Hello everyone,
and welcome to a new episode of the most best German grammar course on the entire planet.
Today we will look at one particular part of the grammar that seems to be random to a lot of students and is yet incredibly easy to master if properly explained. Which I will do today.
Seriously… it’s… it’s terrific work.
Just like the haircut I gave to my girlfriend back in 2020 during Corona. When she saw it, she was so happy and said “Thank God I can’t go outside.”.
I… I took that as a compliment.
Oh well, she has a new hairdo now. And a new boyfriend.
But anyway, the question we are going to look at is:
When do I use “zu” and when “um zu”?
And that also includes the question on when to use neither, because that’s a common mistake too.
So today, we’ll find out what these phrasings are, when to use which and how to use them.
If you prefer a video, I made one with Easy German about the topic. Here it is:
But if you want to dive a bit deeper, have more examples, learn about the exceptions and the sentence structure and do a little test, then today’s post is perfect for you.
So are you ready? Then let’s hop right in!
***
And we’ll start with some basic background.
Connecting Infinitives – Some Background
Wow, what a boring headline.
The real purpose of this headline is understanding WHY we have to deal with this zu um zu stuff at all.
So, a boring simple sentence consists of an action (represented by the verb), a subject, which is the entity “doing” the action, and some other blocks of information that give answers to various questions like why, where or when or for what purpose.
- I called Maria today.
This sentence has the action to call, the entity doing the calling is I, and then the sentence contains answers to the questions “Who do I call?” (Maria) and “When did I call Maria?” (today).
So far so basic. Now, sometimes, the additional information involves another action. For instance, the reason for my call might be that it’s her birthday and I want to congratulate her.
Now, one way to integrate that information into the main sentence is to use what grammar bores books call a Santa Clause… uhm I meant… subordinate clause.
- I called Maria today, because I want to congratulate her on her birthday.
But another really common way to kind of “connect” two actions is called an infinitive clause.
- I called Maria today to congratulate on her birthday.
An infinitive is basically the form a verb has in the dictionary. It’s basically just the plain action without being personalized for a subject. These phrasings can be pretty slick and efficient, and many languages have them.
But, surprise, surprise, every language has its own take on them.
English has two ways to connect an infinitive to another verb. Modal verbs can do it directly…
- I can call you tomorrow.
and the rest needs a to…
- I want to call you tomorrow.
German three ways… with zu, with um zu and directly. So let’s now go them one at a time and see when to use them. And we’ll start with the direct way. or in other words… when to use neither “zu” nor “um zu”
Connecting Verbs – When to use nothing
Just like in English, German modal verbs also take other verbs directly, so without zu or um zu.
- Ich kann schwimmen.
- I am able to swim.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Ich muss jetzt gehen.
- I must go now.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Du sollst nicht stehlen.
- Thou shalt not steal.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
There’s a slight hiccup though, because English and German modal verbs are not entirely the same different. The English to want is NOT a modal verb, the German wollen however, is.
- Ich will auf den Markt gehen.
- I want to go to the farmers market.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
And often German uses a modal verb where English uses another phrasing.
- In der Bar darf man nicht rauchen.
- You are not allowed to smoke in this bar.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Ich muss jetzt gehen.
- I have to go now.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
So it doesn’t really matter how English does it. What matters is if you have a German modal verb. If you need a refresher on those, I’ll post a link below. For now, here’s a little overview:
können, wollen, mögen, müssen, dürfen, sollen and möchten
Those are not the only ones that can take another verb directly. Also werden, which German uses for the future tense, doesn’t go with zu or um zu.
- Ich werde schnell Deutsch lernen.
- I will learn German quickly.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
And then there are some “normal” verbs that IN SOME PHRASINGS don’t go with zu. Mainly, the verbs hören and sehen…
- Ich höre meine Nachbarn streiten.
- I hear my neighbors arguing.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Ich sehe das Einhorn Gras essen.
- I see the unicorn eat gras.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
And then the verb sein, gehen and kommen.
- Ich gehe heute tanzen.
- I‘m going dancing today.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Ich bin im Park Yoga machen.
- I‘m in the park doing yoga.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Kommst du mit shoppen?
- Are you gonna come shopping (with me)?
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
Technically, this also works with other verbs of motion, and I think we’ll also talk about it in a separate article at some point.
