Is English understood well in Germany?

Question

Is English understood well in Germany?

Answer 1

Extremely. Some of the older folks have a problem with it, and perhaps some in the eastern part where it wasn't emphasized.

Answer 2

I think it mostly is.  I was in Brussels Belgium for a few days and just walking around almost everyone understood English.

Answer 3

Almost everybody speaking in Germany English. The kids start 3. Grade with Foreign Language "English" at schools.

Answer 4

Mostly, yes. In the big cities you are well understood, the response may be a bit difficult. But in the little villages you might have some problems... Everyone has English as a compulsory subject at school, but some forget it after they finished school...

Answer 5

No not really ,they dub the movies on tv in German

all countries that speak a lot of English are the countries that show the movies in their original language

like Holland,Portugal,Scandinavia,Marocco and a lot of the kids speak some English

Countries that Dubb,Italy,Spain,Germany are bad at other languages

to day  a lot of Germans do speak English because of education and business,but the kids dont.

In Holland most people speak some French,German and English  ,but that is because nobody speaks dutch

Answer 6

Yes. Embarrasingly well. I was there on business a few times and had my basic survival German, any time I opened my mouth they just swapped into English. Even a homeless guy on the train selling newspapers (in Britain the equivalent is call The Big Issue), I told him "I don't speak German" in German and he replied in English "Ah, you are English? You'd understand". I think you might be missing out if you didn't try to learn a little German though, and I'm sure they appreciate the attempt as a basic courtesy.

Answer 7

no becosee is not there language

Answer 8

yea, almost everyone under the age of 45 understands it.

Answer 9

Yes, especially in the larger cities.  In most European countries, everyone learns a second language, and many many people learn English.  Same on us English-speakers for not doing the same!

Answer 10

I would say yes, most of the Continental Countries speak english, some much better than the indigenous inhabitants (think chavs) Many continental countries teach english as a compulsory second language. They put the english to shame (myself included) in learning. A barman in Holland amazed me by holding an intelligent conversation with me, (a Brit) a French guy, a German and an Italian, also telling the four of us what the other where saying, all in real time, very impressive.

Answer 11

I'm living there right now. Being in a university town, English is understood decently well by the majority of the students as most of them (recently) took classes in it. In really touristy areas (ie Berlin, Muenchen, etc.) a lot of the shop keepers understand it also as they have to deal with many foreigners. I have visited small cities though where absolutely no one speaks English (at least not enough to be able to give you directions or understand a more complicated question). I could probably get by shopping without knowing any German, using a point and write down the total technique. My suggestion would be to learn at least the basic travel phrases and some numbers, and bring a phrase book with you. You never know when you'll run into someone who can't speak it.