21 December 2025
How do you say jump or leap in German?
The German word for jump or leap is der Sprung.You’ll hear it when talking about physical jumps, breakthroughs, broken objects, and figurative leaps in progress. Sprung in German is a high-energy word with lots of real-life uses.
It’s also one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German (get the free illustrated PDF to collect them all).
Gender and Pronunciation
It’s a masculine noun: der Sprung.Want a shortcut for remembering noun gender? This video lesson gives you effective, pattern-based strategies.
Pronunciation:Sprung is pronounced [shprung]
- “SHPRUNG” with a short u, as in put; ng is the sound at the end of sing, without an extra hard g.One syllable: SHPRUNG
Example sentences
Sie machte einen großen Sprung ins Wasser.
She made a big jump into the water.
Das war ein Sprung in der Entwicklung.
That was a leap in development.
Die Tasse hat einen Sprung.
The cup has a crack.
How does this word come up in real conversations?
“Er hat in der Technik einen großen Sprung gemacht.”
He made a big leap in his technique.
“Vorsicht, da ist ein Sprung im Boden.”
Careful, there’s a crack in the floor.
“Der Sprung von A2 auf B1 ist gar nicht so leicht.”
The jump from A2 to B1 isn’t easy at all.
Sample Dialogue (Beginner Level)
Lina: Hast du den Sprung gesehen?Tobi: Ja! Der war fast drei Meter weit!Lina: Wahnsinn. Ich hätte mich das nie getraut.Tobi: Ich bin auch nur knapp gelandet…
Translation:Lina: Did you see the jump?Tobi: Yes! It was almost three meters long!Lina: Wow. I never would’ve dared.Tobi: I barely landed it, too…
Grammatical case examples
Nominative:Der Sprung war perfekt ausgeführt.
The jump was executed perfectly.
Accusative:Ich habe den Sprung verpasst.
I missed the jump.
Dative:Mit dem Sprung begann sein Erfolg.
With that jump, his success began.
Genitive:Die Ursache des Sprungs ist unklar.
The cause of the crack is unclear.
Other ways to say jump in German
While Sprung is the primary noun for jump in German, other forms are used in specific contexts. In casual speech, Hüpfer (little hop) or Satz (a sudden leap) might appear. And very common: Mit dem Gehalt kann ich keine großen Sprünge machen. (With that salary, I cannot afford much.) In sports like figure skating or gymnastics, you’ll also see words like Absprung (take-off), but Sprung remains the neutral and versatile term.
Word variations and tidbits
The noun Sprung is found in compounds like Weitsprung (long jump), Hochsprung (high jump), Sprungbrett (springboard), Sprunggelenk (ankle joint), and Quantensprung (quantum leap - used both literally and metaphorically). It also appears in idioms like den Sprung wagen (to take the plunge), einen Sprung in der Schüssel haben (to be a bit crazy-used humorously), der Sprung ins kalte Wasser (a sudden plunge into something new), auf einen Sprung vorbeikommen (to drop by for a moment), and jemandem auf die Sprünge helfen (to help someone along).
🧠 Fun fact: The phrase Quantensprung in German is often misunderstood - in physics it refers to a transition between quantum states; in everyday speech it can mean a major breakthrough or leap forward.
📘 Duden entry for Sprung🎥 Want to take a bold leap in your vocabulary? Our free video course teaches the top 1000 German nouns - with examples, visuals, and a printable illustrated PDF that gives your learning a solid push.
Ready for more German Words of the Day?Do you know what Staat means? That’s what many people take a Sprung to escape - or to join.
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