It’s what lets you follow a foreign film, understand a YouTube video, or read along in class. In German, it’s called der Untertitel. This is your German word of the day, and it’s essential for language learners, film lovers, and accessibility.

The noun Untertitel means subtitle, and it’s one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German. You’ll see it in TV menus, streaming apps, and language classrooms everywhere.

It’s a masculine noun, so we say der Untertitel (still struggling with gender? Our fast, clear video guide will finally make it stick: https://deutschable.com/course/lesson-3-3/).

Pronunciation

Untertitel is pronounced [OON-ter-tee-tel].

• Un sounds like “oon,”
• ter as in “terrace,”
• ti is a short “tee,”
• tel is pronounced like “tell” without stress
• Stress is on the first syllable: UN-ter-titel

It’s a bit formal-sounding, but very common and clear.

Example sentences:

Kannst du bitte die Untertitel einschalten?
Can you please turn on the subtitles?

Die Serie hat keine deutschen Untertitel.
The show has no German subtitles.

Nuance and usage tips

Untertitel refers to:

1. Subtitles for movies and videos – translations or transcripts of speech
   • englische Untertitel – English subtitles
   • deutsche Untertitel – German subtitles
2. A subheading in writing – like a subtitle in a book or article
   • mit dem Untertitel: "Eine wahre Geschichte"
     – with the subtitle: “A True Story”

You’ll often hear these phrases:

• Untertitel einschalten / ausschalten – turn subtitles on/off
• mit / ohne Untertitel – with / without subtitles
• automatische Untertitel – auto-generated subtitles

How does this word come up in real conversations?

For language learners, Untertitel is part of everyday practice. Watching a show mit Untertiteln is a great way to improve your vocabulary.

Common things people say:

“Ich lerne Deutsch mit englischen Untertiteln.” – I’m learning German with English subtitles.
“Ich lese die Untertitel schneller als ich höre.” – I read the subtitles faster than I hear.

It’s also helpful when using streaming platforms (Netflix, ARD Mediathek, YouTube) that let you select Sprache (language) and Untertitel.

Sample Dialogue (Beginner Level)

Lina: Hast du den Film gesehen?
Tobi: Ja, aber ich hab nichts verstanden!
Lina: Warum hast du keine Untertitel angemacht?
Tobi: Ich wusste nicht, dass es welche gibt!

Lina: Did you see the film?
Tobi: Yes, but I didn’t understand anything!
Lina: Why didn’t you turn on subtitles?
Tobi: I didn’t know there were any!

Grammatical case examples:

Nominative:
Der Untertitel ist gut lesbar.
The subtitle is easy to read.

Accusative:
Ich habe den Untertitel nicht gesehen.
I didn’t see the subtitle.

Dative:
Mit dem Untertitel verstehe ich mehr.
I understand more with the subtitle.

Genitive:
Die Farbe des Untertitels war zu hell.
The color of the subtitle was too light.

Masculine case pattern: der, den, dem, des

Word variations and language tidbits

Useful compounds and related terms:

• Hörfilm-Untertitel – subtitles for the hearing impaired
• Original mit Untertiteln (OmU) – original audio with subtitles
• Film mit Untertiteln – subtitled film
• automatisch generierte Untertitel – auto-generated subtitles
• Untertitelspur – subtitle track

Fun fact: In Germany, many cinemas label foreign-language films as OmU (Original mit Untertiteln), OV (Originalversion), or OmEngU (with English subtitles). Good to know when buying a ticket!

📘 Duden entry: https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Untertitel
🎥 Learn Untertitel and the rest of the top 1000 German nouns in our free online video course: https://deutschable.com/nouns/

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