All Questions
3
votes
2answers
78 views
Does German phonetics fully determine the spelling?
It is clear that there are different, equally valid ways to read a word in German (e.g. alveolar or uvular r, etc.) How true is the converse statement: phonetics fully determine the spelling? I'm ...
0
votes
1answer
25 views
How do you translate this: Ich messe meiner Zeit Wert zu
I have difficulties to understand this phrase:
Ich messe meiner Zeit Wert zu
How would you translate it?
2
votes
2answers
57 views
Good short stories for learning German?
I'm trying to learn german and I think I would really benefit from reading short stories in german. Possibly with a translation. So do you know any good sites that can offer me that?
2
votes
1answer
55 views
Dativ von „jemand anderes“ – „jemandem anderen“ oder „jemand anderem“?
Wie wird am geläufigsten der Dativ und der Akkusativ von „jemand anderes“ gebildet? Gibt es ein Prinzip, nach welchem hier die Objektfälle gebildet werden, und wie lässt sich diese Frage ...
2
votes
1answer
48 views
Is there a practical difference between “e” and “ä”?
The e and ä are considered as different phonemes. In practice, do people make and notice the difference? Which problems, if any, would not bothering to make such difference lead to?
-5
votes
1answer
65 views
Can someone give the examples ( few sentences ) with words: da, deutete, dabei? [closed]
I read a book on german and meet these words very often, but the context still not clearly for me. So I want to see a few examples with these 3 words with translation.
upd
As I read a book further ...
9
votes
6answers
1k views
Was ist der Unterschied zwischen “sinnfrei” und “sinnlos”?
Der Duden definiert "sinnfrei" als "völlig ohne Sinn" und "sinnlos" als "ohne Vernunft, ohne erkennbaren Sinn". Was ist der Unterschied zwischen diesen beiden Wörtern?
0
votes
0answers
20 views
Self studying methods [closed]
I'm trying to study German alone, and I'm looking for a suitable method or material to do this successfully without wasting time.
Any help regarding this? Online things would be better.
4
votes
2answers
93 views
“Fehlen” weak, “empfehlen” strong. But “finden” and “empfinden” both strong. Cases when [some_verb] conjugates differently from [prefix+some_verb]?
Compare this pair:
finden - strong conjugation
empfinden - strong conjugation [exactly the same]
With this pair:
fehlen - weak conjugation
empfehlen - strong conjugation ...
8
votes
5answers
3k views
What are good German language programs for iPad/iPhone?
There are a number of applications relating to introductory German, dictionaries etc. available on the app store. Have people had any success with any of them and which ones are worth trying?
...
7
votes
2answers
157 views
Sprache für automatische Übersetzung ins Deutsche
Ich vergleiche gern die unterschiedlichen Sprachen eines Lemmas in der Wikipedia. Diese sind längst nicht immer gleich gut gepflegt. Manchmal finden sich in einzelnen anderen Sprachen interessante ...
6
votes
3answers
228 views
„Welcher“ zur Kennzeichnung explikativer Relativsätze?
Beim Meditieren über diese Frage ist mir eingefallen, dass ich welcher u. Ä. manchmal als Relativpronomen nutze, um zu betonen, dass der Relativsatz explikativ ist. Ein Beispiel:
A) Derjenige ...
10
votes
3answers
137 views
Is there a 'da-' construct with 'ohne'? if not, are there any more prepositions that can't form 'da-' constructs
I'm talking about "damit, daraus, darauf, darin, da-..."
I've never heard "darohne" or anything like that, and according to the dictionary, nothing like that exists.
Can anyone explain a bit and ...
4
votes
1answer
121 views
When does one write numbers with words, when with figures (e.g. “drei” statt “3”)?
Assuming it is not completely irrelevant, when does one write the numbers with words?
Sie isst drei Äpfel
or
Sie isst 3 Äpfel.
Assuming that there is a rule, is it just an aesthetics ...
10
votes
10answers
422 views
Good online resources for improving German over Summer Vacation?
I recently finished an evening class in beginners German (Common European Framework A1/A2), and plan to take an intermediate class in September.
I don't want to slip out of practice over the summer. ...
7
votes
1answer
84 views
Grammaticality of “original italienisches Eis”
Something you will often find is a phrase like the one given in the title:
original italienisches Eis.
What kind of word is original here though? An adverb? Shouldn't this phrase either read ...
