Although it’s quite common for people to use the word relaxen (although this is typically greeted with a frown of disapproval by older people, similar to chillen), the proper German word for “to relax” is entspannen, used with the reflexive sich/mich/dich, etc.

Additionally, the (also reflexive) erholen is used to express “to relax” in the sense of recovering (perhaps after a rough week at the office).

The nouns are Entspannung (f.) and Erholung (f.).

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Examples

Ich entspanne mich am Wochenende. I am relaxing on the weekend.

Nach dieser Woche müssen wir uns mal so richtig entspannen. After this week we’ve really got to relax.

Ich erhole mich beim Pool. I’m relaxing/recuperating at the pool.

Er erholt sich von seinem Arbeitsstress. He’s recovering from his work stress.

About the Author Stephan

Stephan has been a professional language teacher since the early 2000s. He's been calling Berlin his home since 2006, when he started managing (and founding his own) language schools in addition to teaching German and English. He's the owner of Deutschable and loves writing about language, history, and game changers.

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