Asking for a day off in German

1. 1
   Urlaubstag/ˈuːɐ̯laʊ̯pstaːk/

   day offnoun

   A day on which you are on vacation.
2. 2
   beantragen/bəˈantʁaːɡən/

   to apply forverb

   To ask for something in writing.
3. 3
   genehmigen/ɡəˈneːmɪɡən/

   to approveverb

   To officially allow something.
4. 4

   Chefboss

5. 5

   Vertretungcover

6. 6

   Brückentagbridge day

7. 7

   Überstundeovertime hour

8. 8

   absprechento arrange

9. 9

   rechtzeitigin time

10. 10

    möglichpossible

The sentences3 of 10

1. Ich möchte nach dem Feiertag einen Urlaubstag nehmen.

   I would like to take a vacation day after the holiday.

2. Wo kann ich den Urlaub für nächste Woche beantragen?

   Where can I request time off for next week?

3. Können Sie mir den freien Tag genehmigen?

   Could you approve the day off for me?

Pronunciation

• Urlaubstag/ˈuːɐ̯laʊ̯pstaːk/

  The b in Urlaub sounds like a p.

• beantragen/bəˈantʁaːɡən/

  The stress falls on an, not on be.

• genehmigen/ɡəˈneːmɪɡən/

  The second e is long, and the h is not pronounced.

Good to know

Brückentag

When a public holiday falls on a Thursday, many people take the Friday off and get a long weekend. If you plan to, it is usually best to ask early.

Urlaubsantrag

Time off is usually requested in advance and has to be approved, often through a form or an online system. How exactly this works differs from company to company.

Vertretung

When you are away, a colleague usually takes over your tasks. This is often settled briefly before the time off.

Feiertag

Public holidays are days off work, but which ones exist depends on the federal state. If in doubt, check whether your location has the day off.