bestellen
German, verb/bəˈʃtɛlən/
bestellen is spelled B-E-S-T-E-L-L-E-N (9 letters) and appears 27 times per million words in written German, the 3,035th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Bestellen is a German verb meaning “to order (e.g. food at a restaurant, items for delivery)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “eine Ware oder Dienstleistung zur Lieferung in Auftrag geben”.
What does bestellen mean in English?
verb
- 1
to order (e.g. food at a restaurant, items for delivery)
Ich bestelle Bier für alle.
- 2
to order to come, to summon (to a location)
Die Kanzlerin bestellte mich in ihr Büro.
- 3
to reserve (e.g. a table, hotel room)
- 4
to convey to, to send to (a message, greetings)
- 5
to appoint
Sie wurde zur neuen Pressesprecherin bestellt.
- 6
to cultivate, till (a field, by ploughing, manuring etc.)
Ein guter Bauer bestellt den Boden, bevor er pflanzt.
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
verb: 1. eine Ware oder Dienstleistung zur Lieferung in Auftrag geben 2. eine Nachricht ausrichten, überbringen 3. den Boden bearbeiten 4. jemandem ein Amt (einen Dienstposten) übertragen
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of bestellen
- bestellt present singular third-person
- bestellte past
- haben auxiliary
- bestellend participle present
- bestelle first-person indicative present
- bestellst indicative present second-person
- bestellest second-person singular subjunctive
- bestellet plural second-person subjunctive
- bestellten first-person indicative plural
- bestelltest indicative preterite second-person
- bestelltet indicative plural preterite
- bestell imperative second-person singular
- habe bestellt first-person indicative multiword-construction
- haben bestellt first-person indicative multiword-construction
- bestell! imperative singular
- bestelle! imperative singular
- bestellt! imperative plural
- bestellt haben active infinitive perfect
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce bestellen?
- /bəˈʃtɛlən/
- [bəˈʃtɛlən]
- [-ˈʃtɛl̩n]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to bestellen
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is bestellen in German?
bestellen appears 27 times per million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).