“Die Guten Zeiten” is a song by German singer-songwriters Wincent Weiss and Johannes Oerding. It was released in June of 2021 and reached number 14 on the German singles chart.

Cultural References, Idioms and Explanations

‘Morgen’ – The noun ‘Morgen’ is a masculine noun (Der Morgen) meaning ‘the morning’. However, ‘Morgen’ can also be a neuter noun (das Morgen) meaning ‘tomorrow’ in the sense of the future. In this song, we see “Ich kann das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken” meaning “I can’t control yesterday and tomorrow anyway” in the sense of ‘I can’t control the past and the future anyway’.

‘ein Mal’ – German usually uses the term ‘einmal’ to mean ‘once’. However, this term developed from ‘ein Mal’ literally meaning ‘one time’. ‘Ein Mal’ can still be used to add emphasis.

‘die sind jetzt’ – You might look at this and wonder why it isn’t ‘sie sind jetzt’. In colloquial German, it is common to use the direct articles as pronouns. These are a form of demonstrative pronoun. They can specify a specific item in comparison to others, or they can add emphasis.

‘sich fragen’ – Literally translating as ‘to ask oneself’, this phrase means ‘to wonder’.

Activities

We’ve created flashcards, games, and exercises to practice vocabulary and grammatical concepts found in this song. Check out our Activities Page to take your learning further!

Song Lyrics with Grammatical Breakdown

Mouse over a term for grammatical information. A chart of the terms and grammatical information can be found here.

Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj ZeitenZeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl

[Verse 1]
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom denkedenkento think, believe | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres vielvielmuch, a lot | adv zuzutoo | adv oftoftoften, frequently | adv ananon, at, in; by, near; with; during | prep | triggers dat or acc morgenmorgentomorrow | adv
Wowowhere | adv willwollento want | verb, mod | first pers sing pres ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom hinhinthere, to | adv undundand | conj werwerwho | pron | interr or rel willwollento want | verb, mod | first pers sing pres ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom sein?seinto be | verb, irreg | infin
Istseinto be | verb, irreg | third pers sing pres meinemeinmy | adj, poss | nom and acc fem sing and pl ZukunftZukunft (no pl)future | noun | fem sing schonschonalready, yet | adv geschrieben?schreibento write | verb, irreg | pp
Treff’treffento hit, strike; hurt; affect; meet, find; reach; make | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres (treffe) ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom dichdichyou, yourself | pron | acc of du (sec pers sing) oderoderor | conj bleib’bleibenstay, remain | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres (bleibe) ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom dochdochbut, however, yet | conj allein?alleinalone, lonely | adj
Esesit, he, she, him, her | pron | third pers sing neut or impers, nom or acc sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl immerimmeralways, constantly, all the time | adv gleichengleichsame; equal | adj FragenFrage (pl Fragen)question; test | noun | fem pl
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom schlafeschlafento sleep, stay (overnight) | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres wiederwiederagain | adv malmal (pl male)time; occasion, occurrence | noun | neut sing | ein mal = once nichtnichtnot | adv eineina, an | art, indef | masc or neut sing | ein mal = once
Ey,Tooltip content find’findento find; think | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom Liebe?Liebe (pl Lieben)love | noun | fem sing Find’findento find; think | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom Frieden?Frieden (pl Frieden)peace; tranquillity; peace agreement | noun | masc sing
Waswaswhat; that which; what, how much, why | pron | interr or rel ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom weiß?wissento know; be aware of | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres Dassdassthat, so that | conj ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom gargarat all; even; really, indeed | adv nichtsnichtsnothing, none | pron weißwissento know; be aware of | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres

[Pre-Chorus]
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom kannkönnenbe able to do, know how to do; be allowed to | verb, mod | third pers sing pres dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing GesternGestern (no pl)yesterday | noun | neut sing undundand | conj dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing MorgenMorgen (pl Morgen)tomorrow | noun | neut sing ehehanyway | adv nichtnichtnot | adv lenkenlenkento guide, direct, influence; steer | verb, reg | infin
Alsoalsoso, therefore; thus | conj denk’denkento think, believe | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres (denke) ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom ininin, at, to; into to | prep | takes dat or acc MomentenMoment (pl Momente)moment | noun | masc pl, dat form

