What do you say at the dentist in Germany?

Have you ever been to the dentist in Germany?

I don’t have  "Zahnschmerzen", but I want to go to a dentist near me for a check and a “Zahnreinigung”. I call them up or check on the homepage how I can make a "Termin". My dentist is very up to date, I can make an appointment online.

Then I go to the "Praxis" and register at the reception. The "Sprechstundenhilfe" requests my "Versichertenkarte". I am then allowed to take a seat in the "Wartezimmer". When I enter the room, I quietly greet the few "Patienten" who are also waiting there. If you get a phone call, it would be  better to leave the waiting room or tell that person that you will call back., I then take one of the magazines lying on a table and start paging through it.

After a short time, I am already asked by the doctor's assistant to come into a "Behandlungsraum".

I lay down on the “Behandlungsstuhl”. The doctor comes and "erkundigt sich nach meinem Befinden". I come “zur Kontrolle" and want to have my teeth cleaned.

He shines a light into my "Mund" and looks at everything thoroughly. My teeth are tip-top, just as always. The doctor only removes the "Zahnstein" and starts cleaning right away.

However, not all people have the luck that their "Zähne" are always impeccable.

You can get the following things at the dentist:

- a "Füllung/Plombe" if you have severe caries.

- a "Krone", if a part of your tooth is still in order, but no longer the whole.

- a "Brücke", if you have artificial teeth

- an "Implantat": a pin is placed in your "Kiefer" and an artificial tooth is placed on it.

If you don't know what you have and you only have "Zahnschmerzen", it is best to say: “Ich habe (furchtbare) Zahnschmerzen. Bitte helfen Sie mir.” ("I have a (terrible) toothache. Please help me.")

You may have to come back for another "Kontrolltermin" after the treatment.

Of course, I hope you and your teeth are doing great!

Did I forget anything else that you can have done at the dentist? And what is your experience at the dentist? Let us know in the comments.

Vocabulary:

die Zahnschmerzen – the toothache
die Zahnreininung - professional teeth cleaning
der Termin – the appointment
die Praxis – the doctors‘ office
die Sprechstundenhilfe – the receptionist
die Versicherungskarte/Versichertenkarte – the insurance card
das Wartezimmer – the waiting room
der Patient (Pl. die Patienten) – the patient
der Behandlungsraum – the treatment room
der Behandlungsstuhl – the treatment chair
jmd erkundigt sich nach meinem Befinden – someone asks about my condition
zur Kontrolle kommen – to come for a checkup
der Mund (Pl. die Münder!) – the mouth
der Zahnstein – the tartar
der Zahn (Pl. die Zähne) – the tooth/teeth
die Füllung/die Plombe - the filling/plomb
die Krone – the crown
die Brücke – the bridge
das Implantat – the implant
der Kiefer – the jaw
der Kontrolltermin – the check-up

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