Describing Activities and Professions

In German, professions and work-related activities are often discussed using specific terms. If you want to say you work, use arbeiten. A Beruf is a job or profession. When discussing your career, you may refer to die Karriere. If you are describing your workplace, use der Arbeitsplatz.

At work, you interact with der Kollege (male) or die Kollegin (female), and employees can be called der Mitarbeiter or die Mitarbeiterin. If someone is learning or gaining work experience, they might do das Praktikum (an internship). When talking about your role, use words like die Position or die Stelle. For practical experience, the word die Praxis is relevant. Discussing how to reach a career goal? Use der Weg.

Examples:

• Meine Kollegin arbeitet seit drei Jahren in ihrer Position.
• Er sucht eine neue Stelle in der Praxis.
• Das Praktikum hat mir viel über die Profession gezeigt.

Describing the Work Environment

To describe your surroundings at work, use these German words to identify different items and locations. Das Büro refers to the office itself, where you might find der Computer, der Drucker, and der Laptop. People often send messages via die Email or use das Handy (mobile phone). Documents are handled with das Papier, filed in die Mappe (folder), or kept on das Regal (shelf).

Inside the office, you have das Fenster (window), das Licht (light), der Stuhl (chair), and der Tisch (table). You might keep track of events with der Kalender, work in der Raum (room), or travel through der Flur (corridor).

Examples:

• Im Büro gibt es viele Computer und Drucker.
• Mein Arbeitsplatz hat ein großes Fenster mit viel Licht.
• Die Mappe liegt auf dem Regal neben dem Kalender.

Describing Tasks and Responsibilities

To talk about what you do at work, use verbs like annehmen (to accept, answer), especially for der Anruf (a phone call). You may need to antworten (answer or reply) to emails or calls.

Die Aufgaben are your tasks, and sometimes you'll receive der Auftrag (an assignment or order) that you might auftragen (assign to others). Reporting on your work involves berichten or writing der Bericht (a report). Die Besprechung is a meeting where everyone discusses work items. Once you have completed something or need confirmation, you might need bestätigen (to confirm) or die Bestätigung (confirmation). Asking for help or a favor uses die Bitte. Responsibility at work is shown by die Verantwortung. If things go wrong, such as being verspätet (late) or having to zerstören (destroy) something, these words might be used.

Examples:

• Ich nehme jeden Anruf im Büro an.
• Die Besprechung beginnt um neun Uhr.
• Er trägt viele Aufgaben seinen Mitarbeitern auf.

Describing Communication at the Workplace

Communication is key in any work environment. Der Anruf (phone call), die Email (email), and die Nachricht (message) are typical ways to communicate. Meetings (die Besprechung) often start with die Einführung (introduction), where you might vorstellen (introduce) someone. If you meet a colleague, you may Hände schütteln (shake hands) and say willkommen (welcome).

During discussions, you might have to antworten (answer) to die Frage (question). If you have to wait, use warten. Identifying someone is identifizieren. Health-related aspects like die Halsschmerzen (sore throat) are sometimes discussed during small talk.

Examples:

• In der Besprechung stelle ich meinen neuen Kollegen vor.
• Bitte beantworten Sie die Email so schnell wie möglich.
• Wir warten auf die Bestätigung vom Chef.