ich bin ein Mädchen
To say I am a girl in German, use ich bin ein Mädchen.
ich bin ein Mädchen is the plain statement a girl uses to say she is female.
What does it mean word for word?
ich means I, bin means am, ein means a and Mädchen means girl.
Which one should you use?
Ich bin ein Mädel. is a colloquial way to say the same thing.
How does it change in a sentence?
Mädchen is grammatically neuter, so the article is the neuter ein, not the feminine eine.
What mistakes should you avoid?
Do not say ich bin eine Mädchen. Even though a girl is female, Mädchen always takes the neuter article ein.
Did you know?
- The word Mädchen is created by adding the diminutive suffix -chen to the word Magd, which originally meant 'maidservant'.
- The word Mädchen contains the diminutive suffix -chen, which is used to make words smaller or more endearing. This little suffix is actually the reason why the word is grammatically neuter instead of feminine.
Examples in context
- Ich bin ein Mädchen.I am a girl.The sentence Ich bin ein Mädchen. starts with a capital letter and ends with a full stop.Tatoeba #4094668 by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation #2363944 by kerbear407
- Hallo, ich bin Lily. Ich bin ein Mädchen.Hello, I'm Lily. I am a girl.
- Ja, klar! Ich bin ein Mädel, das niemals ein gutes Konzert verpasst.Yes, of course! I'm a girl who never misses a good concert.
- Ich bin ein Mädchen, kein Junge.I am a girl, not a boy.
- Ja, ich bin ein Mädchen.Yes, I am a girl.
Example conversation
A young girl explains herself to a boy during a game.
- LauraIch bin ein Mädchen.I am a girl.
- JulianOh, das wusste ich nicht.Oh, I didn't know that.
- LauraDu kannst mich Laura nennen.You can call me Laura.
- JulianHallo Laura, ich bin Julian.Hello Laura, I am Julian.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Mädchen, bin, ein, ich, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
