German Phrase
Schau mal im Wörterbuch nach.
Meaning
A friendly, informal way to tell someone to look something up in a dictionary. The speaker is asking the listener to check the spelling, meaning or usage of a word.
When to use
Use this phrase when you’re helping a friend with a word, during a language‑learning session, or whenever you want to suggest a quick check in a printed or digital dictionary.
✦Grammar Breakdown
SchaumalimWörterbuchnach
Imperative (2nd person singular)
‘Schau’ is the imperative form of the verb ‘schauen’ used for giving a direct command to ‘du’.
‘mal’ as a softener
The particle ‘mal’ makes the command sound more casual and friendly, similar to ‘just’ in English.
Prepositional contraction ‘im’
‘im’ = ‘in dem’; it introduces the location where the action should happen – the dictionary.
Separable verb ‘nachschauen’
‘nach’ is the separable prefix of ‘nachschauen’; in the imperative it moves to the end of the clause.
🗨In Conversation
Ich verstehe das Wort ‘Gemütlichkeit’ nicht.
I don’t understand the word ‘Gemütlichkeit’.
Schau mal im Wörterbuch nach.
Just look it up in the dictionary.
✕Common Mistakes
Schau mal nach im Wörterbuch.
The separable prefix ‘nach’ must stay at the end of the clause, not before the preposition.
Schau mal das Wörterbuch nach.
‘im’ is required because you’re looking *in* the dictionary, not *at* it.
Schau mal im Wörterbuch nachen.
‘nachen’ is not a German verb; the correct infinitive is ‘nachschauen’.
↔Alternatives
Sieh im Wörterbuch nach.
Check the dictionary.
Wirf einen Blick ins Wörterbuch.
Take a look in the dictionary.
Schau im Wörterbuch nach.
Look in the dictionary.
Cultural Tip
In German, adding ‘mal’ to an imperative softens the command and makes it sound more polite and informal. It’s common among friends, classmates, or in casual tutoring. Avoid using this construction in formal settings; there you would say ‘Bitte schauen Sie im Wörterbuch nach.’