Shopping and eating out in Luxembourgish: ordering, prices and paying
At the supermarket, the bakery, the café and the restaurant: how to ask for things, ask the price, order, pay and say “enjoy your meal” in Luxembourgish — with real sentences from the LOD dictionary and native recordings.
Updated · 3 min read
Shops and cafés are where most people first use Luxembourgish — and where a simple *Moien* and *merci* make the strongest impression. Here is what you hear and say at the counter, the till and the table. Every word and sentence comes from the Lëtzebuerger Online Dictionnaire (LOD), read by a native speaker. The greetings themselves are in 32 greetings and everyday phrases.
Shopping words
| Luxembourgish | English |
|---|---|
| de Supermarché, de Buttek | the supermarket, the shop |
| d'Keess | the till, the checkout |
| de Präis | the price — *deier* (expensive), *bëlleg* (cheap) |
| d'Rechnung | the bill, the receipt |
| d'Suen | money |
| e Kilo, eng Fläsch, e Glas | a kilo, a bottle, a glass/jar |
| d'Brout, d'Fleesch, de Fësch, de Kéis | bread, meat, fish, cheese |
| d'Geméis, d'Uebst, d'Mëllech, d'Gromperen | vegetables, fruit, milk, potatoes |
| kafen, bezuelen, kaschten | to buy, to pay, to cost |
In the shop
Mir ginn eis Kommissiounen an de Supermarché maachen.
Literally: We're going to do our shopping at the supermarket.
Meaning: Kommissioune maachen — to do the shopping.
Mir gi bei de Metzler Fleesch kafen an net an de Supermarché.
Literally: We buy our meat at the butcher's, not at the supermarket.
Ech kafe mäi Geméis ëmmer am Biobuttek.
Literally: I always buy my vegetables at the organic shop.
Ech brauch nach e Kilo Miel.
Literally: I still need a kilo of flour.
Meaning: brauchen: *ech brauch* — no -en.
Fir den Owend hunn ech Kéis matbruecht.
Literally: I've brought some cheese for tonight.
Meaning: matbréngen → *matbruecht*.
Eise Buttek huet sonndes vun aacht bis zwielef Auer op.
Literally: Our shop is open on Sundays from eight to twelve.
Prices and paying
Esou e Fotoapparat kascht en Heedegeld!
Literally: A camera like that costs a fortune!
Meaning: kaschten — *et kascht* = it costs.
Hien handelt mat all Vendeur, fir e gudde Präis ze kréien.
Literally: He haggles with every seller to get a good price.
Ech hunn dëse Vëlo fir den hallwe Präis kritt.
Literally: I got this bike for half price.
Et nervt, datt alles esou deier ass.
Literally: It's annoying that everything is so expensive.
Et huet 20 Minutte gedauert, bis ech duerch d'Keess war.
Literally: It took 20 minutes to get through the checkout.
Am Supermarché kritt een an der Keess keng Tute méi fir näischt.
Literally: At the supermarket you no longer get free bags at the checkout.
Meaning: fir näischt = for nothing, free; keng … méi = no longer (negation).
Verléier d'Rechnung net, soss kanns de herno näischt ëmtauschen!
Literally: Don't lose the receipt, or you won't be able to exchange anything later!
Meaning: verléieren = to lose.
At the café
Ech hätt dee Kuch gär, wannechgelift!
Literally: I'd like that cake, please!
Meaning: Ech hätt … gär — *I would like*: the polite way to ask for anything. wannechgelift at the end.
Ech drénken ni méi ewéi eng Taass Kaffi.
Literally: I never drink more than one cup of coffee.
Gëff mer e Glas Waasser, ech sinn hallef erdiischtert!
Literally: Give me a glass of water — I'm dying of thirst!
Meaning: Between friends. In a café: *Ech hätt gär e Glas Waasser, wannechgelift.*
Hie geet all Dag an de Café säi Patt huelen.
Literally: He goes to the café for his drink every day.
Meaning: de Patt — the drink you have in a café, usually beer or wine.
At the restaurant
De Chef proposéiert de Mëtteg e Menü mat véier Gäng.
Literally: Today at lunchtime the chef is offering a four-course set menu.
Meaning: de Menü is the *set menu*, as in French.
Mir haten eis knapps gesat, du koum de Garçon scho mat de Menüen.
Literally: We had hardly sat down when the waiter came with the menus.
Meaning: koum — simple past of kommen (past tense).
Mir haten alle béid eng Zopp als Entrée.
Literally: We both had soup as a starter.
Eist Klengt huet sech ganz eleng bei der Serveuse en Dessert bestallt.
Literally: Our little one ordered a dessert from the waitress all by herself.
Meaning: bestellen → *bestallt*.
Ech wënschen Iech e gudden Appetit!
Literally: Enjoy your meal!
Meaning: Gudden Appetit! — what you say when the food arrives. wënschen = to wish.
D'Iesse war gutt a bëlleg!
Literally: The food was good and cheap!
Ech ginn d'Rechnung bei de Comptoir bezuelen.
Literally: I'll go and pay the bill at the counter.
Elo ass et u mir, fir e Patt ze ginn!
Literally: Now it's my turn to buy a round!
Prost, loosst Iech de Patt gutt schmaachen!
Literally: Cheers — enjoy your drink!
The sentence patterns to take away
- Ech hätt gär …, wannechgelift. — I'd like …, please. Works for anything, anywhere.
- Wat kascht …? — How much is …? (kaschten)
- Ech brauch nach … — I still need … (brauchen)
- Ech ginn … bezuelen. — I'll go and pay … (bezuelen)
- Merci, äddi! — thank you, goodbye; and the answer to a merci: gär geschitt.
Don't know a word? Point and say *dat do* (that one there) — then learn the word on the way home. Numbers and prices are the hardest part to catch when listening; the listening guide has tips.
If you work in a shop, a café or a hotel, customers notice when you can answer in Luxembourgish. For practice built around your own job, Edluxio has independent teachers for 1-to-1 online lessons, native Luxembourgish speakers among them — start with a trial lesson, refunded in full if the first one isn't right for you.
Learn the shopping words, 16 at a time
16Word teaches Luxembourgish vocabulary by topic, 16 words at a time, with native recordings and a Blocks game between answers. Free to start.
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Questions about shopping and eating out in Luxembourgish
How do you order in Luxembourgish?
Ech hätt … gär, wannechgelift — I'd like …, please. For example, from LOD: Ech hätt dee Kuch gär, wannechgelift!
How do you ask the price in Luxembourgish?
Wat kascht dat? — How much is that? The verb is kaschten, to cost.
How do you say enjoy your meal in Luxembourgish?
Gudden Appetit! — or in full, Ech wënschen Iech e gudden Appetit!
What does Patt mean in Luxembourgish?
A glass of something to drink — usually beer or wine in a café. E Patt ginn means to buy a round.
Official sources
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