German likes and dislikes
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This short lesson will teach you how to give your point across using like, dislikes and prefer. We will learn when and how to use them using theory, examples and exercises. When refering to something you like, dislike or prefer it is important to know if you are talking about a noun or a verb.
Nouns
In regards to nouns, when you want to say you like something you will use 'ich mag' and for dislikes you will simply add 'keine' this then becomes 'ich mag keine'. To say you prefer somthing you need to use 'lieber' and to say you like something the most you would use 'am liebsten'. Have a look at the example below.
- Ich mag Kleidung (I like clothes)
- Ich mag keine Röcke (I don't like skirts)
- Ich trage/kaufe lieber Markenkleidung (I prefer to wear/to buy brand name clothes)
- Ich trage/kaufe am liebsten Jeans (I like to wear/to buy jeans the most)
You can also use 'haben' for general likes and dislikes. Check down below for examples.
- Ich habe Fussball gern. (I like football)
- Ich habe Julia am liebsten. (I like Julia most of all)
- Ich habe das Restaurant nicht gern. (I dont like the restaurant)
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Verbs
In regards to verbs, if you want to say you like doing something you need to modify or conjugate the verb and add 'gern'. For dislike you have to put 'nicht' in front of 'gem'. For preferences and mostly liked you can add 'lieber', 'liebsten' or 'keine' to them. Check down below for a few examples.
- Ich schwimme gern (I like swimming)
- Ich singe nicht gern (I don’t like singing)
- Ich lese lieber (I prefer reading)
- Ich fahre am liebsten Rad (I like cycling the most)
German opinion phrases - 3 steps
1. Asking for someone's opinion
When speaking German, there are many ways you can ask for someone's opinion. The best thing about these questions is that they are very easy to remember. Check below for a few examples, sit back and practise saying them over and over again.
- Was ist deiner Meinung nach…? What’s your opinion about…?
- Wie findest du…? How do you find…?
- Was ist deine Ansicht über…? What is your view on…?
Was denkst du über…? What do you think about…?
Was denkst du darüber? What do you think about it?
Note! you will come across this structure many times in German, it only takes some practise.
2. Expressing a view
You may sometime find yourself being the person receiving the above questions. You need to be to to respond with words instead of just nodding along. Below are common replies you would use.
- Ich meine/Ich finde… I think…
- Meiner Meinung nach… In my opinion…
- Ich bin überzeugt, dass I’m convinced, that…
- Ich bin dagegen. I’m against it.
3. Agreeing with others
The following are expressions are not popular in the German language, you wont hear them so often in meetings or group discussions between Germans. However they happen to be useful for getting somene to listen to you without saying much.
- Ich stimme dir zu. I agree with you.
- Du hast (vollig) recht. You’re (completely) right.
- Ich bin einverstanden. I agree.
- Das stimmt. That’s right.
- Ich bin der gleichen Meinung. I agree (Literally: I am of the same opinion)
We hope you have enjoyed the lesson and you have learned how to express yourself in German in many different ways.