Arzt or Doktor? How to Say “Doctor” in German

Arzt or Doktor? The profession is der Arzt (male) or die Ärztin (female): a physician. Doktor (short: Dr.) is an academic title for anyone with a doctorate, including lawyers and historians. In everyday speech, Doktor also means a physician (zum Doktor gehen), but in standard and written German, Arzt and Ärztin are the correct words.

So both words exist and both are correct, but they are not the same thing. A physician without a doctorate is still an Arzt, and a person with a doctorate in history is a Doktor who cannot treat you.

Arzt, Ärztin, Doktor: the forms

German	Plural	English	Note
der Arzt	die Ärzte	(male) doctor, physician	the profession
die Ärztin	die Ärztinnen	(female) doctor, physician	umlaut Ä
der Doktor	die Doktoren	person with a doctorate; colloquially a physician	title: Dr.
die Doktorin	die Doktorinnen	woman with a doctorate	used in some formal contexts
der Mediziner / die Medizinerin	die Mediziner / die Medizinerinnen	medical professional, medical graduate	slightly more technical
die Ärzteschaft	—	the medical profession	formal, news language

Is it Arzt or Doktor in everyday speech?

You will hear both. Ich muss zum Doktor is common and friendly, especially with children and older people, and the Duden dictionary marks this use of Doktor as colloquial. Ich muss zum Arzt is neutral and works in every situation, including writing. If you have to choose between Arzt or Doktor, choose Arzt.

Doktor as an academic title

Doktor is the highest university degree, earned with a dissertation. In Germany, it is not limited to medicine. The abbreviation tells you the field:

Title	Field
Dr. med.	medicine
Dr. med. dent.	dentistry
Dr. med. vet.	veterinary medicine
Dr. jur. / Dr. iur.	law
Dr. phil.	humanities (history, languages, philosophy…)
Dr. rer. nat.	natural sciences (chemistry, physics, biology…)
Dr. rer. pol.	economics and social sciences

Two practical consequences:

• Not every physician is a Dr. In Germany, the right to work as a doctor comes from the medical licence (die Approbation, or a temporary permit, die Berufserlaubnis), not from the doctorate. Many physicians have Dr. med., many do not, and both are fully qualified.
• Not every Dr. is a physician. Frau Dr. Keller on a door could be a lawyer, a chemist or the head of your language school.

MD vs Dr. med.

In many countries, MD is the standard degree every physician receives. In Germany, medical studies end with a state examination, and Dr. med. is an additional doctorate that requires a dissertation. The two are not simply interchangeable. If you hold a foreign medical degree or doctorate and want to use the title in Germany, the rules on carrying foreign academic degrees apply; they are based on principles of the Kultusministerkonferenz and the laws of the federal states, so check the official guidance for your state before you put “Dr.” on a German CV or door sign. For the language side of working as a physician here, see German for doctors.

How to address a doctor in German

Situation	What to say	Note
Speaking to a doctor with a doctorate	Frau Doktor Weber / Herr Doktor Schmidt	traditional, polite
Speaking, more modern	Frau Weber / Herr Schmidt	increasingly common
Name unknown	Entschuldigung, sind Sie der Arzt / die Ärztin?	asking who is responsible
Formal letter or email	Sehr geehrte Frau Dr. Weber,	Dr. abbreviated in writing
Letter, doctor without doctorate	Sehr geehrte Frau Weber,	never add Dr. if they don’t have it

Some points to know:

• Herr Doktor without a name (Guten Tag, Herr Doktor!) is understood, but it sounds old-fashioned. You mostly hear it from older patients.
• In many practices and hospitals, staff and patients now use Frau Weber or Herr Schmidt even when the doctor has a doctorate. Using the title is never wrong, though, and in a first conversation it is the safe choice.
• Austria tends to use academic titles more consistently than Germany, in speech and in writing, so when in doubt there, use the title.
• In writing, the title before a name is abbreviated: Frau Dr. Weber, not Frau Doktor Weber. In speech, it is spoken in full.

The general rules for Herr and Frau are in Herr, Frau and addressing people in German.

Types of doctors in German

German builds the names of specialists with -arzt / -ärztin. Learn one pattern and you know them all.

German (m / f)	English
der Hausarzt / die Hausärztin	family doctor, GP
der Facharzt / die Fachärztin	specialist
der Zahnarzt / die Zahnärztin	dentist
der Kinderarzt / die Kinderärztin	paediatrician
der Frauenarzt / die Frauenärztin	gynaecologist
der Hautarzt / die Hautärztin	dermatologist
der Augenarzt / die Augenärztin	eye doctor, ophthalmologist
der HNO-Arzt / die HNO-Ärztin	ear, nose and throat doctor (Hals-Nasen-Ohren)
der Orthopäde / die Orthopädin	orthopaedic doctor
der Internist / die Internistin	internal medicine specialist
der Tierarzt / die Tierärztin	vet
der Notarzt / die Notärztin	emergency doctor (sent out with the emergency services)
der Betriebsarzt / die Betriebsärztin	company doctor, occupational physician
der Assistenzarzt / die Assistenzärztin	resident, junior doctor in a hospital
der Oberarzt / die Oberärztin	senior physician
der Chefarzt / die Chefärztin	head of department

In the -arzt words, the umlaut appears in every feminine and every plural form: die Zahnärztin, die Zahnärzte. Most people start with a Hausarzt; how to find one is in find a Hausarzt in Germany, and what to say during the appointment is in German at the doctor.