[Chorus]
Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj Zeiten,Zeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl diediethat, which, who, whom, whose; this, that, these, those; she her, it they, them | pron | rel or dem, fem sing sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres jetztjetztnow | adv
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom hoff’,hoffento hope | verb, reg | first pers sing pres (hoffe) dassdassthat, so that | conj duduyou | pron | sec pers sing inform, nom esesit, he, she, him, her | pron | third pers sing neut or impers, nom or acc nienienever | adv vergisstvergessento forget; to leave behind | verb, irreg | sec and third pers sing pres
Ey,Tooltip content kommkommenarrive, come; come from | verb, irreg | sec pers sing impera wirwirwe | pron | first pers pl, nom haltenhaltencatch, hold; stop; hold up, support; keep, maintain; adhere to, follow | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing HierHier (no pl)here | noun | neut sing festfestfirmly, tightly; faithfully, definitely; permanently | adv
Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj Zeiten,Zeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl diediethat, which, who, whom, whose; this, that, these, those; she her, it they, them | pron | rel or dem, fem sing sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres jetztjetztnow | adv

[Verse 2]
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom laufelaufento run, walk; work, function, operate; pass, go by | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres durchdurchthrough | prep | triggers acc denderthe | art, def | acc masc sing, dat pl SchneeSchnee (no pl)snow | noun | masc sing vonvonfrom; off; of, by | prep | triggers dat gesterngesternyesterday | adv
Undundand | conj frag’fragen | verb, reg | first pers sing pres (frage) | sich fragen = to wonder mich,michto ask | pron | acc of ich (first pers sing) „Hab’habento have; own; suffer from | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres (habe) | aux verb used with pp to form perf ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom wasetwassomething; some, a (little) bit | pron | colloquial shortening versäumt?“versäumento miss, lose; neglect; delay, hold up | verb, reg | pp
Ey,Tooltip content bleibenbleibenstay, remain | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres meinemeinmy | adj, poss | nom and acc fem sing and pl Spur’nSpur (pl Spuren)track, trace, sign, trail; lane | noun | fem pl fürfürfor | prep | triggers acc ewig?ewigfor ever, eternally | adv
Dochdochbut, however, yet | conj dadathere; then; here, present; so | adv istseinto be | verb, irreg | third pers sing pres nichts,nichtsnothing, none | pron waswaswhat; that which | pron ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom bereu’bereuento regret, repent | verb, reg | first pers sing pres (bereue)
Esesit, he, she, him, her | pron | third pers sing neut or impers, nom or acc sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl immerimmeralways, constantly, all the time | adv gleichengleichsame; equal | adj FragenFrage (pl Fragen)question; test | noun | fem pl
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom schlafeschlafento sleep, stay (overnight) | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres wiederwiederagain | adv malmal (pl male)time; occasion, occurrence | noun | neut sing | ein mal = once nichtnichtnot | adv eineina, an | art, indef | masc or neut sing | ein mal = once
Ey,Tooltip content hab’habento have; own; suffer from | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres (habe) ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom Liebe?Liebe (pl Lieben)love | noun | fem sing Hab’habento have; own; suffer from | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres (habe) ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom Frieden?Frieden (pl Frieden)peace; tranquillity; peace agreement | noun | masc sing
Waswaswhat; that which | pron ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom weiß?wissento know; be aware of | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres Dassdassthat, so that | conj ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom gargarat all; even; really, indeed | adv nichtsnichtsnothing, none | pron weißwissento know; be aware of | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres

[Pre-Chorus]
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom kannkönnenbe able to do, know how to do; be allowed to | verb, mod | third pers sing pres dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing GesternGestern (no pl)yesterday | noun | neut sing undundand | conj dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing MorgenMorgen (pl Morgen)tomorrow | noun | neut sing ehehanyway | adv nichtnichtnot | adv lenkenlenkento guide, direct, influence; steer | verb, reg | infin
Alsoalsoso, therefore; thus | conj denk’denkento think, believe | verb, irreg | first pers sing pres (denke) ichichI | pron | first pers sing, nom ininin, at, to; into to | prep | takes dat or acc MomentenMoment (pl Momente)moment | noun | masc pl, dat form

