Last on the list but favorite in my opinion, I was initially confused why so many Chinese people would think the German word for “goodbye” is so funny. What could a mucus-brake possibly mean? Well… a mustache! Der Popel refers to snot or mucus, and eine Bremse is a brake, like on a bike or car. One more in the category of slightly gross words, this one is a hit among German learners in Spain. While English “yes and no” is a slightly stilted and formal answer to an ambiguous question, German solves this problem very neatly. It’s probably not too hard to guess that this is a blend of Ja and Nein, making it a single word with “yes” and “no” connotations. Lass keinen Spuckschluck in der Flasche stehen!ĭon’t leave that last little bit in the bottle!Īnother favorite from the French. Schlucken is fairly close in meaning to “gulp,” as in “gulping something down.” Spucken means, “to spit.” This Russian favorite might make you shudder – the German word for “backwash” literally means “spit-swallow!” It’s also used to describe that last little bit of drink in the bottle that you’d rather not finish. When a Purzel stands on his hands, he becomes a little “rascal tree” – at least for a little while before he topples over! Indonesians love this word for “somersault.” Der Purzel is a slang word for a cute little boy, a “rascal” if you will. It describes a situation where you try to make things better but end up getting into a worse fix than when you started – literally a worsening-bettering! Besides, it fits the meaning perfectly when you think about it! It means “ankle” but literally comes out to “jump link.” I love it because the sounds just roll off the tongue so well. So what I’ve done here is searched through quite a few pieces written in other languages to find out what the world thinks the funniest German words are.Īfter all, if so many people agree on one thing, it must be true, right?įirst off, a word many Americans (including myself) love.
You’ve got to come at it from a new, outside angle. When you learn a language for a long time, it stops sounding strange and exotic and just seems, well, normal.
Truth be told, when I began to write an article about funny German words I didn’t really know where to turn.
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