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Doch! ...and Other Tricky German Words Listening to German

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German Pronunciation

By Hyde Flippo, German Language Expert

Updated August 30, 2016.

German, like any other language, has particular words and expressions that can be used in
more than one way. These include the short but trickyWrterknown as particles or fillers. I
call them small words that can cause big problems.

German words such asaber,auch,denn,doch,halt,mal,nur,schonand evenjalook

deceptively simple, but are often a source of errors and misunderstanding for even
intermediate learners of German.

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The main source of problems is the fact that each one of these words can have multiple
meanings and functions in different contexts or situations.

Take the wordaber. Most often it is encountered as a coordinating conjunction, as in:Wir

wollten heute fahren,aberunser Auto ist kaputt.(We wanted to go/drive today, but our car is
broken down.) In that context,aberfunctions like any of the coordinating conjunctions
(aber,denn,oder,und). Butabercan also be used as a particle:Das ist aber nicht mein Auto.

(That is, however, not my car.) Or:Das war aber sehr hektisch.(That was really very hectic.)

Another characteristic that such particle-word examples make clear is that it is often difficult
to translate the German word into an English word. Germanaber,contrary to what your first-
year German teacher told you, doesnotalways equal but! In fact, the Collins/PONS German-
English dictionary uses one-third of a column for all of the uses ofaber.Depending on how it is
being used, the wordabercan mean: but, and, at all, however, really, just, isn't it?, haven't you?,
come on now or why.

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The word can even be a noun:Die Sache hat ein Aber.(There's just one snag. -das Aber)
orKein Aber!(No ifs, ands or buts!)

In fact, a German dictionary rarely offers much help in dealing with particles. They are so
idiomatic that it is often impossible to translate them, even if you understand German pretty
well. But throwing them into your German (as long as you know what you're doing!) can make
you sound more natural and native-like.

To illustrate, let's use another example, the often over-usedmal. How would you translateSag
mal, wann fliegst du?orMal sehen.? In neither case would a good English translation actually
bother to translatemal(or some of the other words) at all. With such idiomatic usage, the first
translation would be Say (Tell me), when does your flight leave? The second phrase would be
We'll see in English.

The wordmalis actually two words. As an adverb, it has a mathematical function:fnf mal
fnf(55). But it is as a particle and a shortened form ofeinmal(once), thatmalis most often
used in day-to-day conversation, as inHr mal zu!(Listen!) orKommt mal her!(Come over
here!). If you listen carefully to German-speakers, you'll discover that they can hardly say
anything without throwing in amalhere and there. (But it's not nearly as irritating as the use of
Ya know in English!) So if you do the same (at the right time and in the right place!), you'll
sound just like a German!

Part 2:Doch!Really!

The German worddochis so versatile that it can also be dangerous. But knowing how to use
this word properly can make you sound like a true German (or Austrian or German Swiss)!

Let's start with the basics:ja,neinanddoch! Of course, two of the first words you ever
learned in German werejaandnein. You probably knew those two wordsbeforeyou began
studying German! But they aren't enough. You also need to knowdoch.

The use ofdochto answer a question is not actually a particle function, but it is important.
(We'll get back todochas a particle in a moment.) English may have the largest vocabulary of
any world language, but it doesn't have a single word fordochas an answer.

When you answer a question negatively or positively, you usenein/no orja/yes, whether
inDeutschor English. But German adds a third one-word option,doch(on the contrary), that
English does not have. For instance, someone asks you in English, Don't you have any
money? You actually do, so you answer, Yes, I do. While you might also add, On the
contrary... only two responses are possible in English: No, I don't. (agreeing with the negative
question) or Yes, I do. (disagreeing with the negative question).

German, however, offers a third alternative, which in some cases is required instead
ofjaornein. The same money question in German would be:Hast du kein Geld?If you answer
withja, the questioner may think you are agreeing to the negative, that yes, you donothave any
money. But by answering withdoch,you are making it clear: On the contrary, yes, I do have
money.

This also applies to statements that you want to contradict. If someone says, That's not right,
but it is, the German statementDas stimmt nichtwould be contradicted with:Doch! Das
stimmt.(On the contrary, it is right.) In this case, a response withja(es stimmt) would sound
wrong to German ears. Adochresponse clearly means you disagree with the statement.

Dochhas many other uses as well. As an adverb, it can mean after all or all the same.Ich
habe sie doch erkannt!I recognized her after all! or Ididrecognize her! It is often used this
way as an intensifier:Das hat sie doch gesagt.= Shedidsay that (after all).

In commands,dochis more than a mere particle. It is used to soften an order, to turn it into
more of a suggestion:Gehen Sie doch vorbei!, Why don't you go by? rather than the harsher
(You will) go by!

As a particle,dochcan intensify (as above), express surprise (Das war doch Maria!= That was
actually Maria!), show doubt (Du hast doch meine Email bekommen?= You did get my email,
didn't you?), question (Wie war doch sein Name?= Just what was his name?) or be used in
many idiomatic ways:Sollen Sie doch!= Then just go ahead (and do it)! With a little attention
and effort, you'll begin to notice the many ways thatdochis used in German. Understanding the
uses ofdochand the other particles in German will give you a much better command of the
language.
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