kennenlernen

meet

verb KEN-en-lern-en Less Common

Also means

get to know

Usage Note

kennenlernen literally fuses kennen (know) and lernen (learn) and means to get acquainted with a person or thing. The polite first-meeting phrase Schön, Sie kennenzulernen is the German 'nice to meet you'. Older spelling split it as kennen lernen.

Examples

"Ich möchte deine Eltern kennenlernen."

Natural Translation

I would like to meet your parents.

Literal Translation

I would-like your parents to-meet.

Related Words

Explore German by topic

GermanNow

How to Tell Time in German Without Mistakes

Halb sieben means 6:30, not 7:30. Master telling time in German — Viertel nach, halb, vor, the 24-hour clock, and the prepositions that trip up beginners.

June 5, 2026 5 min read

GermanNow

Tipping in Germany: A Visitor's Etiquette Guide

Tipping in Germany means saying your total out loud, not leaving coins. Learn the exact phrases, how much to tip, and the Sie-vs-du etiquette travelers need.

June 5, 2026 6 min read

GermanNow

German Compound Words: How to Read Any Long Word

Read any long German word by working right-to-left: the last noun sets the meaning and gender, and the small linking letters are just glue. Here's the drill.

June 9, 2026 6 min read

GermanNow

Der, Die, Das: Rules to Guess German Gender

German noun gender rules made simple: check the suffix first, then meaning. Endings like -ung, -chen, and -ling predict der, die, or das with ~90% accuracy.

June 5, 2026 6 min read