German · A1 · Family moment
Evening Team Routine in German
Use short, kind German instructions to share evening responsibilities. These phrases use the informal singular imperative for speaking to one child.
What you'll learn
- Give clear instructions for everyday evening tasks.
- Use bitte to make instructions more polite.
- Recognize common imperative forms and separable verbs.
German phrases for evening team routine
Speichere dein Spiel.
Save your game.
Speichern means to save, including saving progress in a game.
Schalte das Tablet aus.
Turn off the tablet.
Ausschalten splits into schalte and aus. Put aus at the end.
Leg dein Handy hierhin.
Put your phone here.
Handy is the everyday German word for a mobile phone. Hierhin means to this spot.
Deck bitte den Tisch.
Set the table, please.
Den Tisch decken means to set the table. Bitte makes the instruction more polite.
Bring den Müll raus.
Take out the rubbish.
Rausbringen is a common everyday verb for taking something outside.
Pack deine Tasche.
Pack your bag.
Use deine with the feminine noun Tasche.
Putz dir die Zähne.
Brush your teeth.
German commonly uses dir die Zähne here rather than deine Zähne.
Geh bitte ins Bett.
Go to bed, please.
Ins Bett gehen is the usual expression for going to bed.
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
das Spiel
the game
Dein Spiel means your game.
das Tablet
the tablet
Used for the electronic device, just as in English.
das Handy
the mobile phone
A German noun, not the English adjective handy.
der Tisch
the table
Becomes den Tisch when it is the direct object.
der Müll
the rubbish; the trash
Normally used as a singular, uncountable noun.
die Tasche
the bag
A general word for a bag.
die Zähne
the teeth
The singular is der Zahn.
das Bett
the bed
Ins Bett means into bed or to bed.
Instructions to one child
Use the du imperative when speaking to one child. Start with the verb and normally leave out du. Many common forms use the verb stem; some include an ending such as -e.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| packen → pack | Pack + object. | Pack deine Tasche. |
| gehen → geh | Geh + destination. | Geh bitte ins Bett. |
| speichern → speichere | Speichere + object. | Speichere dein Spiel. |
Separable verbs
Some German verbs have a detachable first part. In these instructions, that part goes at the end.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ausschalten — turn off | Schalte … aus. | Schalte das Tablet aus. |
| rausbringen — take out | Bring … raus. | Bring den Müll raus. |
Kind instructions with bitte
Bitte means please. It can go after the imperative verb or at the end. A warm tone also helps an instruction sound kind.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| After the verb | Imperative + bitte + rest. | Deck bitte den Tisch. |
| At the end | Instruction + bitte. | Geh ins Bett, bitte. |
Talking about teeth
German often uses a reflexive pronoun and the definite article with body-care actions. In Putz dir die Zähne, dir refers back to the child and die Zähne means the teeth.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Brush your own teeth | Putz + dir + die Zähne. | Putz dir die Zähne. |
More examples
Speichere dein Spiel. Schalte das Tablet aus.
Save your game. Turn off the tablet.
Give the steps in the order the child should follow them.
Putz dir die Zähne. Geh bitte ins Bett.
Brush your teeth. Go to bed, please.
Two short instructions for the end of the evening.