6 Weird Questions I Have for Germans | american in germany

GERMANS!!! I have some more questions for you😁 American in Germany

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Thanks for watching! Until next time...auf Wiedersehen!!

[WantedAdventure]

Are you #TeamMayoPotatoSalad or #TeamVinegarPotatoSalad? Let me know in the comments!!😀👏🌟

[simonak]

I reach for the back because the first item is touched by a lot of other People who decided to not by it

[japunaka]

Here are my answers to the questions:
1. I always thought, that "gern" and "gerne" are the same. I don't use "gern" that often, but I hear it a lot from other people, and I'm pretty sure, you can say: "Ich esse gern Obst."
2. For me "Ami" isn't really nice, but it's no insult either. For me, it's this stereotypical American, but I think I just tell you examples of how I use this word: "Oh, guck was die Ami's jetzt schon wieder gemacht haben.", or "Jaja, so sind sie halt, die Ami's"
3. I don't eat potatoe salad.
4.Omg, I do that too, and I don't know why. I think the shops notice, but don't do anything against it. But when an employee comes, I don't do it anymore 😅Because I always think, I get in trouble for that...The one with the tissues, I don't understand. But maybe, they do it out of habit, or because they think the ones in the back, are the "fresh" ones? I don't get it
5. "glauben" can be used as "believe", and I think you can say in english:"I believe....", or not? Well, anyways, I don't know, if there is actually a difference, but I think I use "Ich glaube...", When I really want to make sure, that I don't know the truth, and that it's just my own opinion. And "Ich denke..." more, when I just recognized connection or sth.
6. I would say, they're the same, but "auf" and "ab" is more used in poetries, or children songs. Also, you can say:"Er geht den Flur auf und ab", in which the hallway is a straight stretch, and "Er geht die Treppe hoch und runter", in which the stairs are obviously an uphill stretch. I don't think, you would use "hoch und runter" in context of a straight stretch.

Now, have a wonderful day 😊

[hunzhurte]

_denken_ = to think
_glauben_ = to believe
That's all there is to it.

[Seegalgalguntijak]

I indeed found "Ami" always to be slightly derogative, still very close to being neutral (close enough to neutral so that the "Ami" doesn't need to feel insulted by it, at least if they are able to use self-deprecating humor). I also have never heard it being used on a single person, "er oder sie ist ein Ami", more like a generalization like "die Amis", actually mostly in that plural form and only very rarely in a singular form. But it's not a serious insult or anything. Oh man, language can be so extremely nuanced!

[Aine]

„Denken“ means to think, while „glauben“ means to believe. In everyday live, their use is almost interchangeable, but, strictly speaking, „denken“ implies logical reasoning, while glauben either means assuming that something is true without actual confirmation or has a religious meaning as in believing in God.

[k.schmidt]

To gern/gerne: The Duden says: "gern, auch, besonders süddeutsch: ger­ne" So the use seems to be according to region. However, I think the use in my case is governed more by the rhythm of the particular sentence. Where two syllables "sound" better, I seem to use "gerne".

[ThePixel]

Sidenote on the auf and ab: Hinauf, hinab, herauf, herab are literally a question of perspective, like if you're downstairs vs. upstairs.

[tinkerwithstuff]

"If you work in a store in Germany - do you know this is happening?" - Why THANKS a lot, Dana - now they frickin do! ;) ;)

[justdreaming]

Someone explained it to me like this once: "gern" and "gerne" are interchangeable. You can use them in the same contexts, however, in written Text "gern" would be the correct one, "gerne" is more informal speech. The same would be the case for "selbst" and "selber". Still, most people around me use "gerne" written and spoken.

[LizSlaire]

Hahaha this is so good 😂. Especially when you was talking about the „reaching really far back thing“ I couldn’t stop smiling 😂.

[OnisanT]

I often helped in my family‘s grocery store as a child and learned to put the newly arrived items in the back. Yes, we knew some people would reach back to get the freshest items. At least in that small village shop it was a minority, so the items in front would still sell more quickly, and I believe that’s true everywhere. Also, when you check for expired food, you don’t have to go all the way to the back of the shelf if the oldest stuff is in front.

