German Parts of the Day Vocabulary
This set covers how German talks about the day in pieces, from mittags (at noon) to nachts (at night), plus the reach beyond today with übermorgen (day after tomorrow) and vorgestern (day before yesterday). One thing that trips up English speakers: German splits what English calls 'morning' into der Vormittag (before noon) and treats midday itself as its own reference point, so you have to think in terms of before and after noon rather than one long morning.
Learn these 13 words
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All 13 words
- abendsA1
in the evening
Abends lese ich gern ein Buch. — In the evenings I like reading a book.
- heuteA1
today
Heute ist ein schöner Tag. — Today is a beautiful day.
- morgensA1
in the morning
Morgens stehe ich um sieben Uhr auf. — In the mornings I get up at seven.
- spätA1
late
Es ist schon spät, ich muss gehen. — It's already late, I have to go.
- wannA1
when
Wann bist du fertig? — When are you done?
- mittagsA2
at noon
Mittags treffen wir uns im Restaurant. — At noon we meet at the restaurant.
- nachtsA2
at night
Nachts ist die Straße sehr ruhig. — At night the street is very quiet.
plural: die Tageszeiten
time of day
Welche Tageszeit magst du am meisten? — Which time of day do you like most?
day after tomorrow
Morgen habe ich frei. Ich komme übermorgen wieder ins Büro. — Tomorrow I'm off. I'll come back to the office the day after tomorrow.
day before yesterday
Er hat mich vorgestern angerufen. — He called me the day before yesterday.
plural: die Dämmerungen
twilight, dusk
Bei Dämmerung gehen wir spazieren. — At dusk we go for a walk.
- eherB1
rather, sooner
Ich stehe meist eher auf als mein Mann. — I usually get up earlier than my husband.
plural: die Zwielichter
twilight
Im Zwielicht zwischen Tag und Nacht ist es geheimnisvoll. — In the twilight between day and night it is mysterious.
How to learn this set
Notice that abends, morgens, mittags, and nachts all end in -s and are lowercase adverbs meaning 'in the [time period]', while their noun counterparts (der Abend, der Morgen, der Mittag, die Nacht) are capitalized. Drill these in pairs: say der Morgen ist schön, then ich lese morgens, so the pattern of noun-becomes-adverb-with-s sticks. Also pair übermorgen and vorgestern together since they mirror each other across today (heute), one step forward and one step back.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between der Nachmittag and der Vormittag?
Der Vormittag is the stretch from morning until noon, and der Nachmittag is from noon until evening. German splits the day at midday into 'before noon' and 'after noon' rather than lumping it all into one word for morning.
What is the difference between morgens and der Morgen?
Der Morgen is the noun 'the morning' and takes a capital letter, while morgens is a lowercase adverb meaning 'in the mornings' or 'every morning'. You'd say der Morgen ist kalt (the morning is cold) but ich dusche morgens (I shower in the mornings).
Is Zwielicht the same as Dämmerung?
Both can be translated as 'twilight', but Dämmerung is the everyday word for dawn or dusk, while das Zwielicht is more literary and often carries a sense of ambiguity or something being unclear, as in a 'twilight zone' of doubt.
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