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In a situation where one person is smoking in a smoke free area and the other person is trying to point it, that other person is saying
Das geht aber nicht!
I'm wondering, what does this sentence mean? Is it kind of an idiom? I mean, nobody's actually walking in that situation.
I usually used and heard it being used in situations like the one you described. It is kind of an idiom, roughly meaning it is not ok what is happening/you are doing.
It is generally used as a first step in pointing out that something is not as it is supposed to be.
Example: Say you are doing a task, and doing it wrong. A person would point that out to you saying
Das geht aber nicht!
More emphasis/disgust/disagreement can be expressed by inserting a word giving
Das geht aber gar nicht!
Der Duden hat die Antwort.
Siehe 10 u. 11:
(Das Nummerierungsformat beißt sich - ich bekomme es nicht als 10 a/b, 11 a/b reproduziert).
Der Eintrag hat auch viele erhellende Beispiele parat, hier nur der Anfang (10 a):
- sich machen lassen; möglich sein Beispiele
- das geht nicht
- aber das geht doch nicht (das kommt nicht infrage), dass du jetzt schon aufbrichst!
- (unpersönlich): leider geht es nicht anders
"Das geht aber nicht!" expresses strong indignation in a situation when someone behaves in a way that can't be tolerated, e.g. someone smokes in a smoke-free area, as you said.
I would not call such formulas "idioms", they are fixed situational formulas that you use only in very special situations. Situational formulas are a very important part of communication whereas idioms don't have this importance. When you don't know an idiom you can express your idea in a different way. But it is very difficult to invent situational formulas as it took a very long time for the community of speakers to invent such formulas in a way that they are generally accepted and understood.
Generally one can say that dictionaries haven't understood as yet the importance of situational formulas. Each of these formulas must be explained with the special situation in which they are used. We don't even have a standard name for these things. I have been using "umgangssprachliche Formeln" (UF) for a long time and didn't know what I should use in English. Now I use fixed situational formulas or shorter situational formulas (SFo), but that is only my personal term. We have hundreds of such SFos, I guess at least 2000.
Etwas geht.
has many meanings:
Something walks.
If »something« is a person or a humanoid robot (or in Austrian German also any animal with legs).
Herr Maier walks home.
C3PO walks through the spaceship.
The chicken walks across the street.Herr Maier geht heim.
C3PO geht durch das Raumschiff.
Das Huhn geht über die Straße. (Only Austrian German. Using German German you must say: »Das Huhn läuft über die Straße« even if it is walking very slowly.)
Something works.
If »something« is a machine like a clock, a computer or a car.
I did repair your clock, now it works again.
I dropped my cell phone, now It doesn't work any longer.Ich habe deine Uhr repariert, jetzt geht sie wieder.
Ich habe mein Handy fallen gelassen, jetzt geht es nicht mehr.
In this case »geht« is very popular, but better style is to replace »geht« by »funktioniert«:
Ich habe deine Uhr repariert, jetzt funktioniert sie wieder.
Ich habe mein Handy fallen gelassen, jetzt funktioniert es nicht mehr.
Something is possible.
If »something« is a action that might be possible or impossible.
Can you touch you knee with your nose? - Yes, this is possible.
Can you touch you elbow with your nose? - No, this is not possible.Kannst du dein Knie mit der Nase berühren? - Ja, das geht.
Kannst du deinen Ell(en)bogen mit der Nase berühren? - Nein, das geht nicht.
Also here is »geht« very common, but also here is a version with better style: Replace »geht« by »ist möglich«:
Kannst du dein Knie mit der Nase berühren? - Ja, das ist möglich.
Kannst du deinen Ell(en)bogen mit der Nase berühren? - Nein, das ist nicht möglich.
Something is allowed.
If »something« is a action that might be allowed or forbidden.
Is smoking allowed here? - Yes, it is allowed.
Can I sit here in my swimsuit? - No, it is not allowed.Kann man hier rauchen? - Ja, das geht.
Kann ich hier im Badeanzug sitzen? - Nein, das geht nicht.
Same comment as before: Replace »geht« by another word to improve your style. In this case use »ist erlaubt«
Kann man hier rauchen? - Ja, das ist erlaubt.
Kann ich hier im Badeanzug sitzen? - Nein, das ist nicht erlaubt.
