All German word comparisons · Back to the topic overview
Meaning, sentence patterns and examples
| Word | Core meaning | Typical context | Grammar |
|---|---|---|---|
| persönlich | personal; individually; in person | opinions; experiences; direct personal involvement | adjective with endings; unchanged when adverbial |
| privat | private; non-official; non-public | private life; informal dealings; non-state ownership | adjective with endings; unchanged when adverbial |
persönlich
Meaning and usage: Persönlich can describe an individual's opinion, experience, influence, or relationships. It can also mean in person or personally doing something. A personal meeting may concern business; nothing in the word requires it to be outside work or kept secret.
Grammar: Adjective: meine persönliche Meinung, persönliche Erfahrungen. In adverbial use, it stays persönlich: ich komme persönlich. With nehmen, etwas persönlich nehmen means take something personally; it does not mean to take it privately or physically.
Das ist meine persönliche Meinung.
That is my personal opinion.
Ich möchte den Antrag persönlich abgeben.
I would like to hand in the application in person.
Bitte nimm die Kritik nicht persönlich.
Please don't take the criticism personally.
privat
Meaning and usage: Privat can concern someone's own life or affairs, an activity outside work, or something unavailable to the public. It also describes privately owned institutions or property. These meanings do not all imply secrecy: a private celebration may be widely known but not open to everyone.
Grammar: Adjective: ein privates Gespräch, private Dinge. Predicative and adverbial uses stay unchanged: das ist privat; wir treffen uns privat. Common contrasts include privat/beruflich and privat/öffentlich. It does not take a noun article or plural by itself.
Über meine privaten Probleme möchte ich hier nicht sprechen.
I don't want to talk about my private problems here.
Wir kennen uns beruflich, treffen uns aber auch privat.
We know each other through work, but also meet socially.
Overlap and context
Persönliche Gründe and private Gründe can overlap when someone refers to matters in their own life. The first emphasizes the person's circumstances; the second may emphasize that these are outside work or not for public discussion. Ich komme persönlich means I will come myself. Ich komme privat says something about the capacity or context of the visit, not who physically comes.
Common mistakes
- Do not translate “in person” with privat: use persönlich.
- Do not assume a persönliches Gespräch must be outside business or confidential.
- Do not reduce privat to “secret”: private ownership is another ordinary meaning.
- Keep adjective endings before nouns, but do not add an ending in Ich komme persönlich.
Memory aid: Persönlich points to the person; privat points to their private sphere or a non-official context.
Try it
You will visit an office yourself instead of sending someone else. Which fits: Ich komme ___ vorbei?
Show the answer
persönlich
You are identifying who comes, not whether the visit is outside work or public business.