German · A1 · Milestone
Three-quarter milestone in German
Celebrate the three-quarter milestone by reviewing familiar German questions, kind wishes and simple instructions for everyday moments with your child.
What you'll learn
- Ask simple questions about pain, age, feelings and time.
- Give gentle instructions using the informal du form.
- Use a friendly wish and a short everyday reply.
German phrases for three-quarter milestone
Wo tut es dir weh?
Where does it hurt?
Use this to ask your child where they feel pain. Dir means “you” here.
Wie alt bist du?
How old are you?
German uses “How old are you?”, just like English.
Hab einen schönen Tag!
Have a lovely day.
A warm, informal wish to one person.
Warum weinst du?
Why are you crying?
Weinst can mean “cry” or “are crying.”
Rühr langsam.
Stir slowly.
A simple instruction for cooking together. Rühre langsam is also correct.
Wie spät ist es?
What time is it?
The usual everyday question for asking the time.
Noch nicht.
Not yet.
Use this when something has not happened or is not ready yet.
Schau dir den Baum an.
Look at the tree.
A natural way to draw your child’s attention to a tree.
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
wehtun
to hurt
A separable verb: Wo tut es dir weh?
alt
old
Use wie alt to ask someone’s age.
der Tag; die Tage
day
Masculine noun. In the wish, use einen schönen Tag.
weinen
to cry
With du: du weinst.
rühren
to stir
The informal instruction is Rühr! or Rühre!
langsam
slow; slowly
German uses the same form to describe a thing or an action.
spät
late
Wie spät ist es? literally asks “How late is it?”
noch nicht
not yet
Learn these two words together as a useful reply.
der Baum; die Bäume
tree
Masculine noun. The plural adds an umlaut and -e.
anschauen
to look at
A separable verb: Schau dir den Baum an.
Questions with question words
Start with the question word or phrase, then put the conjugated verb before the subject.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Wo + verb + subject | Wo tut es dir weh? |
| How old | Wie alt + verb + subject | Wie alt bist du? |
| Why | Warum + verb + subject | Warum weinst du? |
| Time | Wie spät + verb + subject | Wie spät ist es? |
Informal instructions and wishes
When speaking to one child, use the informal singular imperative. Usually leave out du. With separable verbs, the prefix goes at the end.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Instruction | rühren → Rühr! | Rühr langsam. |
| Friendly wish | haben → Hab! | Hab einen schönen Tag! |
| Separable verb | anschauen → Schau … an! | Schau dir den Baum an. |
Masculine objects
A masculine noun used as a direct object takes den instead of der, or einen instead of ein. This form is called the accusative.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| The tree | der Baum → den Baum | Schau dir den Baum an. |
| A lovely day | ein schöner Tag → einen schönen Tag | Hab einen schönen Tag! |
More examples
Wie alt bist du? – Ich bin vier Jahre alt.
How old are you? – I am four years old.
Use sein (“to be”) to give your age.
Wie spät ist es? – Es ist drei Uhr.
What time is it? – It is three o’clock.
For a whole hour, use Es ist + number + Uhr.
Bist du fertig? – Noch nicht.
Are you finished? – Not yet.
Noch nicht works as a short reply on its own.