In this lesson we're tackling a tricky subject for learners of German: word order. In particular we're looking at where adverbs come "inside the Verbklammer". For this we'll be introducing you to a new concept: "Tekamolo". All will become clear in this lesson. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to benefit from lesson notes, b...
Mar 21, 2018•29 min•Season 2Ep. 26
It's time to look at reflexive verbs in the past. In this lesson you'll learn to say what you enjoyed, what you complained about and what you looked forward to, and much more besides! Julia is back with a cultural correspondent segment on an area in Italy where German is spoken, Südtirol. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to...
Mar 05, 2018•28 min•Season 2Ep. 25
In this episode you'll learn to use reflexive verbs in German. In addition to being able to talk about "washing yourself" and "scratching yourself" (among other things!), you'll also learn to talk about looking forward to things, relaxing, deciding, catching a cold, getting annoyed, remembering things and complaining! Reflexive verbs are hugely important and this lesson will equip you with everything you need to know! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published ...
Feb 20, 2018•28 min•Season 2Ep. 24
We've already covered the topic of family in Coffee Break German, but in this lesson you'll learn how to talk about your extended family, and deal with possessive pronouns in the nominative, accusative and dative cases. Is it mein, meine, meinen, meinem or meiner? By the end of this lesson, you'll know! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. I...
Feb 05, 2018•34 min•Season 2Ep. 23
So far in Coffee Break German we've learned to use haben , sein and some modal verbs in the Präteritum. In this lesson Andrea and Mark look at other verbs in the Präteritum which are not used commonly in spoken German, but you'll find them in any story you read. You'll also learn about some irregular verbs in this tense, including kommen and gehen , and Julia is on hand to tell us about two very famous German writers: Goethe and Schiller. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40...
Jan 22, 2018•30 min•Season 2Ep. 22
In this lesson you'll learn to talk about rules and regulations in the past using the Präteritum of the modal verbs dürfen and müssen. By the end of the lesson you'll know how to talk about what you were or weren't allowed to do as a child. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to benefit from lesson notes, bonus audio recording...
Jan 08, 2018•28 min•Season 2Ep. 21
This lesson marks the end of the first half of our second season of Coffee Break German. Mark and Andrea take the opportunity to review the topics covered in lessons 11 to 19 with lots of new examples, helping you build your vocabulary and practise the grammar points at the same time. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to ben...
Nov 13, 2017•33 min•Season 2Ep. 20
In the last lesson we looked at the Präteritum, the past tense form which is commonly used with verbs such as sein , haben and so on. In this lesson, we'll be taking the Präteritum a little further and learn how to talk about what we wanted to do and what we were able to do in the past, using können and wollen . This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each e...
Oct 30, 2017•25 min•Season 2Ep. 19
This episode of Coffee Break German introduces the verbs sein and haben and how they are used in the past. In fact, these verbs use a different tense, the Präteritum , or "imperfect" as it is often referred to in English. You'll learn to conjugate the imperfect of sein and haben and how to use it in a variety of situations. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to ...
Oct 16, 2017•36 min•Season 2Ep. 18
In this episode we're focusing on the use of weil with the Perfect Tense and you'll be learning to give excuses as to why you arrived late and why you haven't done your homework! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to benefit from lesson notes, bonus audio recordings and video versions of the lessons featuring 'synchronised vi...
Oct 04, 2017•26 min•Season 2Ep. 17
In this lesson we're looking further at the dative case and specifically at verbs which need the dative like geben , schicken , schenken , antworten and helfen . You'll also be learning to use the dative forms of the personal pronouns. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to benefit from lesson notes, bonus audio recordings and...
Sep 22, 2017•30 min•Season 2Ep. 16
This lesson focuses on the topic of asking questions, both "open" questions using the W Fragewörter , and more closed questions which are more likely be answered by ja or nein . You'll learn to ask questions using various words, all of which begin with the letter W, and you'll also learn to use reported speech involving questions. Julia is back with another Kulturbeitrag in which she talks about celebrating birthdays in Germany. Learn how to gossip in German! In this lesson we'll be looking at ...
Sep 04, 2017•25 min•Season 2Ep. 15
Learn how to gossip in German! In this lesson we'll be looking at reported speech and how this works with "dass". You'll learn how to say who said what to whom, of course using the correct grammatical constructions. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to benefit from lesson notes, bonus audio recordings and video versions of t...
Aug 21, 2017•25 min•Season 2Ep. 14
In this episode of Coffee Break German we'll be learning how to translate "much", "many", "some", "few", and lots more quantifying words - something learners often find difficult. By the end of this lesson you'll be able to talk confidently in German using the words viel(e), wenig(e), etwas, manche, and say how much chocolate you eat, how many glasses of water you drink, or how many portions of fruit you have. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every t...
Aug 07, 2017•27 min•Season 2Ep. 13
In this lesson of Coffee Break German we'll be taking the "dass" structures a stage further and looking at other verbs which can be used in this context. You'll learn to use a number of verbs with this structure and you'll also learn some important rules involving grammar and word order. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to ...
Jul 24, 2017•25 min•Season 2Ep. 12
In this lesson we'll be covering the topic of subordinate clauses. That sounds more complicated than it is! Basically this lesson will teach you how to make requests in German and tell people what you'd like them to do - or not do! Julia is back with another Cultural Correspondent segment and in this episode she's talking about rules and regulations in German-speaking areas. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be publi...
