For this episode we're heading to northern Switzerland, the location of the impressive Rheinfall waterfall. You'll learn all about this natural wonder and practise your German at the same time. Andrea also answers a question from listener Adebajo which concerns two very similar words: Zeichen and zeichnen . In each episode of this 10-lesson season for intermediate learners you can build your vocabulary, increase your understanding of grammar and learn to use the German language in a more natural...
Oct 25, 2019•37 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast We have a musical episode of the Coffee Break German Magazine for you today: our theme is Schlager, an immensely popular style of music with catchy melodies and happy-go-lucky lyrics. Find out more about this cultural phenomenon, and learn about reflexive verbs and using the perfect or Prteritum with als . In each episode of this 10-lesson season for intermediate learners you can build your vocabulary, increase your understanding of grammar and learn to use the German language in a more natural ...
Oct 11, 2019•40 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast Following the events of World War 2, the monumental task of clearing and reconstructing towns and cities fell to the Trmmerfrauen , literally "rubble women". In this episode of the Coffee Break German Magazine we'll look at this fascinating period of German history. In the other segments of the show, Andrea answers listener Maddie's question about compound words, and Olivera introduces an interesting idiomatic expression in the Sahnehubchen . In each episode of this 10-lesson season for intermed...
Sep 27, 2019•46 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast In episode 2 of the Coffee Break German we're heading to the Austrian capital, Vienna, where the world-famous Wiener Prater is to be found. This former hunting ground has become the hub of entertainment for Viennese families. As usual Mark and Andrea will be discussing the language featured in our text, and there's also a question from listener Rena who is looking for advice on how to help her daughter learn German. In each episode of this 10-lesson season for intermediate learners you can build...
Sep 13, 2019•42 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast The Coffee Break German team is back with a new series, the Coffee Break German Magazine. In each episode of this 10-lesson season for intermediate learners you can build your vocabulary, increase your understanding of grammar and learn to use the German language in a more natural way. This series follows on from Seasons 1 and 2 of Coffee Break German. In the first episode of the series we'll be focusing on a very important part of life in most German-speaking areas: Sunday night in front of the...
Aug 30, 2019•38 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast Coming in August 2019, the Coffee Break German Magazine will help you build your understanding of intermediate German. In each episode of the Coffee Break German Magazine you'll pick up new vocabulary, hear further examples of grammar points you already know, and learn new grammar through the discussions in each episode with teacher Andrea and learner Mark. We also need your help! In each episode of the Magazine we'll be including a question from a listener. To send us your question, head to cof...
Jul 01, 2019•7 min•Transcript available on Metacast It's time for the final lesson in our series, and the last instalment of our soap opera. Listen to the lesson to find out what comes of our friends in the Wohngemeinschaft, and whether Phillip and Hanna ever get together! As usual, the episode is rich in complex German and Andrea is on hand to help you understand everything. We hope you've enjoyed this series! This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published during 201...
Jan 21, 2019•28 min•Ep 40•Transcript available on Metacast We're back with another episode of Coffee Break German, the penultimate lesson of this season, and the penultimate instalment of our soap opera. This week Carola and Hanna are stressed about their exam preparation and enlist the help of their friend Sybille. Carola also has some words of wisdom to share with Hanna following the latest meeting with Phillip and Alex. As usual, this episode provides plenty of opportunities to investigate interesting language, including some tricky aspects of gramma...
Jan 07, 2019•26 min•Ep 39•Transcript available on Metacast In this latest episode of Coffee Break German, Alex has to deal with a break-in at the Pub this week and is being interviewed by a police officer. This gives us the opportunity to hear a different style of German, and we'll also be looking at the verb werden in detail. As usual, Andrea is on hand to explain everything. 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...
Dec 11, 2018•30 min•Ep 38•Transcript available on Metacast It's time for another episode of Coffee Break German, and another instalment of our soap opera. This time we're joining Carol, Miriam and Philip at the party where Philip is hoping to get to know Hanna a bit better. But will the arrival of Alex put a spanner in the works? As ever, the episode provides lots of opportunities to experience new and interesting vocabulary and grammar points in German, and Andrea guides us through any difficult language included. This season of Coffee Break German fea...
Nov 26, 2018•22 min•Ep 37•Transcript available on Metacast In our latest episode of Coffee Break German we're continuing our soap opera and joining Carola, Hanna and Miriam on a shopping trip. The dialogues provide an opportunity to look closely at a number of interesting language points, including the use of adjectives as nouns and the use of nouns as verbs! Andrea is on hand to explain everything to Mark and to our learners. This season of Coffee Break German features a total of 40 episodes, published every two weeks. Lessons 21-40 will be published d...
