German for Hosts: Welcoming Guests and Offering Food or Drinks
Learn polite German phrases to welcome guests into your home and offer them something to eat or drink, with pronunciation and usage notes.
By LiamCulture & nuance · Yapr Learn
When you host someone in a German-speaking country, a few set phrases do most of the work. You will greet your guest at the door, invite them in, tell them to relax, and then offer a drink or something to eat. This lesson gives you those phrases in polite, everyday standard German, with notes on when to use du or Sie and on regional differences.
By the end, you can…
- welcome a guest at the door in German.
- invite someone in and tell them to make themselves at home.
- politely offer a drink or food using a question.
- respond when a guest accepts or declines.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
Herzlich willkommen!
A warm welcome!
HAIRTS-likh VIL-kom-en
Warm, slightly formal greeting used at the door, at events, or when guests arrive. For close friends, a simple Hallo! is also fine.
Komm rein!
Come in!
kom RINE
Informal, used with one person you address as du. For several people or a formal guest, say Kommen Sie rein! (KOM-en zee RINE).
Fühl dich wie zu Hause.
Make yourself at home.
fool dikh vee tsoo HOW-zuh
Informal singular. To several people: Fühlt euch wie zu Hause. Formal: Fühlen Sie sich wie zu Hause.
Möchtest du etwas trinken?
Would you like something to drink?
MURKH-test doo ET-vas TRIN-ken
Informal singular. Formal: Möchten Sie etwas trinken? The umlaut ö is made with rounded lips, like the vowel in British English 'fur' but rounder.
Möchten Sie etwas essen?
Would you like something to eat?
MURKH-ten zee ET-vas ES-en
Formal, used with strangers, older people, or in professional settings. Informal: Möchtest du etwas essen?
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The polite offer pattern is Möchten Sie ... ? or Möchtest du ... ? plus the thing offered. Möchten Sie einen Kaffee? (Would you like a coffee?) Möchtest du ein Wasser? (Would you like a water?) Möchten Sie ein Stück Kuchen? (Would you like a piece of cake?) Use möchten for offers; it sounds friendlier than wollen, which can sound demanding.
When to use it
Use du forms with friends, family, students, and most people your own age in casual settings. Use Sie forms with strangers, older people, officials, and in business. If unsure, start with Sie; the other person may say Wir können du sagen. At the door, Herzlich willkommen! works for both. Inside, Komm rein! is for du, Kommen Sie rein! for Sie.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
Hallo, schön, dass du da bist! Herzlich willkommen!
Hello, good that you're here! A warm welcome!ha-LO, shurn das doo da bist! HAIRTS-likh VIL-kom-enDanke! Ich freue mich auch.
Thanks! I'm glad too.DAN-kuh! ikh FROY-uh mikh owkhKomm rein! Fühl dich wie zu Hause. Möchtest du etwas trinken?
Come in! Make yourself at home. Would you like something to drink?kom RINE! fool dikh vee tsoo HOW-zuh. MURKH-test doo ET-vas TRIN-ken?Ja, gern. Ein Wasser, bitte.
Yes, gladly. A water, please.ya, gairn. ine VAS-er, BIT-uhA little context goes a long way
German hosts often offer a drink soon after arrival, and it is normal to accept or decline directly. A simple Nein, danke is polite, not rude. In many homes you will be asked what you want rather than simply handed something. In Austria and parts of southern Germany, a greeting like Grüß Gott may replace Hallo, and Servus is common in Bavaria and Austria among friends.
One thing to watch for
Using Willst du etwas trinken? to offer a drink.
Try this instead: Willst du ... ? can sound blunt or demanding. Use Möchtest du etwas trinken? or Möchten Sie etwas trinken? for a polite offer.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How do you tell one friend to make themselves at home?
Show a sample answer
Fühl dich wie zu Hause.
This uses the informal singular du. For a group, Fühlt euch wie zu Hause; for a formal guest, Fühlen Sie sich wie zu Hause.
2How do you formally offer a guest something to eat?
Show a sample answer
Möchten Sie etwas essen?
Möchten Sie is the polite Sie form. With a friend you would say Möchtest du etwas essen?
3A guest says Nein, danke. What does it mean, and what can you say next?
Show a sample answer
It means 'No, thanks.' You can say Vielleicht später? (Maybe later?) or simply Gut, sag einfach Bescheid. (Okay, just let me know.)
Nein, danke is a complete polite refusal. Offering again once is fine, but do not insist; Gut, sag einfach Bescheid keeps it friendly.
Welcome guests with Herzlich willkommen!, invite them in with Komm rein! or Kommen Sie rein!, put them at ease with Fühl dich wie zu Hause, and offer food or drink with Möchtest du ... ? or Möchten Sie ... ?
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