Hatschi! 10 German phrases to explain your cold

Hatschi! 10 German phrases to explain your cold

When you  learn German, after a while you know what to say when you are ill. As that topic still comes reasonably early in your learning journey, the sentences are normally straight forward, like Ich habe Kopfschmerzen (I have a headache) or Ich habe Halsschmerzen (I have a sore throat), just like I wrote in a blog post about illnesses before.

Today I’d like to take those sentences a bit further, assuming that your German is a little more advanced than that of a beginner. If you had a cold (Ich bin erkältet) and the doctor would like to hear a few more details, what might/ could you say?

  • Ich habe ein Kratzen im Hals. –  I have a scratchy feeling in my throat.
  • Ich habe Schluckbeschwerden. – I have difficulty swallowing.
  • Ich habe Reizhusten. – I have a chesty cough.
  • Ich habe meine Stimme verloren. –  I’ve lost my voice.
  • Ich habe einen trockenen Husten. – I have a dry cough.
  • Ich habe Raucherhusten. – I have a smoker’s cough.
  • Ich muss niesen. – I have to sneeze.
  • Meine Nase ist verstopft. – My nose is blocked.
  • Meine Nase läuft. – I have a runny nose.
  • Meine Nase juckt. – My nose is itching.

After  those ‘lovely’ sentences, you’ll need something to cheer yourself up with, so how about a video about Stefan Raab, a German TV host, who phones a free cough hotline to test his cough:

Or how about this children’s song about the coughs of earthworms?

And we can’t forget Peppa Pig, whose brother got a cold:

Hatschi – Atishoo!
Gesundheit – bless you!

 

Do you need help reaching your goal of German fluency? I can help you. Message me

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