Today's ten words are all about taste. Sweet, salty, spicy, bland, absolutely delicious — with these you'll have plenty to say at the table. Eating really is the tastiest way to learn! 😋
📋 The ten words at a glance
🧠 Words, examples and memory tricks
schmecken
[SHMECK-en]to taste; to taste good(schmeckt – hat geschmeckt)
📌 Wie schmeckt dir die Suppe?
→ How do you like the soup?
💡 Imagine smacking your lips 👅 If it's good: Das schmeckt!
Bonus Lass es dir schmecken! = Enjoy your meal!
⚠ ‘I like the taste’ uses the dative: Das schmeckt mir.
lecker
[LECK-er]delicious, tasty(lecker – leckerer – am leckersten)
📌 Der Apfelkuchen ist sehr lecker!
→ The apple cake is really delicious!
💡 Same root as lecken (to lick) — finger-licking good 🍦
Bonus The everyday word for yummy: Mmh, lecker!
süß
[ZOOSS]sweet; cute(süß – süßer – am süßesten)
📌 Der Kuchen ist sehr süß.
→ The cake is very sweet.
💡 Same root as sweet 🍰 It also means cute, so you can use it for babies and puppies!
Bonus Die Katze ist so süß! = The cat is so cute!
salzig
[ZAL-tsish]salty📌 Die Suppe ist zu salzig.
→ The soup is too salty.
💡 das Salz (salt) + -ig 🧂 Just like salt + y = salty.
Bonus ‘It's too salty’ = Das ist zu salzig.
sauer
[ZOW-er]sour; (colloquial) annoyed, cross(sauer – saurer – am sauersten)
📌 Die Zitrone ist sehr sauer.
→ The lemon is very sour.
💡 Same root as sour 🍋 Your lemon face is also your angry face!
⚠ Ich bin sauer. means ‘I'm annoyed’, not ‘I'm sour’!
scharf
[SHARF]spicy, hot; sharp(scharf – schärfer – am schärfsten)
📌 Koreanisches Essen ist oft scharf.
→ Korean food is often spicy.
💡 Like sharp — it stabs your tongue 🌶️ Spicy food is scharf.
⚠ Don't say heiß for spicy; heiß only means hot in temperature.
bitter
[BIT-er]bitter(bitter – bitterer – am bittersten)
📌 Der Kaffee ist sehr bitter.
→ The coffee is very bitter.
💡 Spelled exactly like English bitter ☕ A free word!
der Geschmack
[guh-SHMAK]taste, flavour; taste (preference)(Pl. die Geschmäcker)
📌 Die Suppe hat einen komischen Geschmack.
→ The soup has a strange taste.
💡 The noun from schmecken 🍽️ Add ge-, drop an e: Geschmack.
Bonus Über Geschmack lässt sich nicht streiten. = There's no accounting for taste.
⚠ Umlaut in the plural: die Geschmäcker
köstlich
[KURST-likh]delicious; highly amusing📌 Die Suppe schmeckt köstlich!
→ The soup tastes delicious!
💡 From die Kost (food) ✨ One step fancier than lecker.
Bonus sich köstlich amüsieren = to have a great time
fade
[FAH-duh]bland, insipid; dull📌 Die Suppe schmeckt fade, gib noch etwas Salz dazu.
→ The soup tastes bland, add some more salt.
💡 From French fade, tasteless 🥄 The flavour has faded away.
Bonus If it's bland, ask for salt: Kannst du mir das Salz geben?
🇩🇪 A spoonful of German culture
Near the end of a meal in a German restaurant, staff will often ask „Hat es Ihnen geschmeckt?“ It's mostly a polite routine, so „Ja, sehr lecker, danke!“ is plenty.
At lunchtime in many workplaces you'll hear „Mahlzeit!“ as a greeting. It depends on the region and the company, but in lots of offices it's what people say when they pass each other around lunch.
For many Germans, scharf is a lot milder than what you might expect from Korean, Thai or Indian food. If a menu says spicy, it's often wise to keep your hopes modest! 🌶️
✅ Quick quiz
Q. Your friend's soup is very bland. How do you say so gently?
- ① Die Suppe ist sehr scharf.
- ② Die Suppe schmeckt ein bisschen fade.
- ③ Die Zitrone ist sehr sauer.
Show the answer
② Die Suppe schmeckt ein bisschen fade.
fade means bland, so this says ‘The soup tastes a little bland’.
At dinner tonight, describe each thing you eat in German. süß? salzig? Or maybe köstlich? 😋
🔜 Tomorrow's topic: 🥗 Allergies & diets