scherzen
to joke
To make jokes or say something in a non-serious, humorous way.
EXAMPLE
Er scherzt gerne mit seinen Kollegen, um die Stimmung aufzulockern.
He likes to joke with his colleagues to lighten the mood.
scherzen
to joke
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Meanings
nicht zu scherzen sein
not to joke with
To be in a serious mood and not tolerate jokes; not to be in the mood for fun.
EXAMPLE
Sei vorsichtig, was du sagst, mit dem Chef ist heute nicht zu scherzen.
Be careful what you say; the boss is not to be joked with today.
Usage tips
Word family
The verb 'scherzen' (to joke) belongs to the noun 'der Scherz' (the joke). So someone who 'scherzt' (jokes) makes jokes.
EXAMPLE
„Das war doch nur ein Scherz!“, sagte er, als sie beleidigt war.
'That was only a joke!' he said when she was offended.
Sentence structure with prepositions
'Scherzen' (to joke) is often used with prepositions. You joke 'mit jemandem' (with someone, dative) or 'über jemanden/etwas' (about someone/something, accusative).
EXAMPLE
Bitte scherze nicht über sein neues Auto.
Please don't joke about his new car.
Fixed expression
The expression 'mit jemandem ist nicht zu scherzen' (someone is not to be joked with) is a fixed structure. The person who does not tolerate jokes always appears in the dative after the preposition 'mit' (with).
EXAMPLE
Nach der schlechten Nachricht war mit ihm den ganzen Tag nicht zu scherzen.
After the bad news, he was not to be joked with all day.
Compare with
scherzen vs witzen
to joke
Both words can mean that someone is making jokes or saying something humorously. „Scherzen“ is the usual modern standard word for this, while „witzen“ is less common and can sound somewhat old-fashioned or regional. In normal conversations, „scherzen“ is therefore usually the better choice; „witzen“ is more likely to occur in particular linguistic contexts.
scherzen
Bei der Feier scherzte er über seine Verspätung, damit die Stimmung wieder besser wurde.
At the party, he joked about being late to improve the mood.
witzen
In dem alten Text witzte er über seine Verspätung, obwohl die anderen Gäste schon warteten.
In the old text, he joked about being late, even though the other guests were already waiting.
In real life
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