German course

Lesson 113 of 240

New here? This is lesson 113 of a free 240-lesson German course.

Start hereHow this works

At the pharmacy in German

Priya comes down from Dr. Albrecht with a folded note and pushes the Apotheke door. The pharmacist is already at the counter.

Anton follows with a bakery bag, as if a Pfannkuchen might count as medicine too.

By the end, you'll ask for something for a cold, check if you need a prescription, and name a spray.

Use Sie with the pharmacist. Save how to take the medicine for next time.

By the end of this lesson

Ask for medicine at the pharmacy and say what you need it for.

  • Ich brauche etwas gegen ___.I need something for ___.
  • Haben Sie etwas gegen Erkältung?Do you have anything for a cold?
  • Brauche ich dafür ein Rezept?Do I need a prescription for this?
  • Ich bin erkältet.I've got a cold.
  • Gibt es Nebenwirkungen?Are there any side effects?
  • Ich hätte gern Nasenspray.I'd like some nasal spray.

Scene — the Apotheke counter

Priya comes down the stairs from Dr. Albrecht's Praxis, a folded note in her hand. The Apotheke is on the ground floor of the same building.

The pharmacist waits at the counter. Anton is already in the doorway, a bakery bag in one hoof and a Milchkaffee he still has not finished.

Priya comes down the stairs into the ground-floor pharmacy, while Anton waits in the doorway and the pharmacist stands at the counter.

Learn — asking for medicine

Six lines cover naming a problem, asking for cold medicine, a prescription, side effects, and a spray.

You'll also say you've got a cold, so the pharmacist knows why you're there.

  1. Priya holds her folded note toward the pharmacist at the counter during their greeting.

    Ich brauche etwas gegen ___.

    I need something for ___.

    When to use it: Use this at the pharmacy to name the problem you have.

    Fill the blank with what you need the medicine for.

  2. Priya gestures toward the cold-remedy shelves as she asks whether the pharmacy has something for a cold.

    Haben Sie etwas gegen Erkältung?

    Do you have anything for a cold?

    When to use it: Ask the pharmacist for something that helps a cold.

    A pharmacist you have just met gets Sie, not du.

    Say it: The ä in Erkältung sounds like the e in bed.

  3. Priya tilts her head with a question while holding up the folded note for the pharmacist.

    Brauche ich dafür ein Rezept?

    Do I need a prescription for this?

    When to use it: Ask this before you buy medicine that might require a prescription.

    Learn ein with Rezept when you ask if you need one.

  4. Priya stands by the aisle and calmly indicates that she has a cold.

    Ich bin erkältet.

    I've got a cold.

    When to use it: Say this to explain why you need medicine today.

    Say this about yourself when you have a cold.

  5. Priya turns a small medicine box in her hands and looks toward the pharmacist with a question about a prescription.

    Gibt es Nebenwirkungen?

    Are there any side effects?

    When to use it: Ask this before you take a new medicine.

    Ask this about the medicine you might buy.

    Say it: Nebenwirkungen puts the stress on the first syllable.

  6. Priya points to a small nasal spray bottle at the counter while Anton waits in the doorway with his bakery bag and coffee.

    Ich hätte gern Nasenspray.

    I'd like some nasal spray.

    When to use it: Use this to name the product you want at the counter.

    Ich hätte gern is a polite request for the product you want.

Story — a note and a doughnut

Watch Priya take the note down to the Apotheke. The pharmacist listens, and Anton has a theory about jam doughnuts.

The highlighted words are the lines you just learned. Turn on Show English if you need it.

  1. Priya comes down from Dr. Albrecht with a folded note.
  2. PharmacistGuten Tag.Good afternoon.
  3. PriyaGuten Tag.Good afternoon.
  4. PharmacistWie geht es Ihnen?How are you?
  5. PriyaIch bin erkältet.I've got a cold.
  6. PharmacistAch so.Ah, right.
  7. PriyaHaben Sie etwas gegen Erkältung?Do you have anything for a cold?
  8. PharmacistJa, das haben wir.Yes, we have that.
  9. PriyaBrauche ich dafür ein Rezept?Do I need a prescription for this?
  10. PharmacistNein, dafür brauchen Sie kein Rezept.No, you don't need a prescription for that.
  11. PriyaIch hätte gern Nasenspray.I'd like some nasal spray.
  12. PharmacistJa, gern.Yes, gladly.
  13. PriyaGibt es Nebenwirkungen?Are there any side effects?
  14. PharmacistBei diesem Spray kaum.Hardly, with this spray.
  15. Anton holds out a Pfannkuchen from the bag.
  16. AntonZählt ein Pfannkuchen als Medizin?Does a jam doughnut count as medicine?
  17. PriyaNein. Ich brauche etwas gegen Erkältung.No. I need something for a cold.

Practice — cold or spray

Ten quick exercises wait here. You'll listen, pick, match, fill a gap, and build a line.

They stay tiny, so the round moves fast.

0 of 10 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. Match the pairs

    German

    Ich bin erkältet.Drop the English here
    Gibt es Nebenwirkungen?Drop the English here
    Ich hätte gern Nasenspray.Drop the English here

    English

    Drag an English line onto its German, or tap one and then the other.

  3. What do you say?

    At the pharmacy, say the complete sentence: you need something for a cold. Fill the blank with the German word for a cold.

  4. Pick the reply

    Pharmacist says:

    Wie geht es Ihnen?

    How are you?

    And you reply with:

  5. Fill the gap

    Do you have anything for a cold?

    Haben Sie etwas ____ Erkältung?

  6. What does it mean?

    Gibt es Nebenwirkungen?

  7. Fill the gap

    Do I need a prescription for this?

    Brauche ich dafür ein ____?

  8. Swap the word

    You want nasal spray at the pharmacy, not a drink.

    Ich hätte gern ____.

  9. What do you say?

    It is afternoon. Greet the pharmacist as you come in.

  10. True or false?

    This is the polite way to ask a pharmacist how they are.

Say it — at the counter

Now you're Priya at the Apotheke counter. When it's your turn, tap the microphone and speak the line.

Tap ▶ first if you want to hear the line. Your recording stays on your device.

  1. PharmacistGuten Tag.Good afternoon.
  2. Priya (you)It is afternoon. Greet her back.

    Guten Tag.

    Good afternoon

0 of 6 said

Recap — what you can say now

GermanEnglish
Ich brauche etwas gegen ___.I need something for ___.
Haben Sie etwas gegen Erkältung?Do you have anything for a cold?
Brauche ich dafür ein Rezept?Do I need a prescription for this?
Ich bin erkältet.I've got a cold.
Gibt es Nebenwirkungen?Are there any side effects?
Ich hätte gern Nasenspray.I'd like some nasal spray.
Next: lesson 114How to take it

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Keep practicing with Yak Cards

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A quick round with the Yak Cards each day keeps your pharmacy lines ready for the counter.

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