I. Theory

In German, there is a wide variety of words that look and sound similar to words we have in English. When these words share a common meaning in both languages, they are known as cognates. However, words that look similar and don’t have the same meaning are known as false cognates or falsche Freunde.

In the following examples, we see that the meaning of the German words in question are not what they seem.

Sie kritisierte ihn auf eine freundliche Art. She gave him criticism in a friendly way. Hast du Jura an der Hochschule studiert? Did you study law at university? Meine Großeltern besitzen ein Haus am See. My grandparents own a house on the lake.

II. Falsche Freunde

This lesson will focus on four false cognates: Art, Hochschule, See and Lokal. For each false cognate, the English definition is provided along with the word it may be confused with. The word in parenthesis is the correct German word for the word in quotation marks.

Art: sort/kind/way, not “art” (Kunst)

Diese Art Jacke steht dir wirklich gut. This kind of jacket really suits you. Kinder lernen auf eine spielerische Art. Children learn in a playful way.

Hochschule: university, not “high school” (Highschool)

Wir haben einander an der Hochschule kennengelernt. We met one another at university. Meine Schwester studiert an einer deutschen Hochschule. My sister studies at a German university.

See: lake, not “sea” (Meer)

Note: “See” can actually mean “sea”, but it generally translates to “lake”.

Es gibt mitten im Wald ein kleinen See. There is a small lake in the middle of the woods. Der See ist morgens ruhig. The lake is calm in the mornings.

Lokal: pub/restaurant, not “local” (Einheimische(r))

Sie tranken einen Cocktail im Lokal in der Nähe. They drank a cocktail at the pub nearby. Ich arbeite am Wochenende als Kellner in einem Lokal. I work as a waiter on the weekends at a restaurant.