[Chorus]
Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj Zeiten,Zeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl diediethat, which, who, whom, whose; this, that, these, those; she her, it they, them | pron | rel or dem, fem sing sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres jetztjetztnow | adv
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom hoff’,hoffento hope | verb, reg | first pers sing pres (hoffe) dassdassthat, so that | conj duduyou | pron | sec pers sing inform, nom esesit, he, she, him, her | pron | third pers sing neut or impers, nom or acc nienienever | adv vergisstvergessento forget; to leave behind | verb, irreg | sec and third pers sing pres
Ey,Tooltip content kommkommenarrive, come; come from | verb, irreg | sec pers sing impera wirwirwe | pron | first pers pl, nom haltenhaltencatch, hold; stop; hold up, support; keep, maintain; adhere to, follow | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing HierHier (no pl)here | noun | neut sing festfestfirmly, tightly; faithfully, definitely; permanently | adv
Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj Zeiten,Zeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl diediethat, which, who, whom, whose; this, that, these, those; she her, it they, them | pron | rel or dem, fem sing sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres jetztjetztnow | adv

[Bridge]
Wirwirwe | pron | first pers pl, nom könn’nkönnenbe able to do, know how to do; be allowed to | verb, mod | first and third pers pl pres dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing GesternGestern (no pl)yesterday | noun | neut sing undundand | conj dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing MorgenMorgen (pl Morgen)tomorrow | noun | neut sing ehehanyway | adv nichtnichtnot | adv lenkenlenkento guide, direct, influence; steer | verb, reg | infin
Alsoalsoso, therefore; thus | conj denkdenkento think, believe | verb, irreg | sec pers sing impera | alt form of denke dochdochbut, however, yet | conj ininin, at, to; into to | prep | takes dat or acc MomentenMoment (pl Momente)moment | noun | masc pl, dat form

[Chorus]
Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj Zeiten,Zeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl diediethat, which, who, whom, whose; this, that, these, those; she her, it they, them | pron | rel or dem, fem sing sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres jetztjetztnow | adv
IchichI | pron | first pers sing, nom hoff’,hoffento hope | verb, reg | first pers sing pres (hoffe) dassdassthat, so that | conj duduyou | pron | sec pers sing inform, nom esesit, he, she, him, her | pron | third pers sing neut or impers, nom or acc nienienever | adv vergisstvergessento forget; to leave behind | verb, irreg | sec and third pers sing pres
Ey,Tooltip content kommkommenarrive, come; come from | verb, irreg | sec pers sing impera wirwirwe | pron | first pers pl, nom haltenhaltencatch, hold; stop; hold up, support; keep, maintain; adhere to, follow | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres dasdasthe | art, def | nom and acc neut sing HierHier (no pl)here | noun | neut sing festfestfirmly, tightly; faithfully, definitely; permanently | adv
Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj Zeiten,Zeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl diediethat, which, who, whom, whose; this, that, these, those; she her, it they, them | pron | rel or dem, fem sing sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres jetztjetztnow | adv

[Outro]
Diediethe | art, def | nom and acc fem sing and pl gutengutgood, ok, all right | adj Zeiten,Zeit (pl Zeiten)time; time of day; moment; period, era | noun | fem pl diediethat, which, who, whom, whose; this, that, these, those; she her, it they, them | pron | rel or dem, fem sing sindseinto be | verb, irreg | first and third pers pl pres jetztjetztnow | adv

Lyrics with Translation

Songs in any language often leave room for multiple interpretations. Following is my interpretation of the song lyrics.

