German question

jim   Fri May 05, 2006 11:29 pm GMT
what is the proper polite way in greeting a senior in german?
Ganadege Frau (sp?) means madame but i heard no one uses this anymore.

To a senior male, you would say "mein herr"

to an elderly women, how would you greet them? "mein frau"?
Fredrik from Norway   Sat May 06, 2006 12:49 am GMT
Gnädige Frau = mylady = old-fashioned

Mein Herr, meine Frau = OK, but sounds old-fashioned.
And note that "meine Frau" also means "my wife"!

The best way is probably:
Herr Müller! / Frau Müller! or
(Mein) lieber Herr Müller / (meine) liebe Frau Müller = (My) dear Mr./Mrs. Müller.
Fredrik from Norway   Sun May 07, 2006 2:40 am GMT
No good suggestion for that case.
yat   Sun May 21, 2006 2:26 pm GMT
i hear many times germans speaking, at the end of a sentence they say "oder". what does this mean when they add this at the end?
Fredrik from Norway   Sun May 21, 2006 3:03 pm GMT
"Oder" means "or".
Adding an "oder?" at the end of the sentence is equivalent of English speakers saying "isn't it?" or "don't you think?", as a way of politely seeking consensus with the conversation partner.
yat   Mon May 22, 2006 3:57 pm GMT
thanks fredrik.

another question.

the word 'also' is used alot as well. What does this meaning and in context of a sentence?
Fredrik from Norway   Mon May 22, 2006 6:23 pm GMT
"Also" means "so":

Also, gehen wir, oder? = So, are we going, or?

Du bist also nur neugierig. = So you are just curious.
hi   Sun May 28, 2006 2:53 pm GMT
menschen and leute means people, are they used in different contexts?
Fredrik from Norway   Sun May 28, 2006 5:19 pm GMT
Menschen = Humans
Alle Menschen haben das Recht auf....= All humans have the right to...

Leute = People, guys
Es stehen einige Leute da drüben = Some people are standing over there.
Viele Leute waren gekommen = A lot of people had come.

Volk = People as a nation
Das britische Volk = The British people
Fredrik from Norway   Sun May 28, 2006 5:20 pm GMT
Menschen = Humans
Alle Menschen haben das Recht auf....= All humans have the right to...

Leute = People, guys
Es stehen einige Leute da drüben = Some people are standing over there.
Viele Leute waren gekommen = A lot of people had come.

Volk = People as a nation
Das britische Volk = The British people
hi   Sun May 28, 2006 7:12 pm GMT
i was wondering cause, during the german elections, angela merkels used a slogan : besser fur die menschen...... would that translate to better for the people or better for the humans?

i noticed sentences where menschen is used would be equal to people.
also, when beginning a letter i've seen more used Dear Leute.
hi   Sun May 28, 2006 7:24 pm GMT
what does geil mean? from leo i got all these answers, but in casual conversation when someone says geil, what doesit mainly mean?




cool adj. [coll.] geil [coll.] i
i def adj. (Amer.) [sl.] geil i
i horny adj. geil [vulg.] i
i lewd adj. geil [vulg.] i
i lustful adj. geil [vulg.] i
i phat adj. [sl.] geil [sl.] i
i prurient adj. geil [vulg.] i
i randy adj. - sexually aroused f geil [vulg.] i
i ruttish adj. geil [vulg.] i
i salacious adj. geil [vulg.] i
i voluptuous adj. geil [vulg.] i
i wicked adj. (Brit.) [sl.] geil [sl.] i
Candy   Sun May 28, 2006 7:47 pm GMT
<<but in casual conversation when someone says geil, what doesit mainly mean?>>

It usually means 'cool'. It's also often used in the sense of 'horny' but it should be clear from the context which one is meant! ;)
dds   Sun May 28, 2006 7:56 pm GMT
ich bin sehr geil!
Guest   Sun May 28, 2006 7:57 pm GMT
>>besser fur die menschen...... would that translate to better for the people or better for the humans?<<

I dunno. I would translate that more to mean, better for mankind!