One novice and one varsity team per school, competing in separate tournaments. Novice teams, consisting only of students in German I and German II who have never competed in Pass auf! before, compete only at the regional level and do not advance to state. 

A team may consist of up to seven players, with no exchange students from German-speaking countries. However, only up to five players may compete in a given round. Two teams play head-to-head in each game. A game consists of 25 questions – five questions from each of the following broad categories: History & Politics, Arts & Letters, Odds and Ends, Erdkunde, and Current Events & Special Topic.  In each category there will be questions valued at 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 points, based upon difficulty.

From the time that a question is read for the first time, the teams have 30 seconds in which to signal. After signaling, a team has 30 seconds to confer before beginning to give the answer. If a team gives a correct answer, it receives the points designated for the question. If the team’s answer is not accepted by the moderator, the moderator will reread the question for the opposing team. It then has 30 seconds to signal whether it wants to try to answer the question. After it signals, it has 30 seconds in which to answer.

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Grammar for 10

In German, some words are spelled with a consonant that does not exist in the English alphabet. Give the German name for this letter?
ANS: Eszet (Scharfes S)

Arts and Letters for 10
Name the German scientist who is considered the father of the American space program?
ANS: Werner von Braun

History and Politics for 10
Name the last major German offensive of WWII in the West.
ANS: Battle of the Bulge

Odds and Ends for 10
As of January 1, 2002, what is the basic monetary unit in Germany?
ANS: Euro
Erdkunde für 10, Auf Deutsch.!
Wie heisst die Hauptstadt von Deutschland?
ANS: Berlin

Odds and Ends for 20
Give the German equivalent of We believe what we wish to believe.
ANS: Was man wünscht, glaubt man gern.

Arts and Letters for 20
Which king of Bavaria was the royal patron of Richard Wagner?
ANS: Ludwig II

Grammar for 20
Give the plural form of the following noun. Mann
ANS: Männer

Erdkunde für 20, Auf Deutsch!
In welchem Bundesland fliesst die Mosel?
ANS: Rheinland-Pfalz

History and Politics for 20
Name the Prussian king who preferred French to German and often calmed his nerves before battle by playing the flute?
ANS: Friedrich der Grosse (Frederick the Great)

Grammar for 30
What are two ways to say it is 4:30 am?
ANS: Es ist halb fünf. Es ist vier Uhr dreissig. (Es dreissig Minuten nach vier Uhr. Es dreissig Minuten vor vier Uhr.)

History and Politics for 30
Two part question. Who is the current Chancellor of Germany and to which political party does he belong?
ANS: (Gerhard) Schrörder SPD

Odds and Ends for 30
What is the German name for the famous boy’s choir from Vienna?
ANS: Wiener Sängerknaben

Arts and Letters for 30
What was the name of the group of artists who gathered in munich before WWI and included the famous Russian-born artist Wassily Kandinsky?
ANS: Der Blaue Reiter

Erdkunde für 30, Auf Deutsch!
Wie heisst die Landeshauptstadt von Niederösterreich?
ANS: Sankt Pölten

Odds and Ends for 40
Give the German equivalent of A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
ANS: Ein Sperling in der Hand ist besser als eine Taube auf dem Dache.

Erdkunde für 40, Auf Deutsch!
Zweiteilig! Wie heisst Deutschlands höchster Berg und in welchem Bundesland steht er?
ANS: Zugspitze Bayern

Arts and Letters for 40
During the 15th century, guilds were formed to cultivate poetry and music. What were the members of these guilds called?
ANS: Meistersinger (Meistersänger)

Grammar for 40
Change the following sentence into the present perfect or conversational past tense – Er lädt uns ein.
ANS: Er hat uns eingeladen.

History and Politics for 40
Name the missionary who attempted to Christianize the Germanic tribes. He established the bishoprics of Salzburg, Regensburg, Passau, and Erfurt.
ANS: St. Boniface

Grammar for 50
Put this sentence into German: She stands in front of the door.
ANS: Sie steht vor der Tür.

Arts and Letters for 50
Multi-part question. What period of German Literature followed the Aufklärung and was characterized by a love of sentimentality, nature and liberty? And who were its two most famous authors?
ANS: Sturm und Drang Goether and Schiller

History and Politics for 50
Multi-part.
For the first time since 1933, a freely elected all-German parliament met in what year, in what building, in which German city?
ANS: 1990; Reichstag; Berlin

Erdkunde für 50, Auf Deutsch!
Welche Insel Gruppe liegt an der Nordsee Küste von Schleswig-Holstein?
ANS: Nordfriesische Inseln

Odds and Ends for 50
In Germany and Austria most prices include a value-added tax. What is the German term for this tax?
ANS: Mehrwertsteuer
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Varsity Pass Auf Game

Click the following link for a video of a sample round.  Sample Pass Auf Round Video

Grammar for 20
Put this sentence into German. She is washing her face.
ANS: Sie wäscht sich das Gesicht.