Jul 10, 2017•30 min•Season 2Ep. 11
In this episode of Coffee Break German you'll be amazed when you realise how far you've come, as you review everything you have learned so far in Season 2. Andrea and Mark talk about the topic from this unit such as cases and adjective agreements, adverbs, using denn and weil and making sure your perfect tense really is perfect! After listening to this lesson you will be an expert on all the language points covered so far. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, publi...
Jun 19, 2017•32 min•Season 2Ep. 10
If you've been following our Coffee Break German lessons you can now use denn to give a reason - ausgezeichnet! However, there is another word which also means "because", and that's weil , and this word brings with it some challenges regarding word order. In this lesson you'll master weil and you'll learn how to use it in a sentence and cope with the word order changes. As usual there will be lots of examples and you can work through the lesson and understand everything. This season of Coffee Br...
Jun 05, 2017•24 min•Season 2Ep. 9
In this lesson of Coffee Break German you'll learn how to give a reason - without having to worry about word order! This lesson introduces the word denn and you'll be delighted to know that it does not change the word order of your sentence. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to benefit from lesson notes, bonus audio recordin...
May 22, 2017•28 min•Season 2Ep. 8
We've dealt with the Perfect Tense using the verb haben, but there are some verbs which need to use sein as the auxiliary verb when forming the Perfect. In this lesson you'll learn which verbs take sein, and how to say where you went, when you woke up, when you were born and how you travelled. It's all about a change of place or state... Listen to the episode to understand everything! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 wil...
May 08, 2017•21 min•Season 2Ep. 7
In this lesson of Coffee Break German you'll be starting to learn to talk in the past using the Perfect Tense. This tense is formed by using a part of the auxiliary verb haben (to have) and the past participle. Andrea will explain everything you need to know, and you'll soon be saying what you did, what you cooked, what you ate and what you played yesterday, last week and 100 years ago! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 w...
Apr 24, 2017•28 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In this lesson of Coffee Break German you'll learn to talk about your hobbies and pastimes and to say when, where and how often you do these pastimes. This topic will introduce you to the concept of the Verbklammer, the "verb brackets" which surround any adverbs in your sentence. All will become clear when you listen to Andrea's explanations, and you can join Mark and practise your German in this context. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two wee...
Apr 10, 2017•27 min•Season 2Ep. 5
In this episode you'll learn to make requests using the correct adjectival forms. Join Mark and Andrea as they look at using adjectives in the accusative case with definite articles. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy each episode. If you'd like to benefit from lesson notes, bonus audio recordings and video versions of the lessons featuring 'synchronise...
Mar 27, 2017•27 min•Season 2Ep. 4
In this lesson you'll be all set for checking into a hotel - and using the correct German grammar to do so! Join Mark and Andrea as they look at the interesting topic of adjective endings in the nominative case with indefinite articles, so you'll be able to ask for "a large room, a comfortable bed and a beautiful view of the mountains"! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to th...
Mar 13, 2017•26 min•Season 2Ep. 3
How many times have you ordered a drink in a German café, or a snack in a German restaurant and you've never been quite sure about whether you're using the correct word for "a" or "the". Of course there's the gender of the word to think about, but the added complication with German is the case! This episode of Coffee Break German focuses on the Accusative case and you'll master how to use this case with both definite and indefinite articles. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of...
Feb 27, 2017•23 min•Season 2Ep. 2
In this first lesson of the new series of Coffee Break German, join teacher Andrea and her student Mark as they review the topic of nationalities and languages. This lesson introduces the fact that, unlike in English, German normally has a different word for the nationality and the language of a country. You'll also review the verbs sprechen and lernen , and the team is joined by our Cultural Correspondent Julia who's back with more cultural information about the German-speaking world. This seas...
Feb 13, 2017•26 min•Season 2Ep. 1
We have some exciting news to share ... we're delighted to announce that Coffee Break German Season 2 starts on Monday 13th February 2017 with lessons published every two weeks. Join our new teacher Andrea, learner Mark and our cultural correspondent Julia for the regular lessons and take your German to the next level! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 2018. Stay subscribed to the podcast to enjoy...
Feb 01, 2017•4 min•Season 2Ep. 1
In the final episode of this series of Coffee Break German, Mark reflects on his visit to Innsbruck and Thomas helps him talk more about things in the past in German. In this lesson you will: learn how to use the perfect tense combining the auxiliary verb haben with the past participle; find out about the perfect tense uses the auxiliary verb sein with certain verbs; learn about the simple past tense of the verb seen to talk about the past; practise different conversation...
Dec 20, 2014•18 min•Season 1Ep. 40
In this latest episode of Coffee Break German, Mark puts his German to the test as he joins some friends of Thomas as they prepare for a birthday party. In this lesson you will: review language used for talking about places; hear further examples of the use of seit to talk about how long you’ve been doing something; become familiar with more examples of the perfect tense; practise different conversational structures. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes. Stay subscr...
Dec 01, 2014•22 min•Season 1Ep. 39
It’s time for a new lesson of Coffee Break German and in this episode Mark is feeling a bit under the weather. He and Thomas visit the pharmacy for some advice. The pharmacist asks Mark if he has eaten anything strange or if he has done anything out of the ordinary, and this provides an opportunity to look at one way of talking in the past in German. In this lesson you will: practise words and phrases used when asking for advice; review language used for talking about illness and parts...
Oct 11, 2014•19 min•Season 1Ep. 38
