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Lesson 1A1
Greetings & Formality
अभिवादन और औपचारिकता
German splits 'you' into du (informal) and Sie (formal) — the same instinct Hindi speakers already have with तुम vs. आप. Start here before any other vocabulary, since it affects almost every sentence you'll build.
Grammar Comparison
व्याकरण तुलना
du vs Sie ≈ तुम vs आप
German
du (informal) / Sie (formal)
Hindi
तुम (informal) / आप (formal)
Just like Hindi switches from तुम to आप for strangers, elders, and officials, German switches from du to Sie. Use Sie with anyone you'd address as आप — shopkeepers, teachers, officials. Use du with friends, family, and children, same as तुम. One quirk to note: Sie is always capitalized, even mid-sentence — that's the only thing distinguishing it in writing from sie (she/they).
Vocabulary
शब्दावली
| German | Pronunciation | Hindi | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hallo | HAH-loh | नमस्तेnamaste | Hello |
| Guten Morgen | GOO-ten MOR-gen | सुप्रभातsuprabhāt | Good morning |
| Guten Tag | GOO-ten TAHK | नमस्कार (दिन में)namaskār (din meñ) | Good day |
| Guten Abend | GOO-ten AH-bent | शुभ संध्याśubh sandhyā | Good evening |
| Auf Wiedersehen | owf VEE-der-zayn | फिर मिलेंगेphir mileñge | Goodbye (formal) |
| Tschüss | chuess | बाय बायbāy bāy | Bye (informal) |
| Danke | DAHN-keh | धन्यवादdhanyavād | Thanks |
| Bitte | BIT-teh | कृपया / कोई बात नहींkṛpayā / koī bāt nahīñ | Please / You're welcome |
| Ja | yah | हाँhāñ | Yes |
| Nein | nine | नहींnahīñ | No |
| Wie geht's dir? | vee gates deer | क्या हाल है?kyā hāl hai? | How are you? (informal) |
| Mir geht's gut | meer gates goot | मैं ठीक हूँmaiñ ṭhīk hūñ | I'm doing well |