Both German and English love compound nouns. English spelling obscures the fact that "exchange teacher" "afternoon traffic" "rental car" and "double room" are compound nouns because we write a blank space between the two components. Many English compounds may be written in more than one way: raindance, rain-dance, rain dance. Equivalent German compound nouns are usually written together, e.g. Austauschlehrer, Mietwagen, Doppelzimmer. Some insert an -s- or -n- in the middle to mark the creation of a compound, e.g. Nachmittagsverkehr, Hexenpuppe.

Except for spelling, the rules on compounds in German and English are similar. An exchange teacher is a kind of teacher, while a teacher exchange is a kind of exchange. The same applies for Austauschlehrer and Lehreraustausch. The final element determines the overall meaning of the noun and, in German, determines the gender and plural of the whole word.

Examples of Compound Nouns

• Brauchen Sie eine Abendfrisur?
• Ach, sie sind sicher in eine Wirtschaft gegangen, um sich das Fußballspiel anzusehen.