Kopfhörer
/ˈkɔpfˌhøːʁɐ/masculine, plural
The German word for headphones is Kopfhörer.
Kopfhörer refers to a pair of speakers worn over or in the ears so that only the wearer can hear the sound.
Meaning: pair of speakers worn over or in the ears so only the wearer can hear the sound (noun)
What does it mean word for word?
The word is a compound of Kopf (head) and Hörer (listener or receiver), literally meaning "head listener".
How does it change in a sentence?
Kopfhörer is a masculine plural noun.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈkɔpfˌhøːʁɐ/
Did you know?
- German allows the creation of an endless chain of nouns, meaning you could technically create a word like Noise-Cancelling-Bluetooth-Kopfhörer as a single grammatical unit.
- In German, the word Hörer is used not just for the device, but also for the 'audience' or 'listeners' of a radio program or podcast.
- The term Hörer is also a common German surname, meaning that a person named 'Mr. Hörer' shares a name with the functional part of your headphones.
Examples in context
- Tom trug einen Kopfhörer.Tom was wearing headphones.This sentence is useful for showing how to describe someone wearing headphones.Tatoeba #10968664 by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation #10966171 by CK
- Alle trugen einen Kopfhörer.Everybody was wearing headphones.This sentence is useful for showing how to describe a group of people wearing headphones.Tatoeba #6834925 by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation #6833092 by Hybrid
- Er setzte seinen Kopfhörer auf.He put on his headphones.This sentence is useful for describing the action of putting on headphones.Tatoeba #8786789 by wolfgangth, translation #7385891 by CH
- Hast du bitte meine Kopfhörer gesehen?Have you seen my headphones, please?
- 32 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Julian and Julia are in a cafe.
- JulianJulia, hast du meine Kopfhörer gesehen?Julia, have you seen my headphones?
- JuliaNein, Julian, ich habe sie nicht gesehen.No, Julian, I haven't seen them.
- JulianVielleicht liegen sie noch in der Tasche.Maybe they are still in the bag.
- JuliaSchau doch mal nach, Julian.Just check, Julian.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “headphones” translations and entries Kopfhörer, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
