mal
German, adverb
mal is spelled M-A-L (3 letters) and appears 1,905 times per million words in written German, the 68th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Mal is a German adverb meaning “times (indicating multiplication of two numbers)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). It is also a singular imperative of malen. With a capital, Mal is a different word: “time (as in the first time; many times)”. On this page, mal. is a different word: “abbreviation of mundartlich (“dialectal”)”. The German Wiktionary defines it as “einmal, zu einem gewissen Zeitpunkt”.
What does mal mean in English?
adverb
- 1
times (indicating multiplication of two numbers)
sechs mal sieben ist zweiundvierzig
- 2
informalalternative form of einmal (“sometime, ever, once”)
Wenn du in Köln bist, musst du mal bei deiner Tante anrufen.
- 3
informalwell, by the way (serving to introduce new information)
Ich geh mal zum Kaffeestand.
- 4
informalSoftening a sentence, thus making a request or command more polite, making an assertion more casual. By extension, indicating a command or request.
Haben Sie mal Feuer?
verb
- 1
singular imperative of malen
- 2
colloquialfirst-person singular present of malen
noun
- 1
neutertime (as in the first time; many times)
- 2
neuteroccasion, case, occurrence
noun
- 1
neutera mark on the body, e.g., a scar, mole, etc.
- 2
neutermark, sign in the landscape, e.g., a milestone
- 3
neuterbase
suffix
- 1
times
adjective
- 1
abbreviation of mundartlich (“dialectal”)
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
abbreviation: 1. Buch Maleachi
noun: 1. Zeichen, Merkmal 2. Zeichen im Sinne von Hervorhebung, Kenntlichmachung, Auszeichnung oder Hinweis 3. Kurz für Wundmal 4. Kurz für angeborene, auffällige Hautpartien
noun: 1. bestimmter Zeitpunkt/Moment; Anzeige eines Wiederholungsfaktors oder einer Reihenfolge
adverb: 1. einmal, zu einem gewissen Zeitpunkt
conjunction: 1. multipliziert mit
particle: 1. drückt Sicherheit oder auch Beiläufigkeit aus
suffix: 1. nachgestelltes Wortbildungselement zur Ableitung eines Adverbs mit der Bedeutung: so viele Male
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 mal
- Males genitive
- Mals genitive
- Male plural
- Malen dative definite plural
- Mäler plural
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
English words that translate to mal
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is mal in German?
mal appears 1,905 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).