HomeGermanGlossary › What do you want?

German vocabulary · Beginner

How do you say "What do you want?" in German?

Was wünschst du dir?

Noun

In German, "What do you want?" is Was wünschst du dir?.

Listen to the pronunciation:

Free German learning game. No sign-up, play in browser. See all games

Pronunciation

Vahs VOONSHST doo deer. Wünschst rhymes with 'wishes', mit umlauts.

Grammar notes

Wünschst is the second-person singular of wuenschen (to wish). Dir is dative.

Example sentence

Was wuenschst du dir zum Geburtstag?

What do you want for your birthday?

Test your German knowledge in our free browser games.

How to remember Was wünschst du dir?

Wuenschen means to wish. You're asking what someone wishes for themselves.

Related words

Browse all German words in the glossary.

See more phrases.

See more phrases.

See more phrases.

Questions about Was wünschst du dir?

How do you say "What do you want?" in German?

In German, "What do you want?" is Was wünschst du dir?. It is a noun.

How is Was wünschst du dir? written in German?

Was wünschst du dir? is written using the standard German script.

How is Was wünschst du dir? used in a sentence?

Use Was wünschst du dir? as you would use the equivalent noun in English. For example: Was wuenschst du dir zum Geburtstag? (What do you want for your birthday?).

Where can I practice German words for free?

You can play free German minigames in your browser on the Noun Town online games page, no sign-up required. Every word in the German glossary also has native audio and an example sentence you can revisit any time.

"What do you want?" in other languages

Curated by Callan Ratcliffe

This word is part of the vocabulary taught in the German language learning game Noun Town, where words are introduced through play rather than memorisation.

Noun Town language-learning game on PC, Mac and VR
The full experience

Noun Town on PC, Mac & VR

These browser games are just a taste. The full Noun Town is a bigger, deeper 3D world: explore a living town, talk to its characters and learn thousands of words in immersive VR, Mixed Reality, or on your computer. It's an award-winning game with 590+ reviews on Steam and 12 languages to learn.

See the full game ▶

Spot an error? Email us at contact@noun.town