Better German Podcast
Your host Susanne Schilk-Blümel, or short Susi Blümel will teach you German and everything related to the language, the countries where German is spoken and the culture in those countries.
Episodes
October 2, 2025
In this episode of Better German, host Susi Blümel tackles one of the most essential building blocks of the language: Verbs in the present tense. Susi shows you the main patterns of regular verbs, step by step, and explains the verb endings you need to know. With easy examples, she helps you understand the rules and use them in your own sentences. By the end, you’ll see that verbs in the present are not as hard as the...
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September 18, 2025
In this episode of Better German, host Susi Blumel introduces 16 essential German describing words like big, small, old, young, and more—that bring sentences to life. You’ll also practical pronunciation tips (especially for the German r). With examples, practice sentences, and a free PDF guide, this episode sets the stage for a whole series on adjectives—helping you describe the world in German with confidence. Don't ...
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September 5, 2025 • 36 mins
In episode 43 of the Better German Podcast, host Susi Blumel breaks down everything you need to know about German numbers. She guides listeners through counting from 1 to 100, explains the difference between “eins” and “ein,” and introduces patterns for numbers above 20. She also highlights handy resources available for download in the Better German community and previews upcoming episodes on adjectives, ordinal numbe...
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In this episode of Better German, Susi Blumel helps you start using color words in real sentences. You’ll learn how to ask, What color is...? and how to answer with simple phrases. You can also get a free PDF with all the examples—available in the Better German Community, a friendly place to learn and practice together. It’s a fun and easy way to start speaking more German!
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In this episode of Better German, host Susi Blumel explores the often confusing concept of “false friends”—German words that look or sound like English ones but mean something entirely different. With relatable stories and examples like Gift , become , and Rat , Susi highlights how these tricky pairs can lead to misunderstandings. She shares practical tips for spotting and mastering false friends, including smart voca...
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July 17, 2025 • 25 mins
In this episode of Better German teaches listeners the German words for basic colors. She shares updates about her teaching, new online courses, and the free Better German community. Susi provides a clear, repeat-after-me pronunciation guide for a range of color words, tips for memorizing and practicing vocabulary, and practical exercises to help learners integrate these new words into everyday use. Bonus resources, i...
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November 21, 2024 • 20 mins
In Episode 39 of the Better German Podcast, host Susi Blümel returns from a break to introduce the Better German Community—a new space created for German learners.
The community offers courses, but also a range of resources, including live Zoom classes on vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, conversation, and fluency, along with a MatchUp feature to connect learners for practice. In this episode, Susi dive...
The community offers courses, but also a range of resources, including live Zoom classes on vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, conversation, and fluency, along with a MatchUp feature to connect learners for practice. In this episode, Susi dive...
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June 16, 2024 • 15 mins
In episode 38 of the Better German Podcast, host Susi Blumel introduces an upcoming German beginner course and discusses a new frequency for podcast episodes. The main focus of the episode is a word list covering family members in German, with translations and helpful illustrations. Learn German repeating those words! Here you can get the list of words used with translation and an illustration.
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May 30, 2024 • 14 mins
Episode 37 is the third and final part of a mini-series introducing German cases. It briefly recaps the first two episodes, which covered the definition and importance of cases, names of cases, and how verbs determine cases. The focus of this episode is on how German prepositions determine cases, with examples provided for clarity. It also explains special prepositions that require different cases depending on context...
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May 15, 2024 • 13 mins
In this episode, you will learn the names and basic usages of each of the four cases of the German language.
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May 9, 2024 • 10 mins
In episode 35 of the Better German Podcast, I am going to give you an introduction to German cases. And we are discussing here the very basics - what are cases at all? Why do we have them? Other languages get along just fine without them, so what are they really?
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May 2, 2024 • 24 mins
This episode of the Better German podcast provides a comprehensive guide for travelers to German-speaking countries, focusing on essential German words, tips for accommodations, supermarkets, pharmacies, public transport, entertainment options, and restaurants. Download the free PDF with the words here.
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April 25, 2024 • 8 mins
In this episode of the Better German Podcast , Susie Blumel goes into the topic of formal and informal communication in the German language. She explains how the usage of different forms depends on the level of familiarity with the person you are addressing, and how this can vary in social or professional settings, providing practical examples for better comprehension.
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April 18, 2024 • 17 mins
In Episode 32 of the Better German Podcast, Susi introduces and explains the meanings of typical German words like 'eh', 'jö', 'gell', 'na ja', and 'gerne'. It also touches on the Better German Academy, a project aiming to provide comprehensive learning materials for German language learners.
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April 11, 2024 • 10 mins
Welcome to Episode 31 of the Better German Podcast ! In this episode, we will talk about 'The Sound of Music' from an Austrian perspective, discussing its historical context, the impact of World War II, and the portrayal of Austrian traditions. We will go into the reason why The Sound of Music was literally successful everywhere but in Austria and Germany. But how much of The Sound of Music is actually alive? Just the...
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April 4, 2024 • 22 mins
This Episode of the Better German Podcast covers the different forms of the verb 'to be' in German, providing examples and explanations for each form. You will also hear about gender in German nouns and get information about resources for learning the language with ease.
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March 28, 2024 • 11 mins
Welcome to Episode 29 of the Better German Podcast! This episode discusses the time it takes to learn German, covering different levels of proficiency, hours of learning required on average to learn the different levels, and what to expect to be able to do when you have learned the level. If you are trying to figure out how long it will take you to reach your individual goal of learning German, this episode can help y...
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March 20, 2024 • 12 mins
In this episode of the Better German Podcast , Susi Blümel discusses the significance of practice in learning German. She stresses the need for a balance between theory and practice, providing examples and guidelines for effective practice. Susi emphasizes that consistent and substantial practice is essential for mastery of the language, and she offers practical tips for learners to improve their speaking abilities.
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March 13, 2024 • 27 mins
Hello and welcome to the Better German Podcast! In this episode, we'll discuss the most important parts of speech in the German language. Host Susi Blumel breaks down the fundamental components of language, from nouns and articles to verbs and adverbs, offering clear explanations in both English and German. By the end of this episode, you'll have a deeper understanding of these essential building blocks of German, pav...
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March 7, 2024 • 11 mins
Hello and welcome to Episode 26 of the Better German Podcast! The host, Susi Blümel, introduces the personal pronouns in the German language, including the basic translations for 'I,' 'you,' 'he,' 'she,' 'it,' 'we,' 'you' (plural), and 'they.' She explains the use of personal pronouns in relation to gendered nouns and also mentions the different forms of address in German for formal and informal situations.
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