When you’re running late, rushing to catch a train, or someone’s yelling at you to move faster—Germans say: Beeilung! It’s the noun form of “hurry up,” and it carries a mix of impatience and encouragement.

The noun Beeilung means hurry, haste, or rush, and it’s one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German. While it's not used in every sentence, it shows up all the time in commands, reminders, and moments when time’s running out.

It’s a feminine noun, so we say die Beeilung.

Pronunciation

Beeilung is pronounced [beh-EYE-loong].

• The “ei” is pronounced like “eye,”
• The “lung” sounds like “loong,” slightly nasal,
• The stress is on the second syllable: be-EI-lung.

It sounds quick and active—just like its meaning.

Example sentences:

• Ein bisschen Beeilung, bitte!
  A little hurry, please!
• Wegen der Beeilung hat er seinen Schlüssel vergessen.
  Because of the rush, he forgot his keys.

Nuance and usage tips

Beeilung comes from the verb sich beeilen – to hurry. But the noun form is mostly used in exclamations and casual pressure:

• Beeilung! Wir kommen zu spät! – Hurry up! We're going to be late!
• Mach ein bisschen Beeilung! – Get a move on!

You won’t usually see Beeilung in formal writing. It’s more of a spoken, situational noun—something you’d say in real life, not put in an academic essay.

Its antonym would be Gemächlichkeit (leisureliness) or Langsamkeit (slowness), though those are rarely used in conversation.

Grammatical case examples:

• Nominative: Die Beeilung war unnötig—der Zug hatte Verspätung.
  The rush was unnecessary—the train was late.
• Accusative: Ich hasse die Beeilung am Morgen.
  I hate the morning rush.
• Dative: Mit der Beeilung passieren leicht Fehler.
  With all the hurrying, mistakes happen easily.
• Genitive: Wegen der Beeilung vergaßen wir das Ticket.
  Because of the rush, we forgot the ticket.

Feminine case pattern: die, die, der, der

Word variations and language tidbits

Variation Station:

• sich beeilen – to hurry (verb)
• Eile – hurry / urgency (more common in writing or formal contexts)
• eilen – to rush (formal/literary verb)
• in aller Eile – in great haste
• Mach schnell! – colloquial way to say "Hurry up!"
• Keine Eile! – “No rush!”

Fun usage note:
You’ll often hear Beeilung! shouted by parents, teachers, or impatient friends. It’s a fixed phrase—not used with articles in commands. Like:

Beeilung, Kinder! Der Bus fährt gleich.
“Hurry up, kids! The bus is about to leave.”

📘 Duden entry: https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Beeilung

🎥 Learn Beeilung and the rest of the top 1000 German nouns in our free online video course:
https://deutschable.com/nouns/

Alternate translations note:
For more formal uses of “haste”, the word Eile is more standard. But Beeilung is more emotional, more direct, and more likely to be shouted across a train platform. If you want to sound natural in conversation, this is the word you’ll want at the ready.

Ready for more German words of the day? Do you know what Belohnung means? How about Besucher? Find out!