Latest / Learn German with Fexingo / German at the Zoo - Basic Vocabulary
Transcript
- Lucas: Welcome back to Learn German with Fexingo. I am Lucas, and this is episode two fifty five. Luna: And I am Luna! It is so good to be here again. We did such a great job at the movie theater last time. Lucas: We did. Buying tickets was fun. But today we are going somewhere else entirely. We are leaving the city behind. Luna: Oh no. Are we going back to the dentist? Please tell me it is not the dentist. Lucas: No dentists today. No pain. No waiting rooms. Today we are going to the zoo. In German, that is der Zoo. Luna: Der Zoo. Yes. I love zoos. There are so many animals. Where should we start? Lucas: Let us start with the big cat. The lion. In German, the lion is der Löwe. Say it with me. Der Löwe. Luna: Der Löwe. Okay. He looks very strong. I want to know where he is sleeping right now. Lucas: Good question. To ask where something is, we use the word wo. Wo means where. So, how do we ask where the lion is? Luna: Let me try. Is it Wo ist der Löwe? Lucas: Exactly. Wo ist der Löwe? Let me say it slowly for you. Wo ist der Löwe? Luna: Wo ist der Löwe? That sounds nice. And how does someone answer that? Lucas: At the zoo, animals live in enclosures. The enclosure is das Gehege. So we say he lives in the enclosure. Er lebt im Gehege. Luna: Er lebt im Gehege. I see. So if I want to find him, I ask: Wo ist der Löwe? And then I go to his home. Lucas: Precisely. Wo ist der Löwe? Then we walk over there. Now, look at that next cage. What do you see? Luna: Oh my gosh. A huge gray animal with a long trunk. It is an elephant. In German, der Elefant. Lucas: Yes, der Elefant. And how would you describe him? He is very big. Big is groß. Can you make a sentence? Luna: The elephant is very big. Der Elefant ist sehr groß. Lucas: Perfect. Der Elefant ist sehr groß. Notice the word order stays the same. Subject, verb, description. Very steady. Luna: It feels easy when we build it step by step. Der Elefant ist sehr groß. I can remember that. Lucas: I am glad. You are doing great. Now, let us move to the water area. Look down there in the pool. Luna: Oh, look at those black and white birds sliding on their bellies. They are penguins. Der Pinguin. Lucas: Ja, genau. Der Pinguin. Now, in German, when you see an animal and want to point it out, you often use sehen. Sehen means to see. Luna: Okay. Ich sehe... I see... einen Pinguin. Lucas: Excellent. Ich sehe einen Pinguin. Try it again. Ich sehe einen Pinguin. Luna: Ich sehe einen Pinguin. It feels good to say that. Like I am actually there pointing at them. Lucas: That is the goal. You are there with me. Now, watch what the penguin is doing. Or maybe watch the rhino nearby. Luna: The rhino is eating leaves from a bush. It is chewing slowly. How do we say eat? Essen. Lucas: Yes, essen. And grass is das Gras. So, the animal eats grass. Das Tier isst Gras. Luna: Das Tier isst Gras. Tier means animal, right? So I can use that word for any creature. Lucas: Correct. Das Tier covers everything from the tiny mouse to the giant elephant. Das Tier isst Gras. Luna: Das Tier isst Gras. I like that phrase. It is so simple but so useful. Lucas: It is. Let us review what we have learned so far. We asked where the lion is. Luna: Wo ist der Löwe? Lucas: And we described the elephant. Luna: Der Elefant ist sehr groß. Lucas: And we talked about seeing the penguin. Luna: Ich sehe einen Pinguin. Lucas: And we mentioned what the animal is doing. Luna: Das Tier isst Gras. Lucas: You nailed it. Those four phrases are your toolkit for the zoo. Ask where, describe size, identify who you see, and state what they do. Luna: I feel ready to visit Berlin next week. I can finally talk about the animals instead of just pointing. Lucas: That is wonderful. And before we head home, I want to mention something important about our show. Luna: Sure. What is on your mind, Lucas? Lucas: If Fexingo has been helping you make actual progress with this language, listener support keeps it ad-free. A couple of dollars a month makes a real difference. You can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah. It really helps keep these episodes coming every single week. Thank you for listening. Lucas: Now, back to the zoo. Imagine we are walking past the giraffes. What would you say about their height? Luna: They are tall. But we haven't learned tall yet. Can we stick to what we know? Lucas: Of course. Stick to the script. What do you see near the feeding station? Luna: I see a bear. He is sitting down. So I can say: Das Tier sitzt da. Lucas: That works perfectly. Das Tier isst Gras, or Das Tier sitzt da. You are building your own sentences. Luna: It feels like magic. One day I couldn't say anything, now I am describing bears. Lucas: It is not magic. It is practice. And you are practicing hard. Let us repeat the main set one more time. Luna: Okay. Wo ist der Löwe? Lucas: Er lebt im Gehege. Luna: Der Elefant ist sehr groß. Lucas: Ich sehe einen Pinguin. Luna: Das Tier isst Gras. Lucas: Brilliant. You have got these. Keep repeating them in your head while you walk around your neighborhood. Luna: I will. Maybe I will imagine my cat is a Löwe. That might be funny. Lucas: Your cat might not appreciate that, but it is good practice. Wo ist der Löwe? Luna: He is usually on the sofa. But in German, he is im Gehege. Lucas: Exactly. Im Gehege. We will see you next time for another small step in your German journey. Luna: Bye for now! Keep practicing. Tschüss!