But yeah, those were the verbs that take another infinitive directly and it’s no problem to learn them by heart.
All the other verbs either need zu or um zu.
Connecting German Verbs – When to use “zu”
When you search for the topic online you’ll find a fair amount of lists with verbs that usually go with zu. However, it’s much better to understand the logic behind when to use which.
The difference between zu and um zu is the role the element plays in the sentence. And the key to finding a role is often to understand what question it answers.
- I forgot [to turn off the stove].
In this example, the question the to-part answers is… drumroll … what?
The element has the role of an object.
- I forgot [your name].
- I forgot [to turn off the stove].
And that’s what a zu-element does in German.
- Ich habe [deinen Namen] vergessen.
- Ich habe vergessen, [den Herd auszumachen].
Most of you now probably have a question about the word order, but we’ll get to that later. For now, what matters is that you see how the zu-element has the exact same role as a “normal” object. Here’s another example:
- Thomas plant [einen Urlaub].
- Thomas is planning [a vacation].
- Thomas plant, [seinen Urlaub auf dem Balkon zu verbringen].
- Thomas is planning [to spend this summer on the balcony].
Just like the first example, the infinite-element has the role of the direct object here. But that’s actually not all it can do.
It can also be a prepositional object.
Here’s an example for what that is…
- Ich freue mich über [mein Geschenk].
- I‘m happy about [my present].
Instead of connecting the object directly, we’re using a preposition to do it. The corresponding question is still what, but it would use the same preposition….
- “You‘re happy about what?”
“About my present.“
Now, infinitve-elements can also fill this role, and the twist is that the preposition actually disappears.
- I’m happy [to hear that].
- Ich freue mich, [das zu hören].
But you can see that it has the same role as the prepositional element, and you can ask for it the same way…. at least in German.
- “Über was freust du dich?”
“(Darüber), das zu hören.“ - Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
Here’s another example, this time with the phrase Lust haben.
- Ich habe heute keine Lust [auf Deutsch].
- I have no desire [for german] today.
- Ich habe heute keine Lust, [Deutsch zu lernen].
- I have no desire [to learn German] today.
The zu-element has the exact same role as the auf-element in the first sentence and in essence it is still an answer to “what?”.
But I can totally understand if these prepositional objects are a little confusing.
Luckily, the role of the um-zu-elements is completely different and it’s almost impossible to mix them up.
Connecting Verbs – When to use “um… zu”
We’ve learned that a zu-element has the role of an object.
The um-zu-element is completely different.
- I’m reading this [to learn something].
Which question would you use to ask for the to-element here?
I think intuitively, all of you would ask why? Why are you reading this. Or more precisely: for what purpose?
And THAT’S the role of an um-zu-element. It gives us information about the goal of an action, and often, we can replace it with in order to.
- Ich lese das, um etwas zu lernen.
- I’m reading that (in order) to learn something.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Ich gehe in die Küche, um ein Bier zu holen.
- I go to the kitchen (in order) to get a beer.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
So… zu-elements have the role of an object.
They give us information about [what?].
Um-zu-elements have the role of a goal, a purpose. They give us information about [why?]. And because they have different roles, they can totally come together in one sentence.
- Ich versuche [Deutsch zu sprechen], [um mein Date zu beeindrucken].
- I’m trying [to speak German] [to impress my date].
What am I trying? To speak German. Why, for what purpose am I trying that? (in order) to impress my date.
I hope you can see that the two elements have COMPLETELY different roles, even though both work with to in English.
Ultimately, the goal is of course to get a feeling for zu and um zu, but for a start, using these two questions what and why is a great test to get to that feeling.
But it’s not a fail-proof rule. There are definitely sentences where it gets tricky. Or shitty. So let’s take a look at that real quick before we get to the word order stuff many of you are waiting for :)
zu, um zu – What exceptions look like
There are some cases where the simple what or why test let’s us down. We just have to live with that. And the perfect example are what I will call too-to-phrasing.
- The car was driving too fast [to read the license plate].
- This lecture was too difficult [to understand].
And, I’m not gonna lie. Truth is my superpower so I’m just gonna say it… one is translated with um zu, the other one with zu.
- Das Auto ist zu schnell gefahren, [um das Nummernschild zu lesen].
- Diese Lektion war zu schwierig [zu verstehen].
And honestly… I can’t logically tell you why.
