The -ieren verbs that carry the stress in German

1. 1
   telefonieren/telefoˈniːʁən/

   to phoneverb

   To talk to someone on the phone.
2. 2
   funktionieren/fʊŋktsjoˈniːʁən/

   to workverb

   To operate without a fault, the way it's meant to.
3. 3
   reparieren/ʁepaˈʁiːʁən/

   to repairverb

   To put something broken back in order.
4. 4
   passieren/paˈsiːʁən/

   to happenverb

   To take place.
5. 5
   buchstabieren/buːxʃtaˈbiːʁən/

   to spell outverb

   To say the letters of a word one by one.
6. 6
   stornieren/ʃtɔʁˈniːʁən/

   to cancelverb

   To undo a booking.
7. 7
   studieren/ʃtuˈdiːʁən/

   to studyverb

   To learn at a university.
8. 8
   spazieren/ʃpaˈtsiːʁən/

   to strollverb

   To walk slowly, for pleasure.
9. 9
   gratulieren/ɡʁatuˈliːʁən/

   to congratulateverb

   To wish someone luck on something good.
10. 10
    konzentrieren/kɔntsɛnˈtʁiːʁən/

    to concentrateverb

    To put all your attention on one thing.

The sentences

1. Ich kann mit meinem Handy leider nicht mehr telefonieren.

   Unfortunately, I can't make calls on my phone anymore.

2. Mein Handy hat gestern aufgehört zu funktionieren.

   My phone stopped working yesterday.

3. Können Sie den Bildschirm bis morgen reparieren?

   Can you repair the screen by tomorrow?

4. Ich weiß nicht, wie das passieren konnte.

   I don't know how that could happen.

5. Können Sie Ihren Nachnamen bitte buchstabieren?

   Could you spell your last name, please?

6. Kann ich den Termin morgen noch stornieren?

   Can I still cancel the appointment tomorrow?

7. Ich brauche das Handy, um online zu studieren.

   I need the phone to study online.

8. Ich gehe so lange spazieren, bis es fertig ist.

   I'll go for a walk until it's done.

9. Ich konnte meiner Mutter nicht einmal zum Geburtstag gratulieren.

   I couldn't even wish my mother a happy birthday.

10. Einen Moment, ich muss mich kurz konzentrieren.

    One moment, I need to concentrate for a second.

Pronunciation

• telefonieren/telefoˈniːʁən/

  The stress is on -nie- with a long i as in Liebe, not on the beginning.

• funktionieren/fʊŋktsjoˈniːʁən/

  The stress falls far back on 'nie', and the 'ti' sounds like a z.

• passieren/paˈsiːʁən/

  The ss is a sharp s as in Wasser, not a buzzing one.

• buchstabieren/buːxʃtaˈbiːʁən/

  Stressed on the third syllable: buch-schta-BIE-ren; the st sounds like sht, and the ch before it is the back-of-throat sound.

• stornieren/ʃtɔʁˈniːʁən/

  The st at the start sounds like scht, as in Stadt.

• studieren/ʃtuˈdiːʁən/

  The st at the start sounds like scht, as in Straße.

• spazieren/ʃpaˈtsiːʁən/

  The sp at the start sounds like schp, as in Spiel.

• konzentrieren/kɔntsɛnˈtʁiːʁən/

  The z sounds like ts, as in Zeit.

Good to know

Sie

With sales staff, employees and strangers on the phone, people usually say Sie. Du is mostly kept for friends and family.

Termin

For repairs and advice, many shops work by appointment, which you arrange beforehand by phone or online. If you turn up without one, you often have to wait or are sent to another day.

Kostenvoranschlag

Before a repair, workshops and shops often give an approximate price. Ask for it before you agree.

Questions

What do I say if my phone stopped working in German?

You can say "Mein Handy hat gestern aufgehört zu funktionieren." Funktionieren means to work without trouble, the way it is meant to.

How do I ask a shop to fix my screen in German?

Say "Können Sie den Bildschirm bis morgen reparieren?" Reparieren means to put something broken back in order.

How do I cancel an appointment in German?

Say "Kann ich den Termin morgen noch stornieren?" Stornieren means to undo a booking.