Austrian and Swiss Standard German
The three standard varieties of German: vocabulary, Swiss ss for ß, a few grammar differences, and greetings.
Part of the free C1 German course. Press the speaker next to an example to hear it.
German is a pluricentric language: Germany, Austria and Switzerland each have their own standard variety, with its own dictionaries and its own correct forms. Austrian and Swiss Standard German are not dialects (for those, see Recognising dialects: Bavarian, Swabian, Saxon, Berlin, Swiss German); they are what newspapers, schools and news readers use there. This course teaches German as used in Germany, but every form in this lesson is correct.
Vocabulary
| Germany | Austria | Switzerland | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Januar | Jänner | Januar | January |
| Kartoffel | Erdapfel, Kartoffel | Kartoffel | potato |
| Tomate | Paradeiser, Tomate | Tomate | tomato |
| Sahne | Obers, Schlagobers | Rahm | cream |
| Quark | Topfen | Quark | quark |
| Aprikose | Marille | Aprikose | apricot |
| Brötchen | Semmel | Brötchen, Weggli | bread roll |
| Fahrrad | Fahrrad, Radl | Velo | bicycle |
| Abitur | Matura | Matura, Matur | school-leaving exam |
| Krankenhaus | Spital, Krankenhaus | Spital | hospital |
| Bürgersteig | Gehsteig | Trottoir | pavement |
| Treppe | Stiege | Treppe | stairs |
| parken | parken | parkieren | to park |
| grillen | grillen | grillieren | to grill |
- In Wien sagt man Jänner statt Januar.In Vienna they say Jänner instead of Januar.
- Die Marillenknödel schmecken mit Schlagobers am besten.Apricot dumplings taste best with whipped cream.
- In Zürich fahren viele Leute mit dem Velo zur Arbeit.In Zurich lots of people cycle to work.
- Nach der Matura hat sie ein Jahr in Salzburg gearbeitet.After her school-leaving exams she worked in Salzburg for a year.
Spelling: no ß in Switzerland
Swiss Standard German (and Liechtenstein) does not use ß at all. It always writes ss: Strasse, gross, Fuss, heissen. Context resolves the rare ambiguity (in Massen can mean "in moderation" or "in masses").
- In der Schweiz schreibt man kein Eszett.In Switzerland people don't write ß.
Grammar
- In Austria, Switzerland and southern Germany, sitzen, stehen, liegen form the perfect with sein: Ich bin gesessen.
- Some genders differ: das E-Mail and das Cola in Austria and Switzerland (das Cola also in southern Germany), die E-Mail and die Cola in Germany.
- Swiss Standard German has its own verbs in -ieren: parkieren, grillieren.
- Ich bin den ganzen Tag im Büro gesessen.I sat in the office all day.
- Wo kann man hier parkieren?Where can you park here?
Greetings
| Region | Hello | Goodbye |
|---|---|---|
| northern and central Germany | Guten Tag, Hallo, Moin (north) | Tschüss, Auf Wiedersehen |
| southern Germany and Austria | Grüß Gott, Servus (informal) | Servus, Auf Wiedersehen, Pfiat di (dialect) |
| Switzerland | Grüezi (formal), Hoi, Sali (informal) | Uf Wiederluege, Ade, Tschüss |
Servus is both hello and goodbye among friends. In Switzerland, Merci is the everyday word for thanks.
- Grüß Gott, was darf es sein?Good day, what can I get you?
In exams and in this app, Austrian and Swiss forms count as correct. Just stay consistent within one text.
Common mistakes
- Correcting an Austrian's Jänner or a Swiss parkieren. They are standard, not errors.
- Mixing varieties in one text:
Ich parkiere vor dem Spital und kaufe Paradeiser.(Swiss and Austrian at once sounds patchy.) - Greeting your new boss in Hamburg with Servus: it is informal and southern.
- Writing ß in a text for a Swiss publication.
- Thinking Swiss Standard German is Swiss German dialect. The dialect (Schweizerdeutsch) is spoken; the standard is written.
Practice
- A Viennese menu offers „Paradeisersuppe“. What is it?Options: Tomato soup · Paradise soup · Potato soup
Show the answer
Tomato soup — Paradeiser is the Austrian word for tomato.
- In Österreich heißt der erste Monat des Jahres _____.
Show the answer
Jänner — Austrian Standard German: Jänner.
- How is Straße written in Swiss Standard German?Options: Strasse · Strase · Straße, as in Germany
Show the answer
Strasse — Swiss Standard German always writes ss for ß.
- What is the Austrian word for a bread roll?Options: Semmel · Brötchen · Schrippe
Show the answer
Semmel — Semmel in Austria (and Bavaria); Brötchen in most of Germany; Schrippe in Berlin.