German · A1 · Family moment
Bath time in German
Simple German phrases for bath time, from warm water to pyjamas. Practise gentle instructions for one child using informal commands.
What you'll learn
- Use eight everyday bath-time phrases.
- Give simple instructions to one child.
- Recognise words for washing, body parts and bath-time items.
- Use bitte to make a request more polite.
German phrases for bath time
Badezeit!
Bath time!
A cheerful way to announce a bath.
Das Wasser ist warm.
The water is warm.
Wasser takes the article das.
Wasch dir die Hände.
Wash your hands.
For one child. German commonly uses dir and the definite article with body parts.
Mach die Augen zu.
Close your eyes.
A natural everyday command. The verb zumachen splits into mach … zu.
Hier ist dein Handtuch.
Here is your towel.
Dein means 'your' when speaking informally to one person.
Bitte nicht spritzen.
No splashing, please.
A short, common request. Bitte means 'please'; nicht means 'not'.
Du riechst so gut.
You smell lovely.
A warm, natural compliment after a bath.
Als Nächstes kommt der Schlafanzug.
Pyjamas next.
Literally, 'Next comes the pyjama suit.' Schlafanzug is singular in German.
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
die Badezeit
bath time
German nouns begin with a capital letter.
das Wasser
water
Usually used without a plural.
warm
warm
In Das Wasser ist warm, warm has no added ending.
waschen
to wash
The command for one child is Wasch!
die Hand / die Hände
hand / hands
The plural adds an umlaut and -e.
das Auge / die Augen
eye / eyes
The plural adds -n.
das Handtuch
towel
Use dein Handtuch for 'your towel'.
spritzen
to splash
Used here for splashing water.
riechen
to smell
With du, the form is riechst.
der Schlafanzug
pyjamas
One set of pyjamas is singular in German.
Commands for one child
Use the informal singular imperative when giving a child an instruction. Usually leave out du. Many commands use the verb stem. With separable verbs, the prefix goes at the end.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| waschen → wasch | Wasch + rest of instruction | Wasch dir die Hände. |
| zumachen → mach … zu | Mach + object + zu | Mach die Augen zu. |
| Add please | Bitte + command | Bitte mach die Augen zu. |
Short requests with bitte nicht
Bitte nicht followed by an infinitive is a common way to ask someone not to do something. This pattern works for one child or several people.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| No splashing | Bitte nicht + spritzen | Bitte nicht spritzen. |
| No running | Bitte nicht + rennen | Bitte nicht rennen. |
Body parts in washing instructions
German often uses dir plus a definite article when telling someone to wash their own body parts. Dir shows whose body is involved, so 'your hands' becomes dir die Hände rather than deine Hände.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Hands | dir + die Hände | Wasch dir die Hände. |
| Face | dir + das Gesicht | Wasch dir das Gesicht. |
More examples
Komm bitte ins Bad.
Come into the bathroom, please.
Komm is the command form of kommen for one child.
Wasch dir das Gesicht.
Wash your face.
Das Gesicht means 'face'.
Mach die Augen auf.
Open your eyes.
Aufmachen splits into mach … auf.
Nimm dein Handtuch.
Take your towel.
Nimm is the irregular command form of nehmen.
Zieh deinen Schlafanzug an.
Put on your pyjamas.
Anziehen splits into zieh … an. Masculine dein becomes deinen for the direct object.