german-exercises.de

What It Is

MakePhrases — the page notes that German Exercises is now MakePhrases — is a free online practice site for German learners, mainly offering German grammar and vocabulary exercises. The text explicitly mentions “free online exercises” and explains that the exercises were originally created by the developer for their own students, with the goal of giving learners enough material to practice German repeatedly.

Core Content and Teaching Format

The site covers fairly basic but practical areas, including verb conjugation in the present, past, and perfect tenses; changes to nouns, articles, and pronouns in the dative, accusative, and genitive cases; vocabulary puzzles and descriptions; and explanations of grammar terms such as subject, object, infinitive, and parts of speech. The format is not live classes, recorded lessons, or 1-on-1 tutoring, but self-paced online fill-in-the-blank exercises: one word is missing from the answer, learners think through the correct form first, then click the three question marks to check the answer. It stresses that “practice is not a test,” encourages learners to look at the answer when they are stuck, and recommends practicing for 10-15 minutes a day.

Pricing and Certificates

The pricing information is very clear: the site is positioned as a source of free online exercises, and there is no mention of subscriptions, individual course purchases, or paid unlocks. At the same time, the site does not mention any accreditation, completion certificates, exam score tracking, or official course qualifications, so it is not suitable for users whose main goal is to obtain a certificate or exam-backed credential.

Pros and Cons

Its strengths are that it is lightweight, free, and focused on the inflection patterns that German learners most commonly get wrong. The exercise structure is consistent, making it suitable for short, repeated practice sessions. Its grammar explanations also distinguish between “understanding the rules” and “using them in practice,” which aligns well with how languages are learned. The downside is that it is not a complete course system: there is no visible level-based pathway, learning progress tracking, teacher correction, interactive community, or personalized feedback. The site’s explanations are mainly in English, which may create a higher barrier for learners who rely entirely on Chinese-language instruction.

Who It’s For and Access from China

It is best suited to self-learners who already have some basic German and want to reinforce conjugations and case endings, and it can also work well as supplementary practice outside the classroom. It is less suitable for complete beginners who need systematic Chinese explanations, speaking interaction, or exam planning. The text does not provide enough information to judge access from mainland China, and there is no relevant payment information either. If access is unstable, alternatives such as DW Learn German, Duolingo, DeutschAkademie, and Lingolia German may be worth considering.