Citizenship test glossary: key German terms from A to Z

The German citizenship test (Einbürgerungstest) uses the same technical terms again and again: Fraktion, Koalition, Rechtsstaat, Sozialversicherung. This glossary explains the 50 key terms from the official question catalogue in plain English, sorted from A to Z by the German word – from Abgeordnete to Zweitstimme. We've checked every explanation against the correct answers in the catalogue.

The test is only in German, so learn the German term; the English gloss is there to help you understand it, not to replace it. Learn the terms in pairs, because many wrong answers come from the same field: Bundestag and Bundesrat, Koalition and Fraktion, Legislative and Exekutive. How the institutions fit together is explained in Germany's political system explained simply, and tips for studying in English are in is the citizenship test available in English? You can look up every question with its answer in all questions.

A

• Abgeordnete (members of parliament): the members of a parliament, elected by the citizens. The members of the Bundestag are elected by the people who are entitled to vote.
• Aktives Wahlrecht (right to vote): the right to vote in an election. For Bundestag elections, German citizens have it from age 18; the right to stand for election is called passives Wahlrecht.
• Arbeitsgericht (labour court): the court for disputes at work. If your employer dismisses you unfairly, you can file an unfair dismissal claim (Kündigungsschutzklage) there.

B

• Besatzungszonen (occupation zones): after the Second World War the four Allies – the USA, the Soviet Union, Great Britain and France – divided Germany into four zones and Berlin into four sectors. The GDR was founded in the Soviet zone in 1949; more in our German history timeline.
• Betriebsrat (works council): the elected representation of employees in a company. It helps employees with problems with their employer.
• Briefwahl (postal vote): you vote by post instead of at the polling station. This is allowed in Bundestag and state elections.
• Bundeskanzlerin/Bundeskanzler (Federal Chancellor): the head of the federal government, who leads the federal cabinet. The chancellor is elected by the Bundestag on the proposal of the Federal President.
• Bundespräsidentin/Bundespräsident (Federal President): Germany's head of state, whose main task is to represent the country. The president proposes the chancellor for election and appoints the federal ministers – who are chosen by the chancellor. The president is elected not by the people but by the Bundesversammlung, for five years.
• Bundesrat (Federal Council): the body representing the 16 federal states at national level, made up of representatives of the state governments. Through the Bundesrat, the states take part in federal law-making.
• Bundesstaat (federation): a state made up of several member states with their own governments – a principle called federalism (Föderalismus). Under Article 20 of the Basic Law, Germany is a “democratic and social federal state”; school policy, for example, is a matter for the states.
• Bundestag (federal parliament): the parliament for the whole of Germany, elected by the people for four years. Since the 2025 election, following an electoral reform, it has a fixed 630 seats. It passes laws, scrutinises the government and elects the chancellor.
• Bundesverfassungsgericht (Federal Constitutional Court): the court in Karlsruhe responsible for interpreting the Basic Law. It doesn't make laws – parliament does.
• Bundesversammlung (Federal Convention): the assembly that elects the Federal President. Careful: it does not elect the chancellor – the Bundestag does.
• Bürgerinitiative (citizens' initiative): a group of citizens working for a specific local goal, such as keeping a bus route running. You can join one or start your own.
• Bürgermeisterin/Bürgermeister (mayor): the head of a municipality. The heads of government in Berlin and Hamburg carry this title too: Regierende/r Bürgermeister/in in Berlin, Erste/r Bürgermeister/in in Hamburg.

D

• Demokratie (democracy): literally “rule by the people”. It includes regular free elections, freedom of expression and several parties that represent citizens' different opinions. Through elections, the majority can change the government. Press censorship has no place in a democracy. Careful: if a question asks for Germany's form of state (Staatsform), the answer is “Republik” (republic, question 22).
• Diktatur (dictatorship): rule without free elections, press freedom or protection of fundamental rights. The National Socialists set up a dictatorship in 1933. The GDR was a dictatorship too; with the “Wende” (turning point) in autumn 1989 its path to democracy began.
• Diskriminierung (discrimination): treating someone worse because of a characteristic such as skin colour, a disability or being a mother. The principle of equal treatment (Gleichbehandlung) forbids this.

E

• Ehrenamt (voluntary work): unpaid, voluntary work, for example in clubs and associations. German citizens must take on the voluntary role of election helper (Wahlhelfer/in) if they are asked to.
• Einspruch/Widerspruch (objection/appeal): ways to challenge a decision by a public authority. Against a wrong tax assessment you lodge an Einspruch; against a wrong bill from an authority, a Widerspruch.
• Erststimme (first vote): your vote in a Bundestag election for a candidate in your constituency. It's on the left of the ballot paper.
• Exekutive (executive): the branch that carries out the laws – the government, ministries, administration such as the tax office, and the police. Courts are not part of it.

