It’s what you get when a story changes slightly, when software gets updated, or when someone insists, “That’s not how I remember it.” In German, it’s die Version. This is your German word of the day, and it’s a perfect match for all kinds of edits, retellings, and updates.
The noun Version means version—in both the technical and narrative sense—and it’s one of the 1000 most frequently used nouns in German. You’ll hear it in news reports, software menus, and disagreements about what really happened.
It’s a feminine noun, so we say die Version (still fuzzy on gender? Our quick and powerful video lesson will finally make sense of it: https://deutschable.com/course/lesson-3-3/).
Pronunciation
Version is pronounced [vehr-zee-OHN].
- Ver sounds like “fair,”
- si like “zee,”
- on is pronounced like the French “-ion” in champion
- Stress is on the last syllable: ver-zi-ON
It’s smooth, international, and nearly identical to English.
Example sentences:
Welche Version des Programms benutzt du?
Which version of the program are you using?
Ihre Version der Geschichte klingt ganz anders.
Her version of the story sounds very different.
Nuance and usage tips
Version refers to:
- Software or technical updates
- die neueste Version – the latest version
- Version 2.1.5 ist jetzt verfügbar. – Version 2.1.5 is now available.
- Different accounts or retellings
- zwei Versionen eines Vorfalls – two versions of an incident
- Editions or adaptations
- Die deutsche Version des Films war gekürzt. – The German version of the film was shortened.
You can also hear:
- eine falsche Version verbreiten – to spread a false version
- die offizielle Version – the official version
- eine überarbeitete Version – a revised version
How does this word come up in real conversations?
You’ll hear Version everywhere—whether it’s about tech, gossip, or storytelling.
Examples:
“Ich habe die alte Version gelöscht.” – I deleted the old version.
“Das ist nicht meine Version der Ereignisse.” – That’s not how I remember it.
It’s used in personal conversations as well as in formal writing and media.
Sample Dialogue (Beginner Level)
Jonas: Warum sieht das anders aus als gestern?
Lea: Ich habe eine neue Version hochgeladen.
Jonas: Ah, also doch ein Update!
Lea: Genau. Viel besser jetzt, oder?
Jonas: Why does this look different from yesterday?
Lea: I uploaded a new version.
Jonas: Ah, so it was an update!
Lea: Exactly. Much better now, right?
Grammatical case examples:
Nominative:
Die Version ist nicht aktuell.
The version is not current.
Accusative:
Ich habe die Version noch nicht gelesen.
I haven’t read the version yet.
Dative:
Mit der neuen Version gibt es weniger Fehler.
With the new version, there are fewer errors.
Genitive:
Der Inhalt der Version wurde überarbeitet.
The content of the version was revised.
Feminine case pattern: die, die, der, der
Word variations and language tidbits
Useful compounds and phrases:
- Beta-Version – beta version
- Testversion / Testlizenz – trial version
- Langversion / Kurzversion – long version / short version
- Filmversion / Softwareversion – film or software version
- Version aktualisieren – to update the version
You may also see Edition used interchangeably in marketing contexts (especially for books or collector’s items).
📘 Duden entry: https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Version
🎥 Learn Version and the rest of the top 1000 German nouns in our free online video course: https://deutschable.com/nouns/
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