The second one could also be “um sie zu verstehen” but NOT “um zu verstehen”. So I guess there is something related to whether there’s an object in it or not, but honestly… analysing this is a waste of time. I really really tried to find a logic, or some sort of way of telling when to use which, but I couldn’t.
There are these fringe cases where there seems to be no logic for why it’s zu or um zu and I think the best we can do is just accept them. Welcome them with open arms and love in our hearts.
Welcome, dear exception. Thank you for making German less boring and predictable. Thank you for surprising me and for challenging me to leave my comfort zo… gee, what am I saying.
Now, besides the instances where our test doesn’t really work, there are also gonna be phrasings that can’t be translated with an infinitive-element at all.
The one I want to mention here is:
Question Word + to + verb
- I don’t know how to do that.
- I don’t know when to stop.
- I remember who to ask to get information.
These DO NOT WORK with (um)-zu.
You’ll have to go “all the way” and make a normal boring minor sentence in German. As you do not really have a subject for the second verb in the English sentence, one usually uses the German man.
- Ich weiß nicht, wie man/ich das macht/mache.
- I don’t know how to do that.
(I don’t know how one has/I have to do that.)
- Ich weiß nicht, wann man aufhört.
- I do not know when to stop.
(I do not know when one stops.)
- Ich erinnere mich, wen man/ich fragen muss, um Informationen zu bekommen.
- I remember who to ask to get information.
(I remember who one has/I have to ask in order to get information.)
This might seem unnecessarily long and complicated but there is no other way.
All right.
So now we know when to use zu or um zu or nothing and we have a quite effective, super quick test.
What we haven’t talked about yet is the grammar.
So… let’s take a look :).
The Grammar of “zu” and “um zu”
And there are two pretty much separate parts to this. First of, the structure and order WITHIN the element and then the structure and order in the sentence that CONTAINS the element.
Let’s start within the element.
And you might have already noticed that their structure is like that of a side sentence… you know, like a weil or dass-sentence.
So the verb itself is at the end and the zu is in front of it.
- Ich habe vor, mir ein leckeres, kaltes Bier aus dem riesigen Kühlschrank zu holen.
- I am planning to get myself a tasty cold beer from the gigantic fridge.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
And if there’s an um, that goes right to the beginning.
- Ich gehe in die Küche, um mir ein leckeres, kaltes Bier aus dem riesigen Kühlschrank zu holen.
- I’m going to the kitchen to get myself a tasty cold beer from the gigantic fridge.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
If we have a separable prefix verb, there’s a little twist. Then, the zu gets squeezed between the prefix, just like the ge- for the past tense. And the magnetic force between prefix and verb pulls it all into one word. If the prefix is NOT separable, then the zu goes in front of the verb.
- Ich habe vergessen, meinen Chef anzurufen.
- I forgot to call my boss.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
- Elon Musk hat vor, alle seine Häuser zu verkaufen.
- Elon Musk plans to sell all his houses.
- Practice pronunciation – click once to start recording and again to stop
Cool.
Now, on the outside, from the perspective of the containing sentence, the (um)-zu-element is ALSO pretty much like dass or a weil-sentence.
So we can technically put it into different positions.
- [Deutsch zu lernen ] kann manchmal frustrierend sein.
- Manchmal kann [Deutsch zu lernen] frustrierend sein.
- Es kann manchmal frustrieren sein, [Deutsch zu lernen.]
All of them are correct. But in most contexts, the last version will the the most natural choice.
And this brings us right back to a question many of you had in the beginning.
As beginners, we all learn that the verb has to go to the end if there is more than one part. According to that, version two should be the most idiomatic version.
But the thing is that these infinitive-elements are more like a sentence than a noun. And this “verb-at-the end” stuff doesn’t really include side sentences. You CAN squeeze them in the middle of the container. But if you don’t have to, then it’s much better style to NOT do it.
- Ich habe [Deutsch zu lernen] vor drei Monaten angefangen.
This is a very, very typical mistake… like… I’d go as far as to say that 80% of you have made it. And it’s not wrong, technically. But it would be more idiomatic to say it this way:
- Ich habe vor drei Monaten angefangen, [Deutsch zu lernen.]
And this is actually much easier to say. So yeah… the (um)-zu-element DOESN’T need to be squeezed into the middle of its containing sentence.
So, that’s pretty much it.
