Ich höre gern Musik.

I like to listen to music.

Breakdown of Ich höre gern Musik.

• ich: I
• die Musik: the music
• hören: to listen
• gern: gladly

Questions & Answers about Ich höre gern Musik.

What does gern mean in this sentence?

In this context, gern expresses that the speaker enjoys the activity. While a literal translation might be “gladly,” in everyday English we understand it as “like” – so Ich höre gern Musik means “I like listening to music.”

How is the word order structured in Ich höre gern Musik, and why is gern placed after the verb?

German sentences often follow a Subject-Verb-(other elements)-Object order. In this sentence, Ich is the subject, höre is the verb, gern is an adverb modifying the verb to indicate enjoyment, and Musik is the object. Placing gern right after the verb is typical in German, enhancing clarity about how the action is performed.

Why isn’t the sentence translated literally as “I listen gladly to music” in English?

A direct, literal translation can be awkward in English. Although gern does mean “gladly,” English speakers naturally express enjoyment of an activity by saying “I like listening to music.” The German structure with gern is a common idiomatic way to express preference, so the translation adapts to natural English usage.

Is it acceptable to say Ich höre Musik gern instead, and does it change the meaning?

Yes, it is acceptable to phrase the sentence as Ich höre Musik gern. Both orders are grammatically correct in German and convey the same meaning. The slight shift in word order doesn’t change the meaning, although one placement may be more common or stylistically preferred in different contexts.

Why is there no article before Musik in this sentence?

In German, Musik is treated as an uncountable noun when referring to music in general. Just like in English, where we say “I love music” without using an article, it is perfectly natural and grammatically correct in German to omit the article in a sentence like Ich höre gern Musik.