What a short-answer question is: A short-answer question (die kurze Antwort) asks you to answer a question about a recording in a few words of German — not a sentence, not an essay. What earns the mark is the correct, relevant content the question asks for, NOT essay style or perfect grammar. You hear the clip twice, then write the exact detail.
- die kurze Antwort
- the short answer — a few words, not a sentence
- die Frage
- the question — what you must answer
- die Information / die Angabe
- the piece of information / the detail
- das Schlüsselwort
- the key word — what you note down
- antworten / beantworten
- to answer / to respond to
- genau / präzise
- exact / precise — exactly to the point
A few words is enough: You do not need a full sentence. „Mit dem Fahrrad“ scores just as well as „Sie fährt mit dem Fahrrad zur Schule“ — and it's faster and safer. Give the exact detail the question asks for and move on.
Three rules, one table: Short answers come down to three rules. English explains the rule; the point is the same in every recording: give the right detail, briefly, to the question actually asked.
| Regel | Was sie bedeutet |
|---|---|
| Wenige Wörter | ein Wort oder eine kurze Wortgruppe genügt — schreib keine langen Sätze |
| Beantworte, was gefragt wird | antworte genau auf die gestellte Frage, nicht auf etwas anderes |
| Kopiere keine langen Stellen | kopiere keine ganzen Sätze aus dem Text; gib nur die gefragte Information |
The two facts students forget: 1) A short, correct answer scores full marks — length adds nothing. 2) The mark is for the content, so don't lose it by over-writing or by copying a long, irrelevant chunk hoping the answer is buried in there.
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A method for every short answer: Don't try to write down everything you hear. Run the same five steps on each short-answer question and you'll capture the exact detail the examiner wants.
Nail the short answer
Read the question
Read the question carefully — what exactly is it asking? A time? A place? A reason? German question words flag it: wann? (when), wo? (where), warum? (why), wie? (how), wie viele? (how many).
Listen for that detail
On the recording, listen for that specific detail — ignore everything that isn't the answer to the question.
Note the key word(s)
Jot down the key word or words as you hear them — a quick note (das Schlüsselwort), not a full sentence.
Write a short, precise answer
Turn your note into a short, precise answer — a few words of German, exactly the detail asked for.
Check it answers the question
Read your answer back against the question — does it actually answer what was asked? If yes, move on.
Read Q → Listen → Note → Write short → Check
Shorter is safer: The shorter your answer, the less chance of including something wrong that cancels the mark. Give the detail, nothing more — and never leave a blank.
This is exactly how it feels: This is exactly how a short-answer question feels — you hear the clip, you don't see the words. Read the question, play the audio, write a few-word answer, then reveal the transcript to check. In the real exam you'd hear it twice.
Hörverstehen — Jonas' Wochenende
Listen to Jonas talk about his weekend. Read the question first, write a SHORT answer, then reveal the transcript to check — exactly how a Paper 2 short-answer question works.
Du hörst Jonas darüber sprechen, wie er sein Wochenende verbringt.
- Was ist das Lieblingsessen von Jonas? (What is Jonas's favourite food?) — Antworte mit wenigen Wörtern.
Hallo, ich heiße Jonas. Samstagvormittags helfe ich meiner Mutter auf dem Wochenmarkt, und am Nachmittag spiele ich mit meinen Freunden im Sportverein Basketball. Sonntags bleibe ich lieber zu Hause: Ich lese, ich ruhe mich aus und abends esse ich mit meiner ganzen Familie zu Abend. Mein Lieblingsessen sind die Käsespätzle, die meine Oma kocht.
Hi, my name is Jonas. On Saturday mornings I help my mum at the weekly market and in the afternoon I play basketball with my friends at the sports club. On Sundays I prefer to stay at home: I read, I rest and in the evening I have dinner with my whole family. My favourite food is the Käsespätzle my grandma cooks.
- Die Käsespätzle (von seiner Oma).
Answer in a few words: Read the question, listen for that one detail — here, a food. Answer in a few words („die Käsespätzle“), not a sentence. You hear the clip twice, so use the second play to confirm it.
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Where short-answer marks are lost: Short-answer marks are lost on technique, not on German. Compare what good candidates do with the traps everyone else falls into.
Gute Praxis (good practice)
- Beantworte die Frage, die WIRKLICH gestellt wurde.
- Gib wenige genaue Wörter — genau die gefragte Information.
- Zitiere nur das Schlüsselwort, keine lange Stelle.
- Schreib immer etwas — lass nie eine Lücke.
Typische Fehler (typical errors)
- Eine ANDERE Frage beantworten (z. B. den Ort nennen, wenn nach der Zeit gefragt wird).
- Viel zu viel schreiben — einen ganzen Absatz für eine Information.
- Eine irrelevante Stelle aus dem Text kopieren und hoffen.
- Die Antwort leer lassen, weil man sie beim ersten Hören verpasst hat.
Answer the question that was asked: Before you write, re-read the question. The most common lost mark is a correct fact that answers the wrong question. And never leave a blank — you hear it twice, so use the second play to fill every gap.