carrot / old banger
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carrot
A long, orange root that is eaten as a vegetable. Regionally and in botany, it is also known as 'Karotte' (carrot), 'Mohrrübe' (carrot), or 'Gelbe Rübe' (yellow turnip/carrot).
Für den Eintopf schneide ich noch eine Möhre und etwas Sellerie klein.
For the stew, I'll chop up another carrot and some celery.
old banger
Colloquial and derogatory for an old, often unreliable vehicle or technical device.
Mit dieser alten Möhre von Auto kommen wir niemals in den Urlaub.
We'll never make it on vacation in this old banger of a car.
to dangle a carrot in front of someone
An idiom meaning to lure someone with an incentive or reward, often in order to get them to take a specific action.
Die Firma hält den Mitarbeitern eine Prämie als Möhre vor die Nase, damit sie Überstunden machen.
The company is dangling a bonus as a carrot in front of the employees so that they work overtime.
In connection with the vegetable, 'Möhre' (carrot) is often combined with verbs for preparation. Typical phrases are: 'Möhren schälen' (to peel carrots), 'schneiden' (to cut), 'raspeln' (to grate), or 'kochen' (to cook).
Für den Salat musst du die Möhren nur waschen und raspeln.
For the salad, you only need to wash and grate the carrots.
The word 'Möhre' for the orange root is used mainly in northern and central Germany. It is a good example of how terms for foods can vary regionally in Germany.
Auf dem Wochenmarkt in Hamburg habe ich frische Möhren gekauft.
At the weekly market in Hamburg, I bought fresh carrots.
When 'Möhre' refers to an old vehicle or device, it is always meant colloquially and slightly derogatorily. It is used to express that something is old, slow, or unreliable.
Mein alter Computer ist so eine lahme Möhre, ich brauche dringend einen neuen.
My old computer is such a slow old banger; I urgently need a new one.
The idiom 'jemandem eine Möhre vor die Nase halten' (to dangle a carrot in front of someone) has a fixed structure. The person being lured is always in the dative.
Man hat ihm eine Beförderung als Möhre vor die Nase gehalten, damit er das Projekt übernimmt.
They dangled a promotion in front of him as a carrot so that he would take on the project.
box / crate
Kiste and Möhre can both be colloquial, derogatory terms for an old car. With Kiste, the main focus is on the car’s generally poor or old condition; Möhre more clearly characterizes the vehicle as unreliable or defective.
Diese alte Möhre springt morgens oft nicht an.
This old banger often fails to start in the morning.
Diese alte Kiste hat überall Kratzer, fährt aber noch zuverlässig.
This old banger is scratched all over, but it still runs reliably.
