oder
/ˈoːdər/
The English phrase "or" is translated into German as oder.
oder is a conjunction used to connect two or more possibilities or alternatives. It usually appears before the alternatives it connects, such as in Möchtest du Apfelkuchen oder Schokoladenkuchen? You may also encounter specific idiomatic phrases: Oder so is a casual expression meaning "or something," used when someone is uncertain or being non-specific. Oder wie man so sagt translates to "or so they say".
How does it change in a sentence?
As a coordinating conjunction, oder connects words, phrases or clauses of equal grammatical rank. It does not change its form based on the gender or case of the elements it connects.
How do you pronounce it?
/ˈoːdər/
Did you know?
- The historical root of oder is thought to be an alteration of the word 'odo', which was influenced by the word 'wedar', meaning 'weather'.
- While oder is the standard word for 'or', German uses a different word, entweder, to signal that only one of two mutually exclusive options can be chosen.
- In some German dialects, oder is used so frequently as a filler word that it can appear multiple times in a single sentence without adding new meaning.
Examples in context
- Du magst es, oder?Do you like it or not?This example shows how to use oder as a tag question at the end of a sentence.Tatoeba #3283154 by freddy1, translation #5042310 by rmdas
- Bar oder mit Karte?Cash or credit card?This example demonstrates how to offer alternatives using oder.Tatoeba #7480309 by kutschektar, translation #1543463 by JimBreen
- Fährst du oder ich?Are you driving, or shall I?This example shows how to use oder to connect two different subjects in a question.Tatoeba #7528248 by Esperantostern, translation #12025773 by sundown
- Möchten Sie Tee oder Kaffee?Would you like tea or coffee?
- Lass uns ins Kino gehen oder so!Let's go to the movies or something!
- Das ist schwarz, oder wie man so sagt, die Farbe der Eleganz.That's black, or so they say, the color of elegance.
- 3436 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Laura and Lukas are deciding what to eat for dinner.
- LauraMöchtest du Pizza oder Pasta?Would you like pizza or pasta?
- LukasIch glaube, ich nehme Pasta.I think I'll have pasta.
- LauraWillst du eine Tomaten- oder eine Cremesauce?Do you want a tomato or a cream sauce?
- LukasDie Tomatensauce klingt gut.The tomato sauce sounds good.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry oder, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries oder, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