[OssiEastborn]

The thing with the reaching back might have been once because of the expiration date, but today it is more because the packages in front have been touched more, might have cracks and dents. The packages in the back are usually more pristine in addition to the chance, that they expire later.
I for example, when shopping for fruits/vegetables, take them, if possible, from the box below the top box, because they usually are fresher, less dented and overall more hygienig than the ones everyone had in hand to check if they are good. Also, usually in the top box only those who are not that good are left

[beneagle]

1. “Gern” and “gerne” are interchangeable, but by getting to syllables on ger/ne I think you can put more emphasis on the word. “Ich esse gerne Obst” works fine. But I’ll use ist more or less as a remark of what I like. When someone offers me something in an informal situation with friends at the table, I think I’d use “gern”.
2. In my opinion Ami has a slight negative connotation.
3. Here in the Ruhr, potato salad is mostly made with mayonnaise, with vinegar it ist called “Bavarian potato salad.
4. I agree, that getting something from behind the front in the shelf has something to do with getting something, that not everyone has its fingers on. On the other hand, people coming later find things easier when the product is represented in front of the shelf and it helps the employees in the shop?
5. “Denken” is “to think” & “glauben” is “to believe”?
“Rauf und runter” is describing the direction of a movement, while “auf und ab” define more or less the target of the same movement. So “das ist ein ständiges rauf und runter” describes an exhausting process, while “ein ständiges auf und ab” has imho the connotation, that the same process is running without reaching the goal. Attention: “auf” can both also used like “on”. “Put the bag on the table” is “Stell die Tasche auf den Tisch!” That wouldn’t work with “rauf” though here you can sometimes hear phrases like “Stell die Tasche auf den Tisch rauf.” - so target and direction. Gets even more obvious in “Nimmst Du bitte die Tasche VOM Tisch (he-)runter. Ich brauche gerade den Platz.”

[patrickj]

It's crazy how much such (on the surface simple) questions make you think about your own language... makes you realize how little you know by actual rules, and how much your language is decided by feeling, repetition and thus familiarity.

[hansc]

Wrt getting the item farthest back on the shelf: I sometimes do this with dairy products, when I see that the front row has a BBD that’s only a couple of days in the future. But I agree, some people could’ve made a habit out if it, so they always do it. I once asked someone (couple of years ago) who was reaching for a box of rice that was in the back (and hard to get, because the shelves had just been filled up) why they were doing that, and the answer was “I want a box that hasn’t been touched by other people, without dents or damages”. So there you go, different people, different hang-ups :)

I’m Dutch, but we also have the verbs “denken” and “glauben” (geloven) and the difference is really significant: “denken” involves a thought process, where a conclusion is reached based on that process and/or supporting evidence (I’m not saying “facts” here). “Glauben” is typically something you do based on a belief, which you may have arrived at without any evidence. I agree though, that both verbs are being used interchangeably, so the distinction might be less clear in some cases.

[n.k.]

I think the thing in the supermarket with taking the furthest back is due to the fact that the once in the very front get touched by many people and therefore could be damaged. I tend to do that as well, haha😂

[jonel]

I would personally say that 'gern' and 'gerne' are totally the same. I only use 'gernE' in formal situations (eg. job interview, ...) and otherwise the shorter and better to speak version 'gern'.

[myrillya]

Gerne/Gern: is usually interchangeable. I would totally say " Ich esse gern Obst" but I usually use gerne :)
I'm from Northrine-Westphalia.
One occasion where you never say "gerne" is if you say "Gern geschehen" since it's a saying.

Ami: I would say there's a slight negative connotation. It's usually used when you talk about the stereotype American.

Potato salad: Team Mayo!

Supermarkets: I sometimes do that because sometimes the items in the front are damaged or they're tested and not completely full (like deodorant for example).

Denken/glauben: Yes, "glauben" means also "to believe"! :)

Hoch/runter & auf/ab: not always interchangeable. For example: you say "Ich gehe die Treppe HOCH" but you'd never say "ich gehe die Treppe AUF". There you'd use "Ich gehe die Treppe RAUF", while "rauf" is only an abbreviation of "hinauf".
Auf & ab can also mean something different in another context: you can walk a corridor "auf und ab". There it means that you walk from one side of the corridor to the other one and back again, like you're nervous :D

[maxwilli]

„herunter“ und „hinunter“ Do you know the diffrence? „her“ is to me. „hin“ is away from me. If I stay in the cellar then it's wrong to say: „Komm hinunter“ but the person comes to me then you have to say: „Komm herunter“