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How to Say ‘I like cooking and I'm learning German right now.’ in German

Ich koche gern und lerne gerade Deutsch.

ikh KOH-kheh gehrn oont LAIR-neh guh-RAH-duh doytch

[ikh KOH-kheh gehrn oont LAIR-neh guh-RAH-duh doytch]

🇩🇪 In Germany: Mentioning you're learning German is a good icebreaker. Many Germans will happily help, though some will switch to English, and you can politely ask them to stay in German.

Phrase Breakdown

Ich koche gern

ikh KOH-kheh gehrn

I like to cook

Verb plus 'gern' expresses a hobby. Use a throaty 'ch' in 'koche'.

Example

Ich koche gern für Freunde.

I like cooking for friends.

Words in this phrase

Ich

[ikh]

The pronoun 'ich' in nominative form.

Example

Ich bin da.

I am here.

koche

[KOH-kheh]

cook

'Ich' form of 'kochen' (to cook).

Example

Ich koche gern Pasta.

I like cooking pasta.

gern

[gehrn]

like to (do), enjoy

Used after a verb to say someone likes doing something; 'gern spielen' means to like playing.

Example

Sie malt gern mit Farben.

She likes painting with colors.

und lerne gerade Deutsch.

oont LAIR-neh guh-RAH-duh doytch

and I'm currently learning German.

'gerade' means 'right now' and expresses an ongoing action. 'Deutsch' sounds like 'doytch'.

Example

Ich lerne gerade Spanisch.

I'm currently learning Spanish.

Words in this phrase

und

[oont]

and

A conjunction used to connect sentences or elements in a sentence.

Example

Und ich freue mich.

And I am happy.

lerne

[LAIR-neh]

learn, am learning

First-person form of 'lernen' (to learn, study).

Example

Ich lerne jeden Tag neue Wörter.

I learn new words every day.

gerade

[guh-RAH-duh]

currently; right now

Indicates that something is the case at the present moment.

Example

In Es gibt gerade ähnliche Stellen. bedeutet gerade „im Moment“.

In 'Es gibt gerade ähnliche Stellen.' 'gerade' means 'at the moment'.

Deutsch

[doytch]

German

The German language; written with a capital letter as a noun.

Example

Deutsch ist eine schöne Sprache.

German is a beautiful language.

Guides for German learners

Duolingo vs Pimsleur: Tapping on a Screen or Talking Out Loud?Duolingo vs Pimsleur: five minutes of tapping versus thirty minutes of speaking. What each is good at, what each costs, and which to pick for your goal.

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