1
vote
3answers
168 views
Phonetic help for 'Frobenius'
My intuition says ['fʁɔbɪnjuːs] but not sure about it.
BTW, The person in question is 'Ferdinand Georg Frobenius' (the mathematician).
3
votes
1answer
108 views
Can “liegen” be used for people?
Can "liegen" be used for people. For instance
I am here. - Ich liege hier.
or it is wrong?
Is Ich bin hier better?
5
votes
3answers
110 views
What is the etymology of “eh” in “Ich habe eh nichts zu machen”?
My question is straightforward:
What is the etymology of eh?
Could eh in Ich habe eh nichts zu machen be an abbreviation for eher?
(I spelled eh with an h because the e seems to be pronounced ...
29
votes
32answers
7k views
Simple but interesting German literature
I'm looking for simple but well-known and interesting German literature to improve my reading comprehension as an intermediate learner. It should fulfill the following criteria:
Well-known: Either ...
3
votes
4answers
182 views
What's the meaning of “schon”?
Today in the class I heard German guy saying: "Ist der Platz schon frei?". Which supposedly means "Is this place already available/free?" and that makes no sense to me. What's the meaning of "schon" ...
1
vote
2answers
80 views
Alternate sentence construction using “lassen”
The sentence: "Er hat Reim in seinem Gedicht benutzt."
My instructor has suggested that I rewrite the sentence using "a more sophisticated construction, such as one with 'lassen'." How would I do ...
5
votes
1answer
97 views
Wieso schafft man wie ein “Brunnenputzer”?
Im Schwäbischen gibt es die Redewendung "der schafft wie ein Brunnenputzer" für hart arbeitende Menschen.
Er arbeitete sich vom Verkäufer zum Marketing-Direktor hoch. Die ersten 15 Berufsjahre ...
2
votes
1answer
150 views
“I want to” vs. “I like to” vs. “I have to”
How do you say the following in German?
I want to eat an apple.
I like to eat apples.
I have to eat an apple.
Can you apply the same context to all verbs?
12
votes
2answers
121 views
Is there a common origin for “to count on s.o.” / “auf jmd. zählen”
My girlfriend told me that the phrase "You can count on me" exists also in French, with the same meaning and as a literal translation
to count on s.o. => to rely on s.o.
In German, it is also ...
5
votes
1answer
53 views
“Visual saliency” auf Deutsch
Ich lese zur Zeit ein Paper, in dem der Ausdruck "visual saliency" immer wieder vorkommt, z.B. im folgenden Kontext:
In a user study, the authors evaluated in which way and how much the
visual ...
4
votes
3answers
74 views
“Film” verhält sich zu “Verfilmung” wie “Computerspiel” zu..?
Wenn ein Film produziert wird, der auf einer Literaturvorlage, Comic, Computerspiel etc. basiert, dann nennt man das "Verfilmung". Wie nennt man analog das Produzieren eines Computerspiels, das z.B. ...
5
votes
2answers
118 views
»Vergiss nicht den Reisepass« oder »Vergiss den Reisepass nicht«?
Welcher Satz ist richtig?
Vergiss nicht den Reisepass.
Vergiss den Reisepass nicht.
2
votes
1answer
68 views
»Passt das dir?« oder »Passt dir das?«?
Welcher Satz ist richtig?
Ich glaube, der erste, weil das das Subjekt ist
Passt das dir?
oder
Passt dir das?
3
votes
1answer
85 views
What does “Kantenblatt” mean?
What does "Kantenblatt" mean? I did not find it in a dictionary. I know that "Blatt" is a kind of list.
3
votes
3answers
239 views
How would I say “Or, call us at (phone number)” in German?
How would I say "Or, call us at (phone number)" in German, or perhaps "Or, contact us at (phone number)? This is to be placed next to an e-mail contact form. The tone of the site is professional ...
6
votes
1answer
147 views
A strange greeting! Servos?
Ever since I have arrived in Germany, I have been picking up words I here often and then going back home to check their meanings. There is one word that still baffles me.
It is a form of greeting.
...
4
votes
3answers
235 views
Why the “-es” in phrases like “etwas Nasses”?
I was listening to a German audiobook this morning, and I noticed two phrases:
etwas Nasses
etwas Großes
I can't be sure of the capitalization, since I was hearing it, not reading it. They were ...
3
votes
2answers
191 views
Woher kommt “suutsche”?
Folgenden Dialog könnte man in weiten Teilen Norddeutschlands hören:
"Ab an die Arbeit, Männer! Pause is' vorbei!"
