Learn how to use the sentence pattern to ask for information about something
Now Playing: Lesson Audio
Get a breakdown of the dialogue and translations instantly with the Premium line-by-line Audio. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Unlock Lesson Notes and Transcripts for every single lesson. Sign Up for a Free Lifetime Account and Get 7 Days of Premium Access.
| INTRODUCTION | |
| Sydney: Hi everyone, I'm Sydney. | |
| Albert: And I'm Albert. | |
| Sydney: And welcome to Must-Know German Sentence Structures, Season 1, Lesson 10. Asking for information about something. | |
| Sydney: In this lesson, you'll learn how to use a sentence pattern for asking for information about something. | |
| PATTERN | |
| Sydney: For example, | |
| Sydney: "What is your favorite color?" | |
| Albert: Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| Albert: [slow] Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| Sydney: The pattern for asking for information about something has three elements. First, "what" | |
| Albert: Was. | |
| Sydney: Second, the verb for "to be" conjugated in the third person singular. | |
| Albert: ist. | |
| Sydney: Third, the complement for "your favorite color." | |
| Albert: deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| Sydney: Altogether, we have... "What is your favorite color?" | |
| Albert: Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? [slow] Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? [normal] Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| Sydney: To ask about information, there needs to be a German word for "what" in the beginning followed by a conjugated verb, which could be any kind of activity you would like to know more about, and a conclusion in the form of a complement in the end. | |
| Albert: Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| Sydney: So remember to use the German word for "what", followed by a conjugated verb and a complement in the end to ask for information about something. | |
| Sydney: Here is another example meaning, "What do you do on Sunday?" First, "what" | |
| Albert: Was. | |
| Sydney: Second, the verb for "to do" conjugated in the indicative present. | |
| Albert: machst. | |
| Sydney: Third, the complement for "you on Sunday." | |
| Albert: du am Sonntag? | |
| Sydney: Altogether we have... | |
| Albert: Was machst du am Sonntag? [slow] Was machst du am Sonntag? [normal] Was machst du am Sonntag? | |
| Sydney: "What do you do on Sunday?" | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was machst du am Sonntag? | |
| Sydney: How do you say — "What day is today?" To give you a hint, "today" is... | |
| Albert: heute. [slow] heute. [normal] heute. | |
| Sydney: "What day is today?" | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was ist heute für ein Tag? [slow] Was ist heute für ein Tag? [normal] Was ist heute für ein Tag? | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was ist heute für ein Tag? | |
| REVIEW | |
| Sydney: Let's review the sentences from this lesson. I will give you the English equivalent of the phrase and you are responsible for shouting it out loud in German. Here we go. | |
| Sydney: "What is your favorite color?" | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| Sydney: "What do you do on Sunday?" | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was machst du am Sonntag? | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was machst du am Sonntag? | |
| Sydney: "What day is today?" | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was ist heute für ein Tag? | |
| [pause] | |
| Albert: Was ist heute für ein Tag? | |
Outro |
|
|---|---|
| Sydney: Okay. That's all for this lesson. You learned a pattern for asking for information about something, as in... | |
| Albert: Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe? | |
| Sydney: meaning "What is your favorite color?" | |
| Sydney: You can find more vocab or phrases that go with this sentence pattern in the lesson notes. So please be sure to check them out on GermanPod101.com. Thanks everyone, see you next time! | |
| Albert: Bis zum nächsten Mal! |
5 Comments
HideTry translating this question, "What is that?"
Hallo robert groulx,
Danke schön for posting. We are very happy to have you here. Let us know if you have any questions.
Mit freundlichen Grüßen,
Levente
Team GermanPod101.com
thank you for the lesson transcript
favorite phrase is Was ist deine Lieblingsfarbe?
robert
Hi Soraya,
Was ist das? you would typically use when asking
about something both you and the other person can
see or hear etc..
In the sentence "Was ist es?", the word "es" generally
refers to something that has been discussed previously.
Both parties know what you are referring to.
Hope this helped.
Thank you.
If you have any further questions, please let us know.
Kind regards,
Reinhard
Team GermanPod101.com
Was ist das ? oder was ist es? what is difference ?Thanks a lot .