Why do I need to know same?
Because it’s very commonly used in spoken German, with two different meanings.
What does it mean?
In German, same has two meanings. The first of which is the adjective same which means “the same” or “equal” in English.
Equal has the same ancient root as the English word “like”, which is close in meaning, as both can be traced back to the Gothic word galeix.
Like all German adjectives, when same appears before a noun, it adopts the gender and case of that word, for example:
We have the same shirt!
We have the same T-Shirt!
He has the same nose as his father.
He’s got the same nose as his father.
Similar to the German word no matter – which means “equal” – same can also be used to express indifference:
I don’t care / I don’t care.
I don’t care about any of it.
Equal also appears in many other German words which are linked to the meaning of things being equal: the same (likewise), to compare (to compare), the balance (balance), the equality (equality) and equalize (to counterbalance) are just some of the many examples of words containing same.
Same as an adverb
As an adverb, same means something completely different; it’s a very common word used to mean “shortly” or “right away”. You’ll often hear Germans saying things like:
I’ll be right back!
I’ll be there shortly!
See you soon!
See you in a minute!