Nov 15, 2018•30 min•Ep 36•Transcript available on Metacast In this episode of Coffee Break German, the flatmates in our Wohngemeinschaft are organising a party for Carola's birthday and they're looking for the perfect location to hold the party. As usual, Andrea is on hand to help Mark and you understand everything in the conversation. 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 fr...
Oct 29, 2018•27 min•Ep 35•Transcript available on Metacast In the latest instalment of our soap opera Carola, Miriam and Phillip receive an important letter and have to decide what to do in response. This episode will allow us to experience a more formal type of written German, and Andrea is on hand to explain everything to Mark and to our listeners. 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 lik...
Oct 15, 2018•27 min•Ep 34•Transcript available on Metacast In this lesson you'll listen to the latest instalment of our soap opera in which we get to know a new character, Carola's friend Hannah. She and Phillip hit it off immediately. Andrea is on hand to help Mark - and you - understand the tricky aspects of the language contained in this episode. 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...
Oct 01, 2018•25 min•Ep 33•Transcript available on Metacast In lesson 32 of Coffee Break German Season 2, you'll listen to the next instalment of our soap opera. In this episode Phillip is looking for a part-time job and Miriam suggests that he tries to find a job in a local pub. We also meet Alex who works in the pub. Having listened to the radio play, you'll hear Mark and Andrea discuss the language featured. 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 ...
Sep 17, 2018•22 min•Ep 32•Transcript available on Metacast In lesson 31 of Coffee Break German Season 2, Andrea and Mark present the first episode of our radio play. You'll meet the characters Miriam, Carola and Phillip who are sharing a flat together in Munich. Having listened to the radio play you'll then hear Mark and Andrea talk about the language featured in the episode. 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 ...
Sep 04, 2018•25 min•Ep 31•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome to the 30th lesson in the season and it's time for some review. You won't believe how much you've learned in lessons 21-29, and in this episode Andrea and Mark will be reviewing topics such as Wechselprpositionen, relative pronouns, modal verbs, and much more! 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 ...
May 28, 2018•42 min•Ep 30•Transcript available on Metacast Coffee Break German Season 2 is all about helping you "tighten up" your German, and this episode addresses one of the trickiest aspects of German for learners. You're already familiar with prepositions, and you're already familiar with the accusative and dative case, but did you know that there is a group of prepositions which can take the accusative OR the dative, depending on the situation? By the end of this lesson all will become clear and you'll be able to make the correct decision every ti...
May 14, 2018•37 min•Ep 29•Transcript available on Metacast Coffee Break German is the course which teaches you German. Andrea is the teacher who helps Mark learn. You are the student who is learning along with Mark, and this is the lesson in which you'll learn all about relative pronouns in German! We'll learn how to use relative pronouns to combine two clauses together and how relative pronouns work with different genders and cases. All will become clear! This season of Coffee Break German features a tota...
Apr 23, 2018•36 min•Ep 28•Transcript available on Metacast In this lesson we're dealing with what, on the surface, seems like a tricky topic: the use of the verb sollen . We'll learn to use the verb in the Present and Prteritum, and we'll learn about the subtle differences of using each tense. Sollen is used to say what someone "should do", or "ought to do", and the key question involves whether or not you're being given advice, a suggestion is being made, or indeed you've already been given orders by someone else (e.g. doctor, teacher...
Apr 16, 2018•26 min•Ep 27•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 26•Transcript available on Metacast 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, Sdtirol. 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•Ep 25•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 24•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 23•Transcript available on Metacast So far in Coffee Break German we've learned to use haben , sein and some modal verbs in the Prteritum. In this lesson Andrea and Mark look at other verbs in the Prteritum 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 e...
Jan 22, 2018•30 min•Ep 22•Transcript available on Metacast In this lesson you'll learn to talk about rules and regulations in the past using the Prteritum of the modal verbs drfen and mssen. 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 recordings a...
Jan 08, 2018•28 min•Ep 21•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 20•Transcript available on Metacast In the last lesson we looked at the Prteritum, 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 Prteritum 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 knnen 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 epis...
Oct 30, 2017•25 min•Ep 19•Transcript available on Metacast 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 Prteritum , 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 e...
Oct 16, 2017•36 min•Ep 18•Transcript available on Metacast 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•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast 
