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German traffic signs and what they mean

German signs follow three shapes. Red triangles warn you, round signs give orders (red ring = prohibited, blue = mandatory), and rectangles give information. These are the signs that matter most in the theory exam.

Right of way

Yellow diamond (Vorfahrtstraße) – you are on a priority road; you have right of way at the next junctions until the sign with a black stripe ends it.
Upside-down triangle, white with a red border (Vorfahrt gewähren) – give way.
Red octagon STOP (Halt. Vorfahrt gewähren.) – stop completely at the line, then give way.
Triangle with a thick black arrow crossed by a thin line (Vorfahrt) – you have right of way at the next junction only.

→ Roundabout rules in Germany (Kreisverkehr)

Prohibitions

Red circle with white bar (Verbot der Einfahrt) – no entry.
Two cars, one red (Überholverbot) – no overtaking of multi-track vehicles.
Number in a red ring – maximum speed.
Red cross on blue (Halteverbot) – no stopping at all.
Single red diagonal on blue (eingeschränktes Halteverbot) – no waiting longer than three minutes, except to load or let people in or out.

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Zones and areas

Tempo-30-Zone – maximum 30 km/h in the whole zone, and usually right before left at junctions.
Verkehrsberuhigter Bereich – walking pace, children may play on the street.
Umweltzone – only cars with the right emission sticker may enter.

How to learn them fast

Learn the shape rule first, then the right-of-way signs, because they cause the most mistakes. Fahrlingua's Sign Blitz game asks you to name as many signs as you can in 60 seconds – in your language, with the German name.

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