Untranslatable German Words

As a teacher, I have often been asked by students Miss, what does mean?

While it is my job to be able to answer that question, there are some strange, rare occasions where there is just no way that I can translate a German word into English!

The reason is that German has a fair amount of words that simply do not exist in the English language.

Are you ready to learn some weird German words?

For example, let s look at Backpfeifengesicht. A Backpfeife is a slap in the face , and Gesicht means face . Can you guess what Backpfeifengesicht means? If someone has one, it means they have a punchable face!

Another funny word is Schadenfreude. Schaden means damage , and Freude means joy . The feeling of Schadenfreude is what you feel when you are happy because someone else has suffered damage. Quite mean, isn t it?!

Finally, let s look at Kummerspeck. Literally means grief bacon and it refers to the weight you put on when we eat too much during a period of sadness or grief.

Isn t German simply fascinating?