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Extra tips at EC Cambridge! Today for German Speakers

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Often by changing just one letter you can transform a German word into English. Here are a few examples:

Example:K       becomes      Ch                  Kalk/Chalk

                 Z        becomes       T                    Zoll/Toll

                  D       becomes      Th                  Danke/Thanks

                 SS      becomes       T                   Wasser/Water

                 Y        becomes       F                    Volk/Folk

                 Pf       becomes      P                    Pfad/Path

Likewise many word endings also follow similar patterns:

Example:   +fach       becomes      +fold              Zweifach/Twofold

                   +nis          becomes      +ness            Wildernis/Wilderness

                   +ung         becomes      +ing              Endung/Ending

                   +voll         becomes      +ful               Wundervoll/Wonderful

                   +los          becomes      +less             Hofnungslos/Hopeless

 

Beware False Friends!

  1. 1.     “+heit (hood)/+keit(hood)/+nis(ness)”    often match, but NOT ALWAYS

Example:“Bruderschaft”     is   “brotherhood”

“Freundtichkeit”   is  “Friendliness”

  1. 2.     Over the centuries some common everyday words have changed meanings

Example:    Klein (small)            Clean (not dirty)

Lust (desire)            Lust (sexual desire)

  1. 3.     Lastly for some strange reason some word components are reversed

Example:    Stillstand    –   Standstill

 

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