German has a word for every kind of bad weather, and many of them get used every week. Nieselregen is the fine drizzle that soaks you without seeming to. Schmuddelwetter is grey, wet and cold all at once. Glatteis is the black ice that turns a pavement into a skating rink.
This page covers the words, the sentences for talking about the weather, and how to read a German forecast. For chatting about it with neighbours, see small talk in German.
Rain, Snow and Everything In Between
weather
das Wetter
sun
die Sonne
rain
der Regen
drizzle
der Nieselregen
shower
der Schauer
snow
der Schnee
sleet
der Schneeregen
hail
der Hagel
thunderstorm
das Gewitter
storm
der Sturm
wind
der Wind
fog
der Nebel
cloud
die Wolke
frost
der Frost
black ice
das Glatteis
heatwave
die Hitzewelle
Practice these words
das Wetter
Gewitter is a thunderstorm with lightning, common on hot summer afternoons. Sturm is a strong wind, with or without rain. Germans keep the two apart, so a Sturmwarnung means wind, not lightning.
Describing the Weather
sunny
sonnig
cloudy
bewölkt
overcast
bedeckt
rainy
regnerisch
windy
windig
foggy
neblig
hot
heiß
warm
warm
cool
kühl
cold
kalt
muggy
schwül
dry
trocken
wet
nass
icy, slippery
glatt
Practice these words
sonnig
Schwül is the heavy, humid heat before a summer storm. Heute ist es so schwül is one of the most common summer sentences in Germany, often followed by a guess about when the Gewitter will come.
Sentences About the Weather
It's raining.
Es regnet.
It's snowing.
Es schneit.
It's pouring.
Es schüttet.
The sun is shining.
Die Sonne scheint.
It's thundering.
Es donnert.
It's below freezing outside.
Draußen friert es.
It's 25 degrees.
Es sind 25 Grad.
It's minus five degrees.
Es sind minus fünf Grad.
It's going to be hot tomorrow.
Morgen wird es heiß.
The roads are icy.
Die Straßen sind glatt.
Practice these words
Es regnet.
Grad: temperatures are in Celsius, and the verb is plural: Es sind 25 Grad, not Es ist. Below zero you can say minus fünf Grad or fünf Grad unter null.
Es does the work in weather sentences, just as "it" does in English: Es regnet, Es schneit, Es ist kalt.
How to Read a German Forecast
The Wetterbericht on the radio and the weather app use a handful of words that aren't obvious.
| In the forecast | What it means |
|---|---|
heiter | mostly sunny, a few clouds |
wolkig | partly cloudy |
wechselhaft | changeable, sun and showers |
vereinzelt Schauer | isolated showers |
Regenwahrscheinlichkeit | chance of rain, in per cent |
Höchstwerte / Tiefstwerte | highs / lows |
gefühlte Temperatur | feels like |
Sturmböen | gale-force gusts |
Glättegefahr | risk of ice on roads and paths |
Unwetterwarnung | severe weather warning |
Heiter usually means cheerful, but in a forecast it's simply "fair": sunny with a few clouds, a little less than sonnig.
Warnings: the national weather service, the Deutscher Wetterdienst, issues warnings in four colour levels: yellow, orange, red, and violet for extreme severe weather. Serious ones can also arrive on your phone as an alert.
Weather That Changes Your Day
Glatteis and snow. Car drivers need winter tyres with the Alpine snowflake symbol whenever there's ice, snow, slush or frost on the road; a common rule of thumb is von O bis O, from October to Easter (Ostern). On the pavement in front of a building, someone has to clear snow and grit, often the tenants on a rota. Check the Hausordnung, and see neighbours and house rules.
Hitzefrei. On very hot days some schools send pupils home early. Children hope for it every summer; adults usually don't get it.
Föhn. In Bavaria, a warm, dry wind from the Alps brings clear views and blue skies. It also gets blamed for headaches and bad moods. Heute ist Föhn explains a lot in Munich. (The hairdryer is also called a Föhn, after the wind.)
Aprilwetter. In April the weather changes by the hour: sun, hail and rain in one afternoon. The saying is April, April, der weiß nicht, was er will: April doesn't know what it wants.