Zum Arzt, beim Arzt, vom Arzt: the prepositions

With people, German uses zu, bei and von, all with the dative. Here is the system:

Question	Preposition	Example
Where are you going?	zu + dative	Ich gehe zum Arzt. / Ich gehe zur Ärztin.
Where are you?	bei + dative	Ich bin beim Arzt. / Ich war bei der Zahnärztin.
Where are you coming from?	von + dative	Ich komme gerade vom Arzt.

Zum = zu dem, zur = zu der, beim = bei dem, vom = von dem. With a name, there is no article: Ich gehe zu Dr. Weber. Ich habe einen Termin bei Frau Dr. Weber.

For the place, German uses in: Ich gehe in die Praxis (accusative, movement) and Ich bin in der Praxis (dative, location). The full logic of these prepositions is in German prepositions with accusative and dative.

Praxis, Klinik or Krankenhaus?

German	English	What it is
die Arztpraxis / die Praxis	doctor’s office, practice	where a Hausarzt or specialist sees patients
das Krankenhaus	hospital	general hospital
die Klinik	hospital, clinic	a hospital, often a specialised one; also die Uniklinik (university hospital)
die Notaufnahme	emergency department	in a hospital
die Ambulanz	outpatient department; also ambulance	for the vehicle, most people say der Krankenwagen or der Rettungswagen

In everyday speech, Klinik and Krankenhaus often overlap. Praxis never means a hospital.

“I’m a doctor” in German: no article

When you state your profession, German uses no article:

• Ich bin Ärztin. (I’m a doctor.) for a woman
• Ich bin Arzt. for a man
• Ich arbeite als Assistenzärztin in der Inneren Medizin. (I work as a junior doctor in internal medicine.)
• Mein Vater ist Zahnarzt. (My father is a dentist.)

You add an article only when there is an adjective: Sie ist eine sehr erfahrene Ärztin. (She is a very experienced doctor.)

If your German is still developing, the hardest part of these conversations is not the vocabulary, it is answering quickly with the right article and preposition. SipLingo has voice scenarios such as the doctor visit and work situations, with instant corrections of grammar and word order explained in your own language. Practise doctor conversations by voice.

Mini-dialogues

At the reception desk

Receptionist: Guten Morgen. Haben Sie einen Termin? (Good morning. Do you have an appointment?)

You: Ja, um halb zehn bei Frau Dr. Weber. (Yes, at half past nine with Dr Weber.)

Receptionist: Nehmen Sie bitte im Wartezimmer Platz. (Please take a seat in the waiting room.)

Small talk

Neighbour: Was machen Sie beruflich? (What do you do for a living?)

You: Ich bin Ärztin. Ich arbeite im Krankenhaus, in der Kinderklinik. (I’m a doctor. I work at the hospital, in the children’s clinic.)

Common mistakes

1. Ich bin ein Arzt. Without an adjective, drop the article: Ich bin Arzt.
2. Ich gehe zu dem Arzt. Only correct when you stress one particular doctor (zu dem Arzt, den du empfohlen hast); normally say zum Arzt.
3. Ich gehe nach dem Arzt. Nach is for cities and countries; with people use zu: Ich gehe zum Arzt.
4. Ich bin bei dem Ärztin. Ärztin is feminine: bei der Ärztin.
5. Die Arztin. The feminine form needs the umlaut: die Ärztin. Without umlauts, write Aerztin.
6. Sehr geehrte Frau Doktor Weber in an email. In writing, abbreviate: Sehr geehrte Frau Dr. Weber.

Exercise: fill in the gap

Complete with zum, zur, beim, bei der or nothing (–).

1. Ich habe Zahnschmerzen. Ich muss ___ Zahnarzt.
2. Meine Tochter hat Fieber. Wir gehen ___ Kinderärztin.
3. Wo warst du? – Ich war ___ Hautarzt.
4. Ich bin ___ Ärztin von Beruf.
5. Sie hat morgen einen Termin ___ Frauenärztin.

Answers: 1. zum 2. zur 3. beim 4. – (Ich bin Ärztin von Beruf.) 5. bei der

Meanings and forms of address checked in October 2026 against the Duden dictionary; for foreign degrees, the Kultusministerkonferenz principles and your federal state’s rules apply. How titles are used in a particular practice or hospital varies; follow what colleagues and staff do.

Official sources

For the official details and the latest updates, see:

• Make it in Germany (Federal Government): Physicians: Approbation and language requirements – Approbation, B2 general German plus a C1 medical language test

Frequently asked questions

Which is correct, Arzt or Doktor?
Both are correct. Arzt (Ärztin for a woman) is the profession, Doktor is an academic title, and in everyday speech Doktor is also used for a physician. In writing and at work, use Arzt or Ärztin.

What is a female doctor in German?
A female physician is die Ärztin (plural die Ärztinnen). A woman with a doctorate is addressed as Frau Doktor in speech and Frau Dr. in writing.

What do Germans call doctors?
They usually say der Arzt / die Ärztin, or the specialist name such as der Hausarzt or die Zahnärztin. Colloquially, people also say zum Doktor gehen.

How do you say “I’m a doctor” in German?
Say Ich bin Ärztin (woman) or Ich bin Arzt (man), without an article. With an adjective you need the article: Ich bin eine erfahrene Ärztin.

How do you address a doctor in German?
Traditionally Frau Doktor Weber or Herr Doktor Schmidt; in writing Sehr geehrte Frau Dr. Weber. Many people now also use just Frau Weber or Herr Schmidt.

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