Learn Hardcore German: Zu Hause rede ich meistens in meiner Muttersprache, doch im Kurs übe ich meine Zweitsprache. - At home I mostly speak in my native language, but in the course I practise my second language.

Ich rede zu Hause meistens in meiner Muttersprache. – neutral order, subject first
Zu Hause rede ich meistens in meiner Muttersprache. – emphasizes “at home”

English would show the same kind of emphasis mostly with stress in speech:
“AT HOME, I usually speak my native language.”

What is the difference between “zu Hause” and “nach Hause”?

They answer different questions:

zu Hause = at home (location → Where?)
- Ich bin zu Hause. – I am at home.
- Zu Hause rede ich … – At home I speak …
nach Hause = (to) home (direction → Where to?)
- Ich gehe nach Hause. – I’m going home.
- Er fährt nach Hause. – He’s driving home.

So in this sentence, we’re describing what happens at home, so zu Hause is correct.

Why is it “rede” and not “spreche”? What’s the difference between reden and sprechen?

Both mean to speak / to talk, but they’re used a bit differently:

reden is closer to to talk, to chat, to converse
- More informal, often about the act of talking in general.
- Wir reden zu Hause Deutsch. – We talk German at home.
sprechen is closer to to speak (more neutral/formal)
- Often used for languages or for the ability to speak.
- Ich spreche Deutsch und Englisch. – I speak German and English.
- Kannst du langsamer sprechen? – Can you speak more slowly?

In this sentence, rede gives a slightly more informal, everyday feel:
“At home I mostly talk in my mother tongue…”
You could also say Zu Hause spreche ich meistens in meiner Muttersprache, which is perfectly correct and just a little more neutral.

Why is it “in meiner Muttersprache” and not “in meine Muttersprache”?

Because of case. The preposition in can take either dative or accusative, depending on meaning:

Dative = location / state (Where?)
Accusative = direction / movement (Where to?)

Here, in meiner Muttersprache describes the state or manner of speaking (in what language?), not movement. So dative is used.

Muttersprache is feminine (die Muttersprache).
Dative singular feminine of meine is meiner.

So we get:

in + meiner (dative feminine) → in meiner Muttersprache

Why is it “meiner Muttersprache” but “meine Zweitsprache”? Why do the endings change?

Because they are in different cases:

in meiner Muttersprache
- After in (here with meaning of location/manner), we use dative.
- Muttersprache is feminine.
- Dative feminine of meine is meiner.
  → in meiner Muttersprache
meine Zweitsprache
- Here meine Zweitsprache is the direct object of übe (I practice what? → my second language).
- Direct objects are in the accusative case.
- Accusative feminine of meine is meine (same form as nominative).
  → meine Zweitsprache

So the different endings come from the different grammatical roles of the phrases.

What does “doch” mean here, and how is it different from “aber”?

In this sentence, doch works much like “but / however”:

Zu Hause rede ich meistens in meiner Muttersprache, doch im Kurs übe ich meine Zweitsprache.
→ At home I mostly speak my mother tongue, but in the course I practice my second language.

You could also use aber here:

…, aber im Kurs übe ich …

Differences:

aber = the standard, neutral “but”.
doch often adds a slightly stronger contrast or a “yes, but on the other hand” feeling.
doch has many other uses too (e.g. contradicting: “Das stimmt doch!” – “But that’s right!”), but here it’s simply a stylistic alternative to aber.

Why is it “im Kurs” and not “in dem Kurs”? What does “im” stand for?

im is just the contracted form of in dem:

in (in) + dem (dative masculine/neuter article) → im

Kurs is masculine (der Kurs). With in describing location (Where?), we use dative:

in dem Kurs → correct, but long
im Kurs → natural, everyday form

German very often contracts:

an dem → am
zu dem → zum
bei dem → beim, etc.

So im Kurs literally = in the course.

Why is it “meistens” and where can it go in the sentence? Could I move it?

meistens means “mostly / usually / most of the time”. It’s an adverb of frequency.

In the sentence:

Zu Hause rede ich meistens in meiner Muttersprache …

the placement is very natural: subject – verb – adverb of frequency – rest.

You can move meistens, but some positions sound more natural than others:

✅ Zu Hause rede ich meistens in meiner Muttersprache.
✅ Zu Hause rede ich in meiner Muttersprache meistens. (slightly more emphasis on Muttersprache)
✅ Ich rede zu Hause meistens in meiner Muttersprache.
⚠️ Meistens rede ich zu Hause in meiner Muttersprache. (also correct; now the focus is on “most of the time”)

The meaning stays almost the same; you mostly change emphasis, not grammar.

Why are “Muttersprache” and “Zweitsprache” capitalized?

In German, all nouns are capitalized.

Muttersprache (mother tongue) is a noun.
Zweitsprache (second language) is also a noun.

That’s why both are written with a capital M and Z.
Even nouns formed from several parts (like Mutter + Sprache) remain capitalized as one word.

Is there a difference between “Muttersprache” and “Erstsprache” or “Zweitsprache” and “Fremdsprache”?

Yes, there are nuances:

Muttersprache – mother tongue
- The language you first grew up with, usually from your parents/family.
Erstsprache – first language
- More technical/neutral; can also be used if you grew up bilingual.
Zweitsprache – second language
- A language you know well in addition to your first, often used regularly (e.g. at work, in school, in a country you moved to).
Fremdsprache – foreign language
- A language that is not spoken in the country you live in, or not your native language, learned mainly in a classroom.

In many everyday contexts Zweitsprache and Fremdsprache overlap, but Zweitsprache often suggests more integration and usage in daily life than a typical school “foreign language”.

Why is it “übe ich meine Zweitsprache” and not “lerne ich meine Zweitsprache”? What’s the difference between üben and lernen?

lernen = to learn (to acquire new knowledge/skills)
- Ich lerne Deutsch. – I’m learning German.
- Focus: you don’t fully know it yet.
üben = to practice
- Ich übe meine Zweitsprache. – I practice my second language.
- Focus: you already know something and are improving / repeating it.

In the sentence, the person is in a course, where they practice their second language, so üben fits very well.

Could I say “Zu Hause spreche ich meistens meine Muttersprache” instead of “in meiner Muttersprache”?

Yes, but there is a slight difference:

Zu Hause spreche ich meistens meine Muttersprache.
- Literally: At home I mostly speak my mother tongue.
- Focus is on which language you speak there.
Zu Hause rede ich meistens in meiner Muttersprache.
- Literally: At home I mostly talk in my mother tongue.
- Focus is a bit more on the manner or medium of communication (the conversations happen in that language).

Both are idiomatic and correct.
For languages in general, German also has common patterns like:

Ich spreche Deutsch. – I speak German.
Ich schreibe auf Deutsch. – I write in German.
Ich lese auf Englisch. – I read in English.

But with Muttersprache, both meine Muttersprache sprechen and in meiner Muttersprache sprechen/reden are widely used.

Why is the verb in the second clause “übe ich” and not at the end, like “…doch im Kurs ich meine Zweitsprache übe”?

German main clauses keep the finite verb in second position, not at the end:

doch im Kurs übe ich meine Zweitsprache.

Here, the first position is the connector plus phrase: doch im Kurs.
The second position must be the verb: übe.
Then comes the subject ich, then the object meine Zweitsprache.

Putting the verb at the end (“…doch im Kurs ich meine Zweitsprache übe”) would make it look like a subordinate clause, which would need a subordinating conjunction (like weil, dass, wenn). Since doch is just a coordinating conjunction (like aber), this remains a main clause, so verb-second order is required.