German · A2 · Family moment
Brush Beside Me in German
Use gentle German phrases to share washing, brushing and drying routines with your child. Practise mir and dir with body parts, such as die Haare (hair) and das Gesicht (face).
What you'll learn
- Describe your own care routine using ich and mir.
- Invite your child to join in using du and dir.
- Use the accusative for the body part being washed, brushed or dried.
- Use everyday care verbs, including the separable verb abtrocknen.
German phrases for brush beside me
Ich bürste mir neben dir die Haare.
I'm brushing my hair beside you.
Mir shows that you are brushing your own hair. Neben dir means 'beside you'.
Möchtest du dir auch die Haare bürsten?
Would you like to brush your hair too?
Möchtest du ...? is a gentle invitation. Dir shows that your child would brush their own hair.
Ich trockne mir das Gesicht mit dem Handtuch ab.
I'm drying my face with the towel.
Abtrocknen splits into trockne ... ab in this sentence. Mit dem Handtuch means 'with the towel'.
Du kannst dir mit meiner Hilfe das Gesicht abtrocknen.
You can dry your face with my help.
After kannst, abtrocknen stays together and goes at the end. Mit meiner Hilfe means 'with my help'.
Ich wasche mir vor deiner Mahlzeit die Hände.
I'm washing my hands before your feed.
Mahlzeit means 'meal' and is used here for your child's feed. Die Hände is the plural of die Hand.
Du kannst dir mit mir die Hände waschen.
You can wash your hands with me.
Dir refers to your child's own hands. Mit mir means 'with me'.
Ich putze mir die Zähne, während du zuschaust.
I'm brushing my teeth while you watch.
German uses die Zähne putzen for brushing teeth. After während ('while'), the verb zuschaust goes at the end.
Du reibst dir die Augen; bist du müde?
You're rubbing your eyes; are you tired?
Dir shows that your child is rubbing their own eyes. Bist du müde? gently asks whether they are tired.
Hear these phrases and practise them
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Try it free for 7 daysKey words
die Haare
hair
German commonly uses the plural Haare when talking about the hair on your head.
das Gesicht
face
Use das Gesicht with waschen or abtrocknen.
die Hände
hands
The singular is die Hand. Notice the vowel change in the plural.
die Zähne
teeth
The singular is der Zahn. For brushing teeth, use putzen.
die Augen
eyes
The singular is das Auge.
das Handtuch
towel
After mit, use the dative: mit dem Handtuch.
bürsten
to brush
Use this verb for brushing hair, but use putzen for brushing teeth.
abtrocknen
to dry; to towel dry
A separable verb: ich trockne ... ab.
die Mahlzeit
meal
Used here as a general word for your child's feed, without specifying breast, bottle or solid food.
müde
tired
Du bist müde means 'You are tired'.
Mir and dir with body parts
When you do a care action to your own body, German often uses a dative reflexive pronoun plus an accusative body-part object. Use mir with ich and dir with du. The body part normally takes a definite article rather than 'my' or 'your'.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I care for my own body | ich + verb + mir + body part | Ich bürste mir die Haare. |
| You care for your own body | du + verb + dir + body part | Du wäschst dir die Hände. |
| The body part is the accusative object | das Gesicht / die Haare / die Hände / die Zähne / die Augen | Ich wasche mir das Gesicht. |
Why mir, not mich?
The body part is what you wash or brush, so it is the accusative object. The reflexive pronoun is then dative: mir or dir. Without a separate body-part object, 'I wash myself' uses mich, and 'you wash yourself' uses dich.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Without a body-part object | mich / dich | Ich wasche mich. Du wäschst dich. |
| With a body-part object | mir / dir + accusative body part | Ich wasche mir die Hände. Du wäschst dir die Hände. |
Verb position in care phrases
In a simple statement, abtrocknen separates and ab goes at the end. After kannst or möchtest, the action verb stays in its infinitive form at the end.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Separable verb | trockne ... ab | Ich trockne mir das Gesicht ab. |
| With kannst | kannst ... abtrocknen | Du kannst dir das Gesicht abtrocknen. |
| Gentle invitation | Möchtest du ... + infinitive? | Möchtest du dir die Haare bürsten? |
More examples
Ich wasche mir das Gesicht.
I'm washing my face.
Mir refers back to ich; das Gesicht is the accusative object.
Möchtest du dir mit mir die Zähne putzen?
Would you like to brush your teeth with me?
Dir refers to your child's own teeth. Mit mir means 'with me'.
Du kannst dir die Hände mit dem Handtuch abtrocknen.
You can dry your hands with the towel.
After kannst, the complete infinitive abtrocknen goes at the end.