🇩🇪 German 'please' 🙏 A polite request

bitte

1 9.9

A polite request for something said gently

noun
/ˈbɪtə/

: petición

Could you pass the salt, bitte?

Examples

Deutsch, bitte.

Operation Crossbow (1965)
Herr Professor, bitte.

Operation Crossbow (1965)
Pass, bitte.

Rogue Trader (1999)
Passport, bitte.

Wild Geese II (1985)
Entschuldigung, bitte.

The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024)
Zigarette, bitte.

Choose Me (1984)
Sekundanten, bitte.

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
Monsieur Ivan, bitte.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
Ein Augenblick, bitte.

The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
May I have a minute of your time, bitte?

Synonyms

plea

vsbitte

132 3.9

A strong request asking people for help or support

is a more polite and gentle request, less about humble urgency

entreaty

vsbitte

7 7.6

A serious, urgent request for help or forgiveness

is calmer and more formal, not so urgent or emotional

Antonyms

demand

399 3.1

A strong, urgent request someone makes, often as a right

How Polite

bitte

1 9.9

to request

808 1.0

entreaty

7 7.6

plea

132 3.9

demand

399 3.1

Surface Forms

bitte singular

bittes plural

Etymology

Bitte comes from an old German verb bitten meaning 'to ask' and is like the English word bid. So a bitte is simply a polite 'request' or plea, which is why we use it for a gentle or formal asking.