F

• Fraktion (parliamentary group): the association of a party's MPs in parliament; CDU and CSU form one joint Fraktion in the Bundestag. If MPs switch Fraktion, the government can lose its majority.
• Freizügigkeit (freedom of movement): the fundamental right to choose where you live.
• Fünf-Prozent-Hürde (5% threshold): a party needs at least 5% of the second votes (or three constituency seats) to enter the Bundestag. It exists because lots of small parties make it harder to form a government.

G

• Gemeinde/Kommune (municipality): the lowest political level in Germany, alongside the federation and the states. Your municipality sends you your polling card (Wahlbenachrichtigung) before an election, and the public order office (Ordnungsamt) is part of its administration.
• Gewaltenteilung (separation of powers): state power is divided into three branches – Legislative, Exekutive and Judikative – so that they check each other. The press is not a branch of state power.
• Gewerkschaft (trade union): an organisation representing the interests of employees. Unions represent workers, not companies.
• Grundgesetz (Basic Law): the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany, promulgated on 23 May 1949. Article 1 guarantees that human dignity is inviolable; more in the Basic Law and fundamental rights.
• Grundrechte (fundamental rights): the rights guaranteed in the Basic Law, such as freedom of expression, freedom of the press and freedom of faith and conscience. A fundamental right like press freedom cannot be abolished; the right to asylum applies only to foreign nationals.

J

• Judikative (judiciary): the judicial branch – the courts. Judges belong to it; their job is to work at a court and deliver judgments.
• Jugendamt (youth welfare office): the office that helps parents with problems bringing up their children. If a child is beaten or goes hungry, the Jugendamt can take the child out of the family.

K

• Koalition (coalition): parties working together to form a government. The term “Ampelkoalition” (traffic-light coalition), for example, means SPD, FDP and Bündnis 90/Die Grünen governing together.

L

• Landeszentrale für politische Bildung (state agency for civic education): an institution of your federal state where you can find information on political topics. In Schleswig-Holstein this role is filled by the state commissioner for civic education (Landesbeauftragte/r für politische Bildung).
• Landtag (state parliament): the parliament of a federal state; in Berlin it's called the Abgeordnetenhaus, in Hamburg and Bremen the Bürgerschaft. Most are elected for five years, Bremen's for four – see Germany's 16 states and their capitals.
• Legislative (legislature): the law-making branch. At federal level it consists of the Bundestag and the Bundesrat.

M

• Mehrheits- und Verhältniswahlrecht (mixed majority and proportional system): the name of the system used in Bundestag elections. With your first vote you choose a person in your constituency, with your second vote a party – and the second vote decides how many seats a party gets.
• Meinungsfreiheit (freedom of expression): the fundamental right to say what you think – including against the government and, for example, online. It is limited when someone publicly spreads false claims about individuals.
• Ministerpräsidentin/Ministerpräsident (minister-president): the title of the head of government in most federal states – not the national leader. The city states are the exceptions; in Bremen, for example, the title is President of the Senate (Präsident/in des Senats).

O

• Opposition (opposition): all MPs who don't belong to the governing parties. The opposition scrutinises the government.

R

• Rechtsstaat (rule of law): everyone living in Germany, and the state itself, must obey the law. Nobody may be arrested without reason, for example.

S

• Schöffin/Schöffe (lay judge): a volunteer judge. Lay judges decide on guilt and punishment together with professional judges.
• Soziale Marktwirtschaft (social market economy): Germany's economic system – the economy follows supply and demand, but the state ensures social balance. The GDR, by contrast, had a planned economy (Planwirtschaft).
• Sozialstaat (welfare state): the state provides social security, for example through health insurance and benefits such as child benefit (Kindergeld). The Basic Law calls Germany a “social federal state”.
• Sozialversicherung (social insurance): statutory cover for employees, paid for jointly by employers and employees. It includes pension, health, long-term care and unemployment insurance, among others – but not life insurance; more in questions on work and social security.
• Stasi (State Security): short for Ministerium für Staatssicherheit (Ministry for State Security), the secret service of the GDR.

V

• Volkshochschule, VHS (adult education centre): an institution for further education, not just for one age group. Many Volkshochschulen are also where you can sit the citizenship test.
• Volkssouveränität (sovereignty of the people): “All state authority is derived from the people”, as Article 20 of the Basic Law puts it. The people exercise it through elections and other votes – and through parliaments, government and courts.

W

• Wahlgrundsätze (electoral principles): Bundestag elections are general, direct, free, equal and secret (Article 38 of the Basic Law); the catalogue uses the short form “frei, gleich, geheim”. Free means nobody may influence or force you, and your vote may not put you at a disadvantage – voting is a right, not a duty.

Z

• Zweitstimme (second vote): your vote for a party, on the right of the ballot paper. The more second votes a party gets, the more seats it receives in the Bundestag – more in elections in Germany.