How do you talk about being bored in German?

Careful - are you saying you’re bored or boring in German?

Definition

The word for “bored”, in the sense of being uninterested and feeling tired, is gelangweilt in German. Its corresponding noun “boredom” is Langeweile - essentially a “long while” or “a long period of time”.

The word for “boring” is langweilig.

Likewise, the word for “interesting” is interessant and “interested” is interessiert. Just as with their bored/boring counterparts, these should not be confused with one another.

Examples

The phrase “I am bored.” can be expressed in several ways. The most common in everyday speech is Mir ist langweilig (literally “to me it is boring”) - which does NOT mean “I am boring.” Other options: