Vocabulary
Es tut mir leid.
/ɛs tuːt miːɐ̯ ˈlaɪ̯t/· phrase
I'm sorry
A real apology or real sympathy: you can't help, you're late, someone tells you bad news. To get past someone or after a small bump, Entschuldigung! is the usual word.
CEFR A1Frequency ●●●●●
Your memory
New
Learning
Familiar
Strong
Mastered
One word, many lives
Tap a meaning. Real German isn't a dictionary translation.
Es tut mir leid.
I'm sorry (I can't help)
Es tut mir leid, ich weiß es nicht.
I'm sorry, I don't know.
Common combinations
- Das tut mir leid.I'm sorry (about that).
- Tut mir leid!Sorry! (short)
- Es tut mir sehr leid.I'm very sorry.
- Es tut mir wirklich leid.I'm really sorry.
Similar & opposite
≈ Synonyms
Entschuldigung!Tut mir leid!
Common learner mistakes
- Ich bin leid.Es tut mir leid.German doesn't say I am sorry word for word. Es tut mir leid is a fixed phrase: learn it as one block.
- Es tut mir Leid.Es tut mir leid.In this phrase leid is written with a small l.
Real examples
- Es tut mir leid, ich verstehe das nicht.I'm sorry, I don't understand.
- Sprechen Sie Englisch? – Nein, es tut mir leid.Do you speak English? – No, I'm sorry.
- Wie geht's? – Nicht so gut. – Oh, das tut mir leid!How are you? – Not so good. – Oh, I'm sorry to hear that!
