Let’s have some fun with this weird German language!
In this series of posts, I’ll show you how to make your German speaking colleagues laugh, with ONE simple sentence.
Jacke wie Hose sein
(Jacket like trousers to be)
A Jacket is something different than trousers or pants.
They have a different form and a different usage (und eine andere Verwendung).
But if we look more closely we’ll find that they are oftentimes made of the same material like wool (aus dem selben Material wie Wolle).
And that’s what this expression is all about.
When something seems different but it’s actually the same or doesn’t make any difference, we say in German:
- Das ist doch Jacke wie Hose! (That’s six of one and half a dozen of another.)
- Es ist mir Jacke wie Hose! (I don’t give a hoot one way or the other.)
Got it?!
So here’s your action step:
Imagine your German-speaking colleague Karl-Peters tells you the story about this lucky lottery winner from the news (aus den Nachrichten).
Then he asks you: “Do you know about him? What was his name, again, Peter or Tom? (Wie war nochmal sein Name?)”
Then, tell him how important that information is for you:
- Das ist mir Jacke wie Hose! Ich habe jedenfalls nicht im Lotto gewonnen! (I don’t give a hoot one way or the other. I, for one, have not won the the lottery.)
And this is what it sounds like:
Then, tell me in the comments below how he reacted :-)