To say something hurts, German makes the body part the subject and puts the person in the dative: mir, dir, ihm, ihr, uns, Ihnen. The verb wehtun agrees with the body part, not with the person - one thing hurts (tut weh), several things hurt (tun weh). Use the definite article (der Kopf, die Füße) where English would say "my".
Examples
- Mir tut der Kopf weh.
- My head hurts.
- Tut dir der Hals weh?
- Does your throat hurt?
- Mir tun die Füße weh.
- My feet hurt.
- Ihm tut der Rücken weh.
- His back hurts.
The mistake to avoid
Translating English directly as "Ich tue meinen Kopf weh" - the person is never the subject here.
Where this fits in
Body, health & feelings, German A2: Talk about your body, common illnesses, and how you feel. Visit a doctor or pharmacy and describe symptoms.