Topic: Numbers, Time and Daily Routine

This lesson will guide you through numbers, telling time, and describing your daily routine in German. These are essential skills for everyday conversation and for understanding schedules and appointments.

🔢 Numbers (Zahlen)

First, let's master counting. The numbers from 0 to 12 are unique and must be memorized:

• 0: null
• 1: eins
• 2: zwei
• 3: drei
• 4: vier
• 5: fünf
• 6: sechs
• 7: sieben
• 8: acht
• 9: neun
• 10: zehn
• 11: elf
• 12: zwölf

Numbers from 13 to 19 follow a simple pattern: the single digit + 'zehn' (ten).

• 13: dreizehn (three-ten)
• 16: sechzehn (note: the 's' from 'sechs' is dropped)
• 17: siebzehn (note: the 'en' from 'sieben' is dropped)

The tens are also straightforward:

• 20: zwanzig
• 30: dreißig (note the unique 'ß' spelling)
• 40: vierzig
• 50: fünfzig

Now for the most important rule for numbers from 21 to 99. German reverses the order compared to English. The structure is: Unit + und (and) + Ten.

• 21: einundzwanzig (one-and-twenty)
• 35: fünfunddreißig (five-and-thirty)
• 98: achtundneunzig (eight-and-ninety)
  This might feel unusual at first, but it becomes natural with practice.

⏰ Telling the Time (Die Uhrzeit)

To ask for the time, you can use these questions:

• Wie spät ist es? (Literally: How late is it?)
• Wie viel Uhr ist es? (Literally: How much o'clock is it?)

There are two main ways to tell the time in German:

1️⃣ Formal Time (Offizielle Uhrzeit)
This is used in official contexts like train stations, news reports, and formal appointments. It uses a 24-hour clock.

• The structure is simple: Hour + "Uhr" + Minutes.
• 14:30 -> Es ist vierzehn Uhr dreißig.
• 08:05 -> Es ist acht Uhr fünf.
• 20:00 -> Es ist zwanzig Uhr.

2️⃣ Informal Time (Inoffizielle Uhrzeit)
This is what you will hear in everyday conversations. It uses a 12-hour clock and several key phrases.

• halb (half): This is the most important one to learn, as it means half to the next hour.
• 7:30 -> halb acht (half to eight)
• 10:30 -> halb elf (half to eleven)
• nach (past/after):
• 7:10 -> zehn nach sieben (ten past seven)
• vor (to/before):
• 7:50 -> zehn vor acht (ten to eight)
• viertel (quarter):
• 7:15 -> viertel nach sieben (quarter past seven)
• 7:45 -> viertel vor acht (quarter to eight)

☀️ Daily Routine (Der Tagesablauf)

Now, let's combine time with activities. To talk about when you do something, you use the preposition um (at) for specific times.

• um + Time
• Example: Ich stehe um sieben Uhr auf. (I get up at seven o'clock.)

Here is key vocabulary for daily activities. Many of these are separable verbs (trennbare Verben), where the prefix moves to the end of the sentence.

• aufstehen (to get up) -> Ich stehe um 7 Uhr auf.
• frühstücken (to have breakfast) -> Ich frühstücke um halb acht.
• anfangen (to begin/start) -> Die Arbeit fängt um 9 Uhr an.
• einkaufen (to go shopping) -> Ich kaufe am Nachmittag ein.
• fernsehen (to watch TV) -> Ich sehe am Abend fern.
• schlafen gehen (to go to sleep) -> Ich gehe um 23 Uhr schlafen.

To talk about general parts of the day, you use the preposition am (on/in the).

• am Morgen (in the morning)
• am Vormittag (in the late morning, before noon)
• am Mittag (at midday/noon)
• am Nachmittag (in the afternoon)
• am Abend (in the evening)
• in der Nacht (at night - note the different preposition and article!)

Example Sentences:

• Am Morgen trinke ich einen Kaffee. (In the morning, I drink a coffee.)
• Um wie viel Uhr fängt der Kurs an? (At what time does the course start?)
• Der Kurs fängt um 18 Uhr an. (The course starts at 18:00.)