German Family MembersFree Vocabulary List
Family Vocabulary
Family Members
Knowing the vocabulary for family members is important in any language, and German is no exception. It allows you to talk about your own family and share information about your relatives with others.
| German | English |
|---|---|
| die Mutter | mother |
| der Vater | father |
| der Bruder (pl.: die Brüder) | brother |
| die Schwester (pl.: die Schwestern) | sister |
| die Geschwister | siblings |
| die Eltern | parents |
| der Sohn | son |
| die Tocher | daughter |
In German, the word for "mother" is "Mutter", the word for "father" is "Vater", but using those to address your parents sounds a little bit old school. Most children call their mum "Mama" or "Mutti", while they call their dad "Papa" or "Papi".
Grandparents in German
Let's talk about grannies: Children usually call their grandparents either "Oma" or "Opa" - "Großmutter" or "Großvater" sounds a little bit formal.
| German | English |
|---|---|
| der Großvater | grandfather |
| die Großmutter | grandmother |
| der Opa | grandfather |
| die Oma | grandmother |
You could use "Großmutter" and "Großvater" when talking to a friend about your grandparents, but you wouldn"t say it to your grandpa or grandma directly - unless you're red riding hood, she does these sort of things... 🙄
Uncle & Aunt in German
"Der Onkel" & "die Tante" are also pretty easy to remember. Just like in English, you would refer to "auntie Hannah" as "Tante Hannah", or "uncle Bob" would be "Onkel Bob".
| German | English |
|---|---|
| der Onkel | uncle |
| die Tante | aunt |
Remembering the German words for nephew and niece isn't that important. Nowadays, many people also refer to their nieces & nephews simply as "Der Sohn meiner Schwester" or "Die Tochter von meinem Bruder".
| German | English |
|---|---|
| der Neffe | nephew |
| die Nichte | niece |
| der Cousin | cousin (m.) |
| die Cousine | cousin (f.) |
"Der Cousin" & "die Cousine" are more common. Luckily, they're one of the many German-English cognates, so remembering them won't be very difficult.
Comparatives
Sometimes you need to say exactly which brother you're talking about: Your older brother? The youngest son?
How would you say these things in German? Easy peasy:
| German | English |
|---|---|
| der große Bruder | ~ older brother |
| die kleine Schwester | ~ little sister |
| der älteste Sohn | oldest son |
| die jüngste Tochter | youngest daughter |