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| angst n. fear, anxiety, inner torment
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| autobahn n. motorway
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| bildungsroman n. novel describing personal development and formation
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| blatt n. (pl. blätter) newspaper
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| blitz n. swift action ~krieg n. war waged by surprise
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| bratwurst n. (pl. G: ~würste E: ~wursts) barbecued sausage
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| braunerde n. geological term (non-calcic brown soils)
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| dachshund n. (pl. ~hunde) short-legged breed of dog
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| delicatessen n. (abbr. deli) (G: Delikatessen) specialty food shop
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| doppelgänger n. a person of almost identical appearance but not related
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| dummkopf n. (pl. ~köpfe) moron, simpleton
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| edelweiss n. alpine flower
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| eigen(~value, ~function, ~vector) n. mathematical terms
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| ersatz n. substitute
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| fach n. a singing vocal type, e.g.: lyric, coloratura
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| fest n. (usually in compounds) abundance
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| festschrift n. (pl. festschriften) collection of learned papers, usu. honouring a colleague
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| gastarbeiter n. (pl. gastarbeiter) (lit) guest worker
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| gedankenexperiment n. thought experiment
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| gemütlich adj. cosy ~keit n. cosiness
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| gestalt n. (pl. ~en) the whole (appearance) of something
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| gesundheit n. health, here: interjection if someone sneezes
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| gneiss n. G: Gneis geological term
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| graben n. geological depression, ditch (F. Herbert, Dune)
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| glockenspiel n. musical instrument
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| hausfrau n. house-wife (usually slightly derogatory or patronising)
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| hinterland n. district behind coast or river banks
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| kaffeeklatsch n. get-together, cf. kitchen cabinet, chardonnay society
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| kaputt adj. not functioning
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| kindergarten n. day-care centre, playschool, preschool
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| kitsch n. without artistic taste, corny
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| kummerbund n. waist-band worn under tuxedo
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| lederhosen n. shorts made from leather
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| leitmotiv n. (also–but not in G.) leitmotif musical theme, esp. with Wagner
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| lied n. (pl. ~er) song, esp. by Schubert
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| meister n. (usually in compounds) expert
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| milch n. milk, only in milch cow
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| nix adv. nothing, for free
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| panzer n. tank
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| poltergeist n. makes things go bump in the night
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| putsch n. insurrection
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| realpolitik n. politics of the possible
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| Reich (3rd) n. period of the Nazi regime (1933-45)
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| riesling n. dry white wine
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| rucksack n. (pl. G: ~säcke E: ~sacks) bag with harness carried on one's back
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| sauerkraut n. fermented cut cabbage
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| schadenfreude n. delight about someone else's misfortune
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| schlepp (G: schleppen) v. to drag around
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| schlieren n. streaks, esp. to describe geological formations
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| schmalz n. sickly sentimentality
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| schnaps n. (E: schnapps) type of gin, strong liqueur, spirits
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| schnitzel n. meat cut
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| schuss n. downhill ski run
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| sitzprobe n. rehearsal of a musical stage work where singers are sitting and without costumes
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| spiel n. smooth talk for the purpose of selling, cheating, seducing
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| sprechgesang, sprechstimme n. intoned speech with melodic contours
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| strafe v.(!) 1. cover with gun fire, 2. slide sideways in computergames
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| strudel n. dessert, cake
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| stumm adj. mute
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| sturm und drang late 18th century novel style
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| torschlusspanik n. sense of panic in middle-age brought on by the feeling that life is passing you by (Weird and Wonderful Words, Eric McKean, OUP)
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| über- adj. (mostly spelt uber) over as in Overlord (cf. meister)
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| umlaut n. diacritical vowel
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| urtext n. original, authorised text
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| verboten adj. prohibited
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| wanderlust n. fond of walking/hiking
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| weltanschauung n. world view, philosophical stance
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| weltschmerz n. depression
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| windjammer n. large sailing ship
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| wunderkind n. exceptionally gifted child
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| zeitgeist n. societal attitude, spirit of the times
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| zugzwang n. in chess: a player is forced to move, but any move will be disadvantageous
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