"Immer suutsche, Chef. Geht gleich los."
"Immer suutsche" (oder schreibt ...
6
votes
4answers
377 views
Was bedeutet “Zieher” im Wort “Schraubenzieher”?
Angeregt durch die Frage Was bedeutet „Fleisch“ in „Fleischwurst“? kann ich mir die Frage
Was bedeutet "Zieher" im Wort "Schraubenzieher"?
nicht verkneifen.
Schraubenzieher ist eine früher ...
4
votes
2answers
121 views
Adding -es to adjectives after “etwas”
"traurig" and other adjectives get an -es affix after "etwas" (e.g., etwas trauriges)
What are the conditions for this affixation? Does this have anything to do with case?
4
votes
1answer
66 views
Wie werden die (modischen) Flicken an Ärmeln bezeichnet?
Ich beobachte in jüngster Zeit einen Modetrend hin zu diesen Flicken an dem Ärmeln, auf Höhe der Ellenbogen, rückseitig.
Haben diese Flicken einen besonderen Namen, abgesehen von "ovale Flicken am ...
5
votes
1answer
63 views
Verwendung von Nein nach negativen Fragen
F: "Darf ich das nicht?"
A: "Nein"
Entgegen des rein Logischen Sinnes --> "Ja du darfst das" ist hier "Nein [du darfst das nicht]" gemeint!
Warum? Existiert diese Phänomen auch in der ...
2
votes
2answers
103 views
“All things being equal” auf deutsch
Was ist eine gute (d. h. für geschriebenes Deutsch) Übersetzung des englischen
All things being equal...
10
votes
2answers
124 views
Reference work on prefixes, suffixes, etc
It's not unusual for me not to be able to find some German word in any dictionary (or dictionary-like resource) I try. Since such words are often of the form PREFIX+STEM, I figure I'm not finding ...
0
votes
1answer
80 views
German Pre-fixes - Do they carry meaning? [duplicate]
I frequently come across words like versprechen, erhalten, beliefern. Because my vocabulary is limited, i can detect that the verbs sprechen, halten and liefern were spoken but i do not know what ...
9
votes
1answer
268 views
Was ist der Unterschied zwischen Gouvernante und Kindermädchen?
When I was young, my parents put me in the care of a German-American woman. That's why I'm here. (Deshalb bin ich hier.)
How is such a woman referred to, as a "governess," or "nanny?" Or some thing ...
4
votes
5answers
231 views
Pronunciation of “lernst”
It's easy to pronounce the letter 'r' in "lernen". But when it comes to pronouncing "lernst", it becomes really hard to keep pronouncing 'r' next to "nst". Listening to some native speaker ...
2
votes
4answers
182 views
Ways to die in German
I want to learn the different shades of meaning and frequency of use of the following verbs that have the meaning of to die:
ableben
abtreten
erlöschen
krepieren
sterben
versterben
...
5
votes
2answers
207 views
Pronunciation of 'r' in German
According to the answer of @what to the question Pronunciation of "lernst" there are 3 different ways to pronounce the alphabet r in German:
voiced uvular fricative [ʁ] (splattne's sample)
...
4
votes
2answers
116 views
What is the proper use of the word “bang?”
The original context is "Bang fleht ein liebkranker Mann." (Viljaslied, Die Lustige Witwe).
I once wrote a poem beginning,
Ich schaue dich so gerne an.
Du liesst mich immer so BANG.
Bang is ...
4
votes
3answers
155 views
beschränken vs einschränken – is there a difference?
What is the difference between verbs beschränken and einschränken? Do these two words have the same meaning or maybe they mean something different?
11
votes
3answers
347 views
Why are “vier” and the beginning of “vierzehn” not pronounced the same?
Why is "vier" in the beginning of "vierzehn" [ˈfɪrʦeːn] not pronounced the same as the standalone "vier" [fiːɐ]?
4
votes
2answers
94 views
verhindern, hindern, behindern - what's the difference?
What's the difference between verhindern, hindern, behindern - in dictionary they seem to have the same or very similar meaning?
3
votes
1answer
110 views
'auf' oder 'an der' Bushaltestelle?
Welcher Satz ist Richtig?
Ich bin auf der Bushaltestelle warten
oder
ich bin an der Bushaltestelle warten?
UND
der Bus ist auf der Bushaltestelle?
oder
der Bus ist an der ...
