Vereinigte Staaten
/fɛʁˌʔaɪ̯nɪçtə ˈʃtaːtn̩/plural
The English phrase "United States" is translated into German as Vereinigte Staaten.
Vereinigte Staaten refers to the country in North America. In both spoken and written German, it is extremely common to use the abbreviation USA instead of the full name.
Meaning: country in North America (name)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the adjective vereinigte (united) and the noun Staaten (states).
How does it change in a sentence?
Because the phrase is plural, it always takes a plural article and plural verb forms, such as die Vereinigten Staaten.
How do you pronounce it?
/fɛʁˌʔaɪ̯nɪçtə ˈʃtaːtn̩/
Did you know?
- The term Vereinigte Staaten is a literal 'calque', meaning it was created by translating the English name word-for-word into German rather than using a native German historical term.
- The German word vereinigen shares a root with Einheit (unity), which is a core concept in the German national identity following the reunification of East and West Germany.
- The abbreviation USA is pronounced using German vowel sounds, making it sound slightly different than the English acronym.
Examples in context
- Die Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika haben eine reiche Geschichte.The United States of America has a rich history.
- Die USA exportieren viele Produkte in die ganze Welt.The USA exports many products all over the world.
- Ich möchte in die USA reisen.I want to travel to the USA.
- Hast du schon mal die USA besucht?Have you ever visited the USA?
Sources
- Wiktionary, “united states” translations and entries Vereinigte Staaten, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Vereinigte Staaten, CC BY-SA 4.0.
