1
a
: a native or inhabitant of Germany
b
: a person of German descent
c
: one whose native language is German and who is a native of a country other than Germany
2
a
: the Germanic language spoken mainly in Germany, Austria, and parts of Switzerland
b
: the literary and official language of Germany
3
: a member of any of the Germanic peoples inhabiting western Europe in Roman times
4
often not capitalized
a
: a dance consisting of intricate figures that are improvised and intermingled with waltzes
b
chiefly Midland US
: a dancing party
specifically
: one at which the german is danced
: of, relating to, or characteristic of Germany, the Germans, or German
ger·man
ˈjər-mən 
: having the same parents or the same grandparents on either the maternal or paternal side
—usually used after the noun which it modifies and joined to it by a hyphen
brother-german
cousin-german
obsolete
: a near relative
Examples of German in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Elisa Cinelli, Parents, 1 July 2024
The rare three-page missive, which was written in German to an unknown recipient, is part of Heritage Auctions’s Historical Platinum Signature sale, taking place on July 25.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 1 July 2024
My latest favorite place is Bressanone (or Brixen in the province’s first language of German), the oldest town in South Tyrol.
—Elizabeth Heath, Travel + Leisure, 30 June 2024
The German wants to make sure that his players don’t get ahead of themselves and played down his team’s chances, but wouldn’t go as far as ruling out his team making a fairytale run to the final.
—Sam Joseph, CNN, 29 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for German 
Noun
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—Elisa Cinelli, Parents, 1 July 2024
The rare three-page missive, which was written in German to an unknown recipient, is part of Heritage Auctions’s Historical Platinum Signature sale, taking place on July 25.
—Tori Latham, Robb Report, 1 July 2024
My latest favorite place is Bressanone (or Brixen in the province’s first language of German), the oldest town in South Tyrol.
—Elizabeth Heath, Travel + Leisure, 30 June 2024
The German wants to make sure that his players don’t get ahead of themselves and played down his team’s chances, but wouldn’t go as far as ruling out his team making a fairytale run to the final.
—Sam Joseph, CNN, 29 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for German
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'German.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near German
Cite this Entry
“German.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/German. Accessed 7 Jul. 2024.
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