We've all heard that German is a tough language. While that may be true, the language does contain lots of little gems of words to describe how we’re feeling that we just cannot express in English.
Here are just a few favorites that are super applicable to any college student’s life:
1. Torschlusspanik
Literal Translation: Gate Close Panic
As people get older, they can find themselves worrying about those roads not taken or significant things they meant to achieve by a certain age but just haven’t. Torschlusspanik is that desperate feeling to accomplish these things before the imaginary door closes.
2. Kummerspeck
Literal Translation: Grief Bacon
It’s finals week, and you’ve been studying for six hours straight. Let’s be honest, the only thing getting you through this day is the infinite snack breaks of your favorite binge foods. The weight that you gain from stress and emotional eating is what the Germans like to call your grief bacon.
3. Weltschmerz
Literal Translation: World Pain
We all know the saying, “The grass is greener on the other side.” But what if that’s not true? What if the grass on the other side is brown, dying, and mole-invested?
We dream of the perfect life, of the perfect career. But what happens when the reality of the world does not hold up to our expectations?
Weltschmerz. It’s the mental depression caused by comparing the actual state of the world with an ideal of the world held in one’s mind.
4. Ohrwurm
Literal Translation: Ear Worm
We’ve all had one particular song stuck in our heads from time to time. Maybe for an hour, or even for a few days. According to the Germans, what is responsible for that pesky little J Biebs song stuck on infinite replay? It’s an earworm, of course!
5. Fernweh
Literal Translation: Distant Pain
The opposite of homesickness, this term describes the intense longing to be in any other place than where you are right now. If you’re feeling a little Fernweh this summer, it’s time for a much-needed vacation!
6. Innerer Schweinehund
Literal Translation: Inner Pig Dog
Procrastination. We all fall victim to it. Can’t get out of bed to go to class? Still haven’t started that paper that was assigned months ago? Too tired to get up from your nap to go to the gym?
Don’t worry, it’s not your fault! Instead, blame it on your inner pig dog. It’s that little voice in your head that says “No, no, no, you don’t actually want to get out of bed today.”
(Thank you Germans for all of these excuses.)
7. Blaumachen
Literal Translation: Blue Making
This is a word used to describe feeling horribly unmotivated from the moment you wake up in the morning. Blaumachen, "to make blue," actually comes from the expression Blauer Montag or "Blue Monday.” This term was originally used to describe the day craftsmen had to wait around for their fabrics to dry after being dyed blue. Therefore, Mondays were deemed as rather unproductive days, much like now.
So next time you really need to express one of these feelings and just cannot, remember these incredibly useful and relatable German terms!
