Abbreviations are commonly used in written German language. There are tons of them, definitely more than 60. But I believe that learning most common German words first is a way better strategy for beginners. This list includes only German abbreviations that you might see in everyday life quite often.
German days of the week abbreviations
Mo – Montag (Monday)
Di – Dienstag (Tuesday)
Mi – Mittwoch (Wednesday)
Do – Donnerstag (Thursday)
Fr – Freitag (Friday)
Sa – Samstag (Saturday)
So – Sonntag (Sunday)
German abbreviations related to transportation
Bhf. – Bahnhof (train station)
Hbf. – Hauptbahnhof (main train station)
Be careful when you are booking train tickets online. Many big cities have more than one train station. For example, Frankfurt Hbf (Frankfurt main station), Frankfurt Flugh (Frankfurt airport).
IC – Intercity Zug (intercity train)
ICE – Intercity Express Zug (high-speed intercity train)
EC – Eurocity Zug (cross-border train)
LKW/Lkw – Lastkraftwagen (truck)
PKW/Pkw – Personenkraftwagen (car)
ÖPNV – öffentlicher Personennahverkehr (local public transport)
DB – Deutsche Bahn (German railway company)
ÖBB – Österreichische Bundesbahnen (Austrian Federal Railways)
SBB – Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (Swiss Federal Railways)
German abbreviations in apartment advertisements
Abbreviations are very popular in apartment ads because they help to save space. For example:
WG – Wohngemeinschaft (shared flat)
Whg. – Wohnung (apartment)
Zi. – Zimmer (room)
NK — Nebenkosten (utilities)
EFH — Einfamilienhaus (single-family home)
There are much more abbreviations in apartment ads, so here are two good resources to use when you are looking for an apartment in Germany:
Measurements and numbers
TL – Teelöffel (teaspoon)
EL – Esslöffel (tablespoon)
St. – Stück (piece)
qm – Quadratmeter (square meters)
qkm – Quadratkilometer (square km)
BLZ – Bankleitzahl (bank code)
IBAN – International Bank Account Number (Internationale Bankkontonummer)
Mio. – Million(en) (million)
Mrd. – Milliarde(n) (billion)
PLZ – Postleitzahl (postal code/ZIP)
Nr. – Nummer (number)
MwSt./MWSt. – Mehrwertsteuer (value-added-tax/VAT)
Miscellaneous
WLAN – Wireless Local Area Network (Many people in Germany use this word instead of WI-FI)
etw. – etwas (something)
Tel. – Telefon (phone number)
Str. – Straße (street)
Dr. – Doktor (title of doctor) – it’s common in Germany to use a title of doctor with a surname
Uni – Universität (university)
ca. – circa (approximately)
z.B. – zum Beispiel (for example)
usw. – und so weiter (and so on/etc)
Abo – Abonnement (subscription)
DaF – Deutsch als Fremdsprache (German as a foreign language)
DDR – Deutsche Demokratische Republik (German Democratic Republic/East Germany before unification)
DPD – Deutscher Paketdienst (German delivery service)
DRK – Deutsches Rotes Kreuz (German Red Cross)
FKK – Freikörperkultur (free body culture/nudism/naturism) – nude swimming is popular in Germany, many FKK areas exist near lakes, rivers and in public baths.
geb. – geboren (born)
gest. – gestorben (died)
GEZ – Gebühreneinzugszentrale der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten (German agency that collects mandatory fee around 17 €/month for public TV and radio)
Jh. – Jahrhundert (century)
NRW – Nordrhein-Westfalen (North Rhine-Westphalia) – one of 16 German federal states
MfG – Mit freundlichen Grüßen (with kind regards)
LG – Liebe Grüße (best regards)
St. – Sankt (saint)
u. – und (and)
VHS – Volkshochschule (adult education center) – offers different courses for adults, popular for low-cost German courses
Download 60 German abbreviations PDF
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