Showing Preference with gern and lieblings
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Showing Preference with gern and lieblings 1. First, let’s talk about the word gern. Gern is used in connection with a verb to indicate preference or that you like doing something. In a statement, it is best to place gern directly after the verb. In a question, it is usually placed directly after the subject. Notice this pattern in the following sentences. Ich spiele. I play. Ich spiele gern. I like to play. Ich esse. I eat. Ich esse gern. I like to eat. Ich singe. I sing. Ich singe gern. I like to sing. 2. You can use gern in a question to ask somebody if he or she likes something or likes to do something. Let’s consider a few examples. German Question English Question Was machst du gern? What do you like to do? German Answer English Answer Ich spiele gern Karten. I like to play cards. Was trinken Sie gern? What do you (formal) like to drink? Ich trinke gern Wasser. I like to drink water. Spielst du gern Fussball? Do you like to play soccer? Ja, ich spiele gern Fussball. Yes, I like to play soccer. 3. You can say you do not like something by using nicht gern. Let’s take a look at some examples. Ich tanze nicht gern. I do not like to dance. Du gehst nicht gern nach Hause. You do not like going home. Sie lacht nicht gern. She doesn’t like to laugh. Sie lernen nicht gern. They do not like to learn. © 2011 Middlebury Interactive Languages. All rights reserved. This material is intended for the exclusive use of registered users only. No portion of these materials may be reproduced or redistributed in any form without the express permission of Middlebury Interactive Languages. 4. Now, let’s talk about the word lieblings. You can talk about something being your favorite by adding the prefix lieblings- to the front of any noun. Take a look at the different forms in the following examples. German Lieblingsfarbe Lieblingsessen Lieblingslied Lieblingsbuch Lieblingsfilm English Equivalent favorite color favorite food favorite song favorite book favorite movie German Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? Meine Lieblingsfarbe ist rot. Was ist sein Lieblingsessen? Sein Lieblingsessen ist Pizza. English Equivalent What is your favorite color? My favorite color is red. What is his favorite food? His favorite food is pizza. 5. Finally, let’s put it all together. You can talk about preference using the words gern, lieber and am liebsten. Adding gern shows that you like to do something, adding lieber shows that you would rather do something, and adding am liebsten shows that you would prefer that most of all. Notice this pattern in the following sentences. Like Ich singe deutsche Musik gern. Prefer Ich singe englische Musik lieber. Er isst einen Hamburger gern. Wir spielen Tennis gern. Er isst Pizza lieber. Wir spielen Basketball lieber. Prefer the best Ich singe spanische Musik am liebsten. Er isst Bratwurst am liebsten. Wir spielen Fussball am liebsten. © 2011 Middlebury Interactive Languages. All rights reserved. This material is intended for the exclusive use of registered users only. No portion of these materials may be reproduced or redistributed in any form without the express permission of Middlebury Interactive Languages.
