Ep 41 - When Gift Means Poison: Surprising German-English False Friends

In episode 43 of the Better German Podcast, host Susi Blumel breaks down everything you need to know about German numbers. She guides listeners through counting from 1 to 100, explains the difference between “eins” and “ein,” and introduces patterns for numbers above 20. She also highlights handy resources available for download in the Better German community and previews upcoming episodes on adjectives, ordinal numbers, and dates. This episode is perfect for beginners or anyone wanting to brush up on their German number skills.

In this episode of Better German, Susi Blumel helps you start using color words in real sentences. You’ll learn how to ask, What color is...? and how to answer with simple phrases. You can also get a free PDF with all the examples—available in the Better German Community, a friendly place to learn and practice together. It’s a fun and easy way to start speaking more German!

In this episode of Better German, host Susi Blumel explores the often confusing concept of “false friends”—German words that look or sound like English ones but mean something entirely different. With relatable stories and examples like Gift , become , and Rat , Susi highlights how these tricky pairs can lead to misunderstandings. She shares practical tips for spotting and mastering false friends, including smart vocabulary-building strategies and the importance of a good dictionary. The episode also gives a shoutout to the free Better German Community—which is completely free to join and is an encouraging space for learners to connect and keep growing!✨ Join The Better German Community       Think you’re “bad at languages”? You’re not—the method was just wrong. Join the Better German Community and learn German in a way that finally makes sense.📰  Sign Up for Our Newsletter        Get Tips & Updates Straight To Your Inbox!🌍 Explore Our Podcast Episodes      New to the podcast? Head over to our podcast homepage to find other episodes you’ll love.💬 Come See Our Approach For Yourself      We believe in real understanding, not just memorizing grammar rules—come see how we do in this YouTube Video.🎓 Ready to take your German to the next level?        Click here to book your free first session and let’s get started! Find out which course is right for you!      Whether you’re just starting or want to finally feel confident speaking German, we’ll build a personal learning path that fits you.📲 Stay Connected and Follow Us On:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bettergermanonline/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bettergerman.infoYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Better-GermanTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@susibettergermanPinterest: https://de.pinterest.com/susibettergerman/⭐ Enjoyed this episode?      If you liked what you heard, give us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or share it with a fellow learner!

In this episode of Better German teaches listeners the German words for basic colors. She shares updates about her teaching, new online courses, and the free Better German community. Susi provides a clear, repeat-after-me pronunciation guide for a range of color words, tips for memorizing and practicing vocabulary, and practical exercises to help learners integrate these new words into everyday use. Bonus resources, including a handy printable PDF with color vocabulary, are available in the Better German community which is completely free to sign up.

In Episode 39 of the Better German Podcast, host Susi Blümel returns from a break to introduce the Better German Community—a new space created for German learners. The community offers courses, but also a range of resources, including live Zoom classes on vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, conversation, and fluency, along with a MatchUp feature to connect learners for practice. In this episode, Susi dives into the importance of conversation practice in learning German, sharing practical tips on how beginners can start with a study partner. She also emphasizes the value of keeping early conversations correction-free to build confidence and make learning enjoyable. Additionally, Susi invites listeners to join one of her free Zoom conversation classes to put these skills into action. The next episode will focus on German pronunciation—stay tuned!

In episode 38 of the Better German Podcast, host Susi Blumel introduces an upcoming German beginner course and discusses a new frequency for podcast episodes. The main focus of the episode is a word list covering family members in German, with translations and helpful illustrations. Learn German repeating those words! Here you can get the list of words used with translation and an illustration.

Episode 37 is the third and final part of a mini-series introducing German cases. It briefly recaps the first two episodes, which covered the definition and importance of cases, names of cases, and how verbs determine cases. The focus of this episode is on how German prepositions determine cases, with examples provided for clarity. It also explains special prepositions that require different cases depending on context. Get the free PDF German Case Essentials here.

In this episode, you will learn the names and basic usages of each of the four cases of the German language.

In episode 35 of the Better German Podcast, I am going to give you an introduction to German cases. And we are discussing here the very basics - what are cases at all? Why do we have them? Other languages get along just fine without them, so what are they really? 

This episode of the Better German podcast provides a comprehensive guide for travelers to German-speaking countries, focusing on essential German words, tips for accommodations, supermarkets, pharmacies, public transport, entertainment options, and restaurants.  Download the free PDF with the words here.