2. Grammar for 10
Change the subject and verb in this sentence to plural:
Das Kind ist klein.
ANS: Die Kinder sind klein.

3. Arts and Letter for 30
Which group of Expressionist painters gathered in Dresden in 1905? Emil Nolde and Max Beckmann are well known members of this group.
ANS: Die Brücke

4. History and Politics for 40
After the death of Charles VI, Austria was attacked by Prussia, Bavaria and France. During this war which lasted from 1740-1748 Prussia seized and held Silesia. Name this war.
ANS: War of Austrian Succession

5. Arts and Letters for 40
Which German archeologist discovered and excavated the ancient city of Troy?
ANS: Heinrich Schliemann

6. History and Politics for 30
The first all-German elections to the German Bundestag were held on what date?
ANS: Dec. 2, 1990

7. Erdkunde für 40 Auf Deutsch
Welcher Wald liegt zwischen der Tschechische Republik und Deutschland?
ANS: Böhmerwald

8. History and Politics for 10
Who became the first Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in 962?
ANS: Otto I

9. Odds and Ends
Give the German equivalent of – Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
ANS: Aus nichts, wird nichts.

10. Erdkunde für 20 Auf Deutsch
Welcher Fluß ist die Grenze zwischen Liechtenstein und der Schweiz?
ANS: (der) Rhein

11. Odd and Ends for 40
Give the German name for the warm, dry winter winds that come over the northern Alps from the Mediterranean and are blamed for everything from an increase in accidents to an increase in headaches?
ANS: Föhn(wind)

12. Odds and Ends for 30
Give the German name for the famous boy’s vocal group from Vienna?
ANS: Wiener Sängerknaben

13. History and Politics for 50
What agreement issued in 1122 ended the investiture dispute between Henry III and the pope over the selection of bishops?
ANS: Concordat of Worms

14. Arts and Letters for 50
Give the composers for each of the following pieces: Academic Festival Overture, Träumerei, and Der Rosenkavalier.
ANS: Academic Festival Overture – Johannes Brahms
Träumerei – Robert Schumann
Der Rosenkavalier – Richard Strauss

15. Grammar for 30
Put the following sentence into German: The pupil helped the teacher.
ANS: Der Schuler half (hat) dem Lehrer (geholfen).

16. Erdkunde für 50 Auf Deutsch
Wie heissen die fünf neuen Länder DEutschlands?
ANS: Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, Thüringen

17. Odds and Ends for 50
Two part question. Name the oldest zoo in the German-speaking world and the city in which it is found?
ANS: Schönbrunn Zoo Vienna (Wien)

18. Grammar for 40
Change the following sentence into the simple past, also known as the imperfect or narrative past tense. Ich habe die Fragen schwer gefunden.
ANS: Ich fand die Fragen schwer.

19. Erdkunde für 10 Auf Deutsch
Wie heist die älteste Stadt Deutschlands?
ANS: Trier

20. Odds and Ends for 10
What is a Stau?
ANS: traffic jam

21. Grammar for 50
Translate the following sentence into German. He looks as if he were ill.
ANS: Er sieht aus, als ob (als wenn) er krank wäre.

22. Arts and Letters for 10
Which German author, living from 1749-1832, is considered the greatest figure in German literature?
ANS: (Johann Wolfgang von) Goethe

23. Arts and Letters for 20
Which German wrote the words for the hymn Ein Feste Burg ist Unser Gott?
ANS: Martin Luther

24. Erdkunde für 30 Auf Deutsch
Wie heist der größte See Bayerns?
ANS: Chiemsee

25. History and Politics for 20
Which German Texas settlement was founded on Good Friday, 1845?
ANS: New Braunfels

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The topic for 2026 is: Expressionism in the arts of the German-speaking world

The topic for 2025 was: Die Wende
The topic for 2024 was: UNESCO World Heritage topics in Germany, Austria and Switzerland
The topic for 2023 was: Scientists from D-A-Ch-L Länder – Space, Medicine & Math
The topic for 2022 was: Bach, Beethoven & Brahms
The topic for 2020 was: German-Texans
The topic for 2019 was: German-Americans
The topic for 2018 was: The German-speaking World 1914-1945
The topic for 2017 was: The Reformation

Mock Pass Auf Round Video