All German word comparisons · Back to the topic overview
Meaning, sentence patterns and examples
| Word | Core meaning | Typical context | Grammar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wort | word; spoken statement | one linguistic item or an utterance | das Wort; Wörter/Worte |
| Wortschatz | vocabulary; lexical stock | a person’s or language’s word knowledge | der Wortschatz; rare plural Wortschätze |
| Vokabel | vocabulary item | a word learned in a language class | die Vokabel; plural Vokabeln |
Wort
Meaning and usage: Wort can identify a unit in a sentence or dictionary. It also appears in expressions about statements, promises or speaking. Its two plurals therefore need context: Wörter is the normal form for separate lexical units; Worte is common for a connected statement or significant words.
Grammar: Das Wort; genitive des Worts or Wortes; plurals die Wörter and die Worte. Count ten separate words as zehn Wörter. Learn fixed expressions such as das Wort halten, “keep one’s word”, separately.
In diesem Satz stehen zwei Wörter, die ich noch nicht kenne.
This sentence contains two words I do not know yet.
Wortschatz
Meaning and usage: Wortschatz refers to the stock of words in a language or available to a person. It can also be limited to a subject, such as vocabulary for work. It is a collection, not usually one item on a flashcard. Passive and active word knowledge are useful contexts for this noun.
Grammar: Der Wortschatz; genitive des Wortschatzes; plural die Wortschätze, rarely needed. Usually singular in everyday learner contexts: meinen Wortschatz erweitern.
Ich möchte meinen Wortschatz für Besprechungen erweitern.
I want to expand my vocabulary for meetings.
Vokabel
Meaning and usage: Vokabel commonly names an item of foreign-language vocabulary being learned. It can be a word or an expression treated as a learning unit. In class, Vokabeln lernen is natural; that does not mean the word lacks meaning outside a vocabulary list.
Grammar: Die Vokabel; genitive der Vokabel; plural die Vokabeln. Austrian usage also has das Vokabel; the feminine form is the safe general model here.
Wir üben die neuen Vokabeln in kurzen Gesprächen.
We practise the new vocabulary items in short conversations.
Overlap and context
A new Vokabel is also a Wort. When you learn several of them, they can become part of your Wortschatz. Wörter/Worte is not an absolute “written/spoken” contrast: written connected statements can be Worte, while separate spoken items can be Wörter. The distinction concerns how the words are considered, not the medium.
Common mistakes
- Avoid Ich lerne fünf Wortschätze for five individual words. Use fünf Wörter or fünf Vokabeln.
- For counting items in a sentence, Wörter is the usual plural.
- Do not teach Worte as spoken and Wörter as written without explaining the actual meaning distinction.
Memory aid: A word is one item; vocabulary is your stock; a Vokabel is an item you are learning.
Try it
Complete: Das Wörterbuch enthält viele tausend ___.
Show the answer
Wörter
Dictionary entries are individual lexical units, so Wörter fits.