German At the Office Vocabulary
This set covers the vocabulary of a working day: der Schreibtisch you sit at, die Abteilung you work in, and das Projekt you're assigned to. One trap for English speakers is die Beratung, which means consultation or advice, not "berating" someone, so a Beratung is a friendly meeting, not a scolding. Another is die Kanzlei, which isn't just any office (that's das Büro) but specifically a law firm or similar professional practice.
Learn these 17 words
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All 17 words
- arbeitenA1
work
Wo arbeiten Sie? — Where do you work?
plural: die Arbeitsplätze
workplace
An meinem Arbeitsplatz fehlt ein Drucker. — There is no printer at my workplace.
plural: die Schreibtische
desk
Mein Schreibtisch steht direkt am Fenster. — My desk stands right by the window.
plural: die Büros
office
Unser Büro ist bis Dienstag geschlossen. — Our office is closed until Tuesday.
plural: die Projekte
project
Wir machen ein Projekt über Sehenswürdigkeiten in unserer Stadt. — We're doing a project about sights in our city.
plural: die Workshops
workshop
Das war ein toller Workshop. Ich habe viel gelernt. — That was a great workshop. I learned a lot.
plural: die Abteilungen
department
Meine Freundin arbeitet in der Abteilung von Frau Kaufmann. — My friend works in Ms. Kaufmann's department.
plural: die Beratungen
consultation, advice
Beratungen für Familien gibt es jeden Dienstag zwischen 14 und 16 Uhr. — Consultations for families are held every Tuesday between 2 and 4 PM.
professional, occupational
Was machen Sie beruflich? — What do you do professionally?
employ, occupy
Womit haben Sie sich bei Ihrer Arbeit beschäftigt? — What did you occupy yourself with in your work?
plural: die Sekretäre
secretary
Der neue Sekretär hat sich gestern vorgestellt. — The new secretary introduced himself yesterday.
plural: die Sekretärinnen
secretary (female)
Die Sekretärin hat die Anrufe entgegengenommen. — The secretary took the calls.
plural: die Visitenkarten
business card
Darf ich Ihnen meine Visitenkarte geben? — May I give you my business card?
plural: die Angestellten
employee / office worker / white collar worker
Der Angestellte arbeitet im Büro. — The employee works in the office.
plural: die Anweisungen
instruction / direction
Ich folgte der Anweisung des Chefs. — I followed the boss's instruction.
plural: die Arbeitsplätze
workplace
Der Arbeitsplatz war modern ausgestattet. — The workplace was equipped with modern furniture.
plural: die Kanzleien
an office / chancellory / chambers
Die anwaltliche Kanzlei befindet sich in der Innenstadt. — The law office is located in the city center.
How to learn this set
Notice that der Arbeitsplatz and der Schreibtisch are both masculine and both built around a concrete image (Arbeit = work, Platz = place; Schreiben = writing, Tisch = table), so picture the actual desk when you learn them rather than memorizing the article separately. Pair beruflich with beschäftigen when you drill them, since one describes your professional life in general and the other describes the specific act of being occupied or employed, and mixing them up is a common B1 mistake. For der Sekretär/die Sekretärin and der Angestellte/die Angestellte, always learn both the male and female form together, since German won't let you dodge the choice the way English does with "secretary" or "employee."
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Frequently asked questions
Is der Angestellte the same as der Arbeitnehmer?
Not quite. Der Angestellte is a salaried, usually white collar employee, while der Arbeitnehmer is the broader legal term for anyone employed, including manual workers. In everyday office talk, der Angestellte and die Angestellte are what you'll hear.
What's the difference between das Büro and die Kanzlei?
Das Büro is the general word for an office, any office, in any company. Die Kanzlei is a specific type of office run by lawyers, notaries, or (historically) government officials, so a law firm is eine Kanzlei, not ein Büro.
Why does der Sekretär change to die Sekretärin?
German nouns for professions usually have separate male and female forms, and -in is the standard ending you add to the masculine noun to make it feminine. So der Sekretär is a male secretary and die Sekretärin is a female secretary; the same pattern applies to der Angestellte, which becomes die Angestellte for a woman.
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