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Beginner Lesson S2
Giving Orders in German: The Letter Says, Stay at Home!

12

German
English
Vocabulary
Phrase Usage
Grammar Points
Cultural Insight

2
2
2
3
3
4

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German
Sagen Sie Ihrem Freund nichts.
Geben Sie der Polizei keinerlei Informationen.
Gehen Sie nicht mehr an die Spree.
Bleiben Sie zuhause, essen Sie zuhause, ziehen Sie keine Aufmerksamkeit auf sich.
Warten Sie auf ein Zeichen.

English
Don't tell your friend anything.
Don't give the police any kind of information.
Don't go to the Spree anymore.
Stay home, eat at home, don't attract any attention to yourself.
Wait for a sign.

Vocabulary

German
sagen
geben

English
to say
to give

verb
verb

Polizei
keinerlei
Information

police
no kind of, not any
information

noun
attribute
noun

mehr
bleiben
ziehen

more
stay
to pull, drag

adverb
verb
verb

auf

on, onto

preposition

LC: B_S2L12_051809

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Notes

2009-05-18

vowel-changing verb: ich

gebe, du gibst, er gibt,
wir geben
feminine
feminine; plural:
Informationen

er zieht, er zog, er hat

gezogen
also used for some cases
where English would use
in or at, as
prepositions usually don't
correspond across
languages.

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warten

to wait

verb

Vocabulary Sample Sentences

Und dann sagte er....
And then he said...
Sag doch was!
Come on, say something!
Bitte gib mir etwas zu trinken!
Please give me something to drink!
Tun Sie nichts, sonst rufe ich die Polizei!
Don't do anything, or I'll call the police!
Geben Sie der Polizei keinerlei Informationen.
Don't give the police any kind of information.
Geben Sie der Polizei keinerlei Informationen.
Don't give the police any kind of information.
Mchtest du noch mehr?
Would you like (even) more?
Ich mchte nicht gehen, also bleibe ich.
I don't want to go, so I stay.
Auf der Tr steht "Drcken", nicht "Ziehen".
The door says "Push", not "Pull".
Verstehst du mich, wenn ich auf Englisch spreche? Do you understand me when I speak on (in)
English?
Musstest du lange warten?
Did you have to wait a long time?

Vocabulary Phrase Usage

1.The preposition auf is used in a variety of cases. The direct English translation is on, but as
prepositions following verbs never quite match, auf is also used in warten auf (to wait for) and
Aufmerksamkeit ziehen aus (to draw attention to).
2.mehr means more, but in combination with nicht it means not anymore.

Grammar Points
The focus of this lesson is Imperativ (imperative)
Bleiben Sie zuhause, essen Sie zuhause, ziehen Sie keine Aufmerksamkeit auf sich.
"Stay home, eat at home and don't attract any attention to yourself."

This lesson's sentences are not in the present tense they are in imperative form. The Imperative (imperative) is used to
give commands, or also polite requests, if you add bitte.

In German, the formal imperative is just the same as the formal present tense, except that the verb comes first and the Sie

LC: B_S2L12_051809

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2009-05-18

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second. For example Gehen Sie! (Go!) or Kommen Sie!.

The informal imperative, the kind you'd use with friends, is more interesting. This one corresponds to just the word stem
without any ending and no pronoun, e. g. Geh!, Komm!

Cultural Insight
Crime in Germany
Generally most areas are safer than in the states

No schools where students must be checked for weapons

Some bad parts of town, places with many drug addicts

Hardly any cases of gang violence or mafia

Very little gun violence, as hardly anybody owns one

More 'hate crimes' simply because the definition is broader, a lot more things are persecuted

In parts of former East Germany, xenophobic crime has been a cause of concern

LC: B_S2L12_051809

www.GermanPod101.com - All Rights Reserved

2009-05-18