German · A1 · Family moment
A Little Ouch in German
Use these gentle questions to help your child tell you what hurts. German uses wehtun to mean “to hurt.”
What you'll learn
- Ask your child where it hurts.
- Name common body parts in German.
- Recognize the question pattern “Tut dir … weh?”
German phrases for a little ouch
Wo tut es dir weh?
Where does it hurt?
Wo means “where.” Your child can answer with words or point to the sore spot.
Tut dir der Kopf weh?
Does your head hurt?
Der Kopf means “the head.”
Tut dir der Bauch weh?
Does your tummy hurt?
Der Bauch is the everyday word for “tummy” or “belly.”
Tut dir das Knie weh?
Does your knee hurt?
Das Knie means “the knee.” The initial k is pronounced.
Tut dir der Fuß weh?
Does your foot hurt?
Der Fuß means “the foot.” The letter ß sounds like “ss.”
Tut dir der Arm weh?
Does your arm hurt?
Der Arm means “the arm.” German nouns always begin with a capital letter.
Tut dir der Rücken weh?
Does your back hurt?
Der Rücken means “the back.”
Tut dir der Wackelzahn weh?
Does your loose tooth hurt?
Der Wackelzahn is a child-friendly word for a loose or wobbly tooth.
Hear these phrases and practise them
Tildi plays every phrase out loud, tests you in five-minute lessons and builds them into bedtime stories from your own picture books.
Try it free for 7 daysKey words
der Kopf
head
Learn the noun together with its article, der.
der Bauch
tummy; belly
A natural word to use with children.
das Knie
knee
This noun uses das, not der.
der Fuß
foot
This is the singular form: one foot.
der Arm
arm
Spelled like the English word, but capitalized.
der Rücken
back
Keep the umlaut in ü when writing this word.
der Wackelzahn
loose tooth; wobbly tooth
Combines the idea of wobbling with Zahn, meaning “tooth.”
wehtun
to hurt
In these questions, it splits into tut and weh.
Asking where it hurts
Use “Wo tut es dir weh?” as a ready-made question. Wo means “where,” and dir refers to the child you are speaking to. The verb wehtun splits: tut comes near the beginning and weh goes at the end.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Where-question | Wo + tut + es + dir + weh? | Wo tut es dir weh? — Where does it hurt? |
| Yes/no question | Tut + dir + article + body part + weh? | Tut dir das Knie weh? — Does your knee hurt? |
Talking about someone's body
German often uses dir (“to you”) with der or das (“the”) where English uses “your.” In these questions, the body part is the subject. All the body parts here are singular, so use tut.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine noun | dir + der + body part | Tut dir der Kopf weh? — Does your head hurt? |
| Neuter noun | dir + das + body part | Tut dir das Knie weh? — Does your knee hurt? |
| A child's answer | Mein + body part + tut weh. | Mein Bauch tut weh. — My tummy hurts. |
More examples
Hier tut es weh.
It hurts here.
Your child can say this while pointing.
Mein Fuß tut weh.
My foot hurts.
Mein means “my” with all the singular body-part nouns in this guide.
Mein Knie tut nicht mehr weh.
My knee doesn't hurt anymore.
Nicht mehr means “not anymore.”