Membel
German NOUN B1 Rank 2881

der Boss

boss

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Meanings

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der Boss

boss

A person who is in charge in a company or organization and gives instructions to others. It is a colloquial expression for a supervisor or manager.

example

Mein Boss will, dass das Projekt bis Freitag fertig ist.

My boss wants the project to be finished by Friday.

Visual example for Boss: der Boss

Usage tips

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synonym · confusable

Boss vs Chef

boss

'der Chef' and 'der Boss' can both mean the person who is in charge in a company or group. 'Chef' is very normal in German and fits well in many work situations. 'Boss' is more colloquial and often sounds more casual, sometimes also a bit stronger or more direct. The words can easily be confused because they often refer to the same person. In formal situations, for example in emails or conversations with customers, 'Chef' usually sounds more natural than 'Boss'.

Visual example for Chef
Boss

Im Team sagt Max oft scherzhaft, dass Lisa hier der Boss ist.

On the team, Max often jokingly says that Lisa is the boss here.

Chef

Meine Schwester ruft ihren Chef an, weil sie später zur Arbeit kommt.

My sister calls her boss because she is coming to work later.

Open full lesson: Chef →

In real life

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