"Are you thinking in English while speaking German—and could that be what’s really holding you back?"

Question

This is what I am experiencing the most, to think in English and then translate it into German. How can I overcome that block?

Answer 1

Learning patterns helps. If you can learn regularly occurring phrases, verb forms, and conjugations you take the stress out of trying to translate actively. As others have noted, the best practice is to consume as much German media as you can. It will help you get a feel for the language. Both consumption of the language and use of it will eventually lead to a more fluid sense of the appropriate word or phrase.

Answer 2

My first instinct was to give up learning a new language as I did when I first encountered a native Chinese speaking in Mandarin in elementary school in San Francisco, California new the walk way near Webster Avenue and Geary. Climbing a linguistic skyway to difficulty in fitting, I remembered that Life was not going to be a 'Crystal' stair as the Harlem Langston Hughes suggests in his poetry "Mother to a Child" ; I had to overcome the prism of the prison, as Paul DeMan asserts, or as Willie Nelson suggests at 91-years-old to "Take this Job and Shove it" ; I spoke German and a mixture of Be-bop/ Haight Ashbury argot. But I kept on trying, and I read all soup cans labels from Andy Warhol's factory.

I listened to songs, wrote my own translations, and listened to Peter Anderson.

I devoured comic books, read kid's books, and stayed up memorizing words, grammar rules, but memorizing rules was a waste of time. Music, movement, and dancing were my keys to learning..

Answer 3

Yes, I understand this dilemma, as it also applies the other way around. A student will always think first in their native language and apply its grammar to another one. Been there, and done that myself. The mind naturally wants to hold onto what it knows. So, when learning a new language, I find that many students build sentences in English first, then translate word-for-word into German. But German doesn’t just use different words—it uses a different logic. Its word order, grammar, and even rhythms reflect how German speakers see and structure reality. This mismatch creates a mental "lag" that makes learners feel stuck or unsure.

So how can you overcome it?

Here are some ideas that might work for you::

1. Start with phrases, not words.
2. Learn and repeat full German expressions—"Wie geht’s dir?" or "Ich hätte gerne ein Stück Kuchen."—so your brain begins to feel the structure rather than analyze it.
3. Listen daily, even passively.
4. Let your ear and subconscious get used to how German “moves.” Watch shows, listen to music or podcasts—even if you don’t catch everything, your brain is absorbing the language’s flow.
5. Accept that it’s not 1-to-1.
6. Don’t search for exact English equivalents. Let German be what it is. For example, instead of translating “I miss you” literally, embrace "Du fehlst mir" as its own way of expressing longing.
7. Practice speaking in scenes, not scripts.
8. Put yourself in imagined real-life situations—ordering food, asking for help—and speak German as if you were there. This shifts your mind from memorizing to embodying.
9. Shift your mindset: you're not just learning words—you’re stepping into another way of being.
10. The more you respect the logic and soul of the language, the more it will open up to you.

Alles Gute!