Die guten Zeiten
The good times

[Verse 1]
Ich denke viel zu oft an morgen
I think about tomorrow far too often
Wo will ich hin und wer will ich sein?
Where do I want to go and who do I want to be?
Ist meine Zukunft schon geschrieben?
Is my future already written?
Treff’ ich dich oder bleib’ ich doch allein?
Do I meet you or do I stay alone?
Es sind die immer gleichen Fragen
It’s always the same questions
Ich schlafe wieder mal nicht ein
Once again I can’t sleep
Ey, find’ ich Liebe?
Ey, will I find love?
Find’ ich Frieden?
Will I find peace?
Was ich weiß?
What do I know?
Dass ich gar nichts weiß
That I don’t know anything

[Pre-Chorus]
Ich kann das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken
I can’t control yesterday and tomorrow anyway
Also denk’ ich in Momenten
So I think in moments

[Chorus]
Die guten Zeiten, die sind jetzt
The good times, they’re now
Ich hoff’, dass du es nie vergisst
I hope you never forget it
Ey, komm, wir halten das Hier fest
Hey, come on, let’s hold the here tightly
Die guten Zeiten, die sind jetzt
The good times, they’re now

[Verse 2]
Ich laufe durch den Schnee von gestern
I walk through yesterday’s snow
Und frag’ mich, „Hab’ ich was versäumt?“
And wonder, ” Did I miss something?“
Ey, bleiben meine Spur’n für ewig?
Ey, will my tracks stay forever?
Doch da ist nichts, was ich bereu’
But there’s nothing I regret
Es sind die immer gleichen Fragen
It’s always the same questions
Ich schlafe wieder mal nicht ein
Once again I can’t sleep
Ey, hab’ ich Liebe?
Ey, do I have love?
Hab’ ich Frieden?
Do I have peace?
Was ich weiß?
What do I know?
Dass ich gar nichts weiß
That I don’t know anything

[Pre-Chorus]
Ich kann das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken
I can’t control yesterday and tomorrow anyway
Also denk’ ich in Momenten
So I think in moments

C

[Bridge]
Wir könn’n das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken
We can’t control yesterday and tomorrow anyway
Also denk doch in Momenten
So think in moments

C

[Outro]
Die guten Zeiten, die sind jetzt
The good times, they’re now

Grammatical Concepts Used in this Song

• Possessive Adjectives:
  • Ist meine Zukunft schon geschrieben?
  • Ey, bleiben meine Spur’n für ewig?

• Accusative:
  • Treff’ ich dich oder bleib’ ich doch allein?
  • Ey, find’ ich Liebe?
  • Find’ ich Frieden?
  • Ich kann das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken
  • Ey, komm, wir halten das Hier fest
  • Ich laufe durch den Schnee von gestern
  • Und frag’ mich, „Hab’ ich was versäumt?“
  • Ey, hab’ ich Liebe?
  • Hab’ ich Frieden?
  • Wir könn’n das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken

• Dative:
  • Also denk’ ich in Momenten
  • Also denk doch in Momenten

• Irregular Verbs:
  • sein:
    • Ist meine Zukunft schon geschrieben?
    • Doch da ist nichts, was ich bereu’
    • Es sind die immer gleichen Fragen
    • Die guten Zeiten, die sind jetzt
  • treffen:
    • Treff’ (treffe) ich dich oder bleib’ ich doch allein?
  • schlafen:
    • Ich schlafe wieder mal nicht ein
  • wissen:
    • Was ich weiß?
    • Dass ich gar nichts weiß
  • halten:
    • Ey, komm, wir halten das Hier fest
  • laufen:
    • Ich laufe durch den Schnee von gestern
  • haben:
    • Und frag’ mich, „Hab’ (habe) ich was versäumt?“
    • Ey, hab’ (habe) ich Liebe?
    • Hab’ (habe) ich Frieden?
• Modal Verbs:
  • wollen:
    • Wo will ich hin und wer will ich sein?
  • können:
    • Ich kann das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken
    • Wir könn’n (können) das Gestern und das Morgen eh nicht lenken

• Reflexive:
  • Und frag’ mich, „Hab’ ich was versäumt?“

• Perfekt:
  • Und frag’ mich, „Hab’ (habe) ich was versäumt?“