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Friend vs. Boyfriend? How do you tell the difference in German? It's a little bit tricky.
When learning German, one of the mistakes and slip-ups that can happen in early conversations
have to do with the words Freund or Freundin. The problem here is that Germans use the very same word
both to refer to a friend and a romantic partner.
This can very quickly get a bit comical:
The good news is that there are some differences in the way that the words der Freund and die Freundin are
used to refer to a romantic partner versus a friend.
When the speaker uses a possessive pronoun (meine Freundin, mein Freund), they are probably talking about their girlfriend or boyfriend, and not just a friend.
So how do you distinguish the two and avoid awkward situations & infinite embarrassment in front of your secret crush?
We have two tips:
The most important things to look out for are possessive pronouns.
When referring to a romantic partner, the words der Freund and die Freundin are
often used with possessive pronouns. This means that people will say
mein Freund or meine Freundin, which means "my boyfriend" or "my girlfriend" in English.
This can be a clue that the person is talking about their romantic partner. It's not a surefire way (especially when you're talkin to non-native German speakers you cannot rely on this), but more often than not, people will talk about their partner when they use possessive pronouns.
On the flipside, when somebody says:
...this is a sure-fire indicator, that this person is a friend, and not their girlfriend.
When referring to a romantic partner, the words der Freund and die Freundin are often used with other words that indicate a
romantic relationship.
Context is key here: Paying attention to the words and phrases that are used along with these words can help you figure out whether someone is talking about a friend or a romantic partner.
When Clara says:
The context is very clearly indicating that there is a close relationship between Clara and the other person (the boyfriend), and it's not very likely that she is talking about just a friend here.
In this podcast episode, we'll share our tips on how to endure the bitter German winter. Topics include taking part in traditions like Christmas markets and Krampus walks, winter food and cozy indoor activities.
