Heading to Switzerland? Make the locals smile in appreciation as you show off your language skills. Here are the top 10 essential Swiss German phrases you need to know!
After spending an amazing weekend in Zurich a realised that the locals don’t just speak French or just German instead, they speak a wonderful mix of the two languages. With that in mind next up in my travel phrase guide series is, Swiss-German!
As you know, I’m a firm believer that learning the local language in any destination is just as important as learning its history. While we can’t all be polyglots, knowing a few choice phrases makes a load of difference when interacting with locals. Suddenly, their smiles become warmer and their eyes light up when they see you’ve made the effort to learn their language. Plus, it’s so rewarding to be able to converse in another language.
In Switzerland, they speak Swiss German, and that’s something completely different from the German spoken in Germany. Swiss German has its own pronunciation, different words, its own grammar, and most Germans have difficulty understanding it.
While the German-speaking Swiss write standard German, there is no official Swiss German language. The Swiss can speak standard German very well, but to them, it’s a foreign language which they learn in school.
With that in mind, here are 10 super useful Swiss German travel phrases.
- Hello – Grüezi
- My name is … (formal) – I heisse …
My name is … (informal) Mi name isch … - How are you? (informal) – Wie goots Ihne?
How are you? (formal) – Wie goots? - Good, thanks and you? (informal) – Dangge, guet, und dir?
Good, thanks and you? (formal) – Dangge, guet, und Ihne? - Goodbye – (Uf) Widerluege / Tschüss
- See you later – Bis spöter
- Thank you – Merci
- Thank you very much – Merci vilmal
- Enjoy your meal! – En guete
- Yes – Ja / No – Nein
Want to have fun whilst learning Swiss German? Struggling to find decent Swiss German language resources? I recommend getting uTalk. Available as a desktop site and app, uTalk is awesome for learning key words and phrases in Swiss German, especially if you want to use it for travel purposes. It’s great for beginners getting started in a language and invaluable for intermediates looking to fill in gaps in their vocabulary and pronunciation.
What I love most about uTalk is that you can jump around their extensive library of topics and choose what you want to learn, when you want, and at your own pace. Because I believe in uTalk so much, I reached out to them and we’ve teamed up to offer you an exclusive 30% OFF reader discount across all of uTalk’s 140 languages! This offer isn’t available anywhere else! Click here to claim your exclusive 30% discount.
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Learning German? Then you’ll love these…
- 13 Common German Mistakes You Make and How to Fix them Immediately
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- Is German Hard To Learn? PLUS 7 Common German Mistakes to Avoid
- German Travel Phrase Guide with Pronunciation
- When you first start out speaking a foreign language, you’ll have quite a few near misses. Sometimes you’ll translate things literally, or simply forget to apply a grammar rule. This happens with the German language and all many other languages. To learn through the power of story, check out this excellent German course with Olly Richards. For more tips, check this course on how to improve your German accent and pronunciation or this German Grammar course here.
Want to know more about learning languages? Start here!
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Over to you!
Which of these Swiss-German phrases is the most useful? What other languages would you like a travel phrase guide for? Are you planning a trip to Zurich?
Let me know using the comments section below or join me on social media to start a conversation.
Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this post.
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