Now let’s put what we’ve learned to the test and do a really really challenging sentence.. who’s with me??
A really hard example
Behold :)
- It would be nice to be able to call you to ask you to come by.
Daaaaaamn, what a scary monster.
Let’s take it one to at a time….
- What would be nice?
- Why would be nice?
Obviously what makes a LOT more sense, so the first to-element (which contains all the others) seems to be an object and we need just zu in German.
Now, the verb that follows is to be able to. That will translate to können. And können is actually a modal verb in German and we need NO translation for the second to.
That means, so far we have:
- Es wäre schön, dich anrufen zu können…
- It would be nice to be able to call you…
Now, the next element in our long sentence is “to ask you“. A quick check with the questions will clear it up.
- “to call you what? ”
“To ask you.” - “To call you why?”
“To ask you.”
Clearly, why makes a lot of sense. And we could just add in order to to call you. So this is a clear case for um zu.
- Es wäre schön, dich anrufen zu können um dich zu bitten…
Last but not least we have to come by. And again, a quick check with the questions clears it up…
- “To ask you what?”
“To come by.” - “To ask you why?”
“To come by.”
The first one makes a lot more sense, so it’s probably just gonna be zu.
And it is :)
So here is the final sentence.
- It would be nice to be able to call you to ask you to come by.
- Es wäre schön, dich anrufen zu können, um dich zu bitten, vorbeizukommen.
Don’t worry though… you won’t have to do something like this again any time soon :).
And I think that’s it for today.
Hooray :).
This was our thorough look at when and how to use zu and um zu. Here as a reminder:
role of an object (answers to what) – zu
role of a goal (answers to why) – um… zu
And in case of modal verbs, werden or a few opther phrasing, you can just connect directly.
Now, if you want more recap and see how much you remember, just take the little quiz I have prepared for you.
I mean… I will have prepared it shortly. You’ll see it here shortly. It’s gonna be tremendous.
I also have a big exercise, so you can practice it a little.
And of course, if you have any questions or suggestions, just leave me a comment.
I hope you liked it and see you next time.
***
If you want to practice more, you can do that here:
And if you want to read about phrasings like “einkaufen gehen”, you can find my article about that here:
“einkaufen gehen” and other phrasings without “zu” or “um zu”
I have a question about gehen. At the beginning of the article you state that gehen is one of the words we don’t need zu or um zu. Yet, in this example;
ch gehe in die Küche, um mir ein leckeres, kaltes Bier aus dem riesigen Kühlschrank zu holen.
You used um zu—
Can you please explain what I probably didn’t quite grasp? Thank you
Good question!
So you’ll find plenty of examples like this:
– Ich gehe einkaufen.
– Ich gehe gleich schlafen.
Here, you cannot use um zu or zu.
You could also skip it for your example and say
– Ich gehe in die Kuche ein Bier holen.
The longer the second part gets, the more you need to switch to an um zu structure and the original example is just so long that it sounds off without one.
On a deeper level, it’s about what we’re connecting.
– Ich gehe schlafen.
– Ich gehe in die Kueche.
schlafen and in die Küche basically stand for the same thing: a location.
And both sentences would be kind of incomplete if we leave it out.
So when the verb has the role of a location, you do not use um zu. If the sentence by itself is complete like Ich gehe in die Kueche, then we can add a second action as “goal” via um zu.
There are more details about this in this article:
https://yourdailygerman.com/einkaufen-gehen-why-no-zu/
Does that help?
Hello Emanuel,
The “check” on the quiz and the “next” button isn’t working- therefore I couldn’t get answers and check my results.
Are you able to check this. Um besser zu lernen.
Could you tell me which device and browser you’re using? It works fine for me on desktop and phone, so I need some help finding the issue.
works on phone though, the problem is on pc
I only do these on my MAC
sorry for offtopic, you can delete this comment later but check the “Done” button at the bottom of lessons, because right now there’s no button here and “[wpc_button]” text instead
Yeah, I’m currently reworking the progress tracking. It should be back there now (and it’ll be much more motivating soon).
Thank you!
Thanks for the really insightful explanations.
Just wanted to clarify ‘zu’ and ‘um zu’ are not prepositions in here right? Danke
No, formally they’re classified as subordinating conjunctions in this context.
Nice one, as usual! I think you’ll like this video… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y37XH4aQpvw
I do :D!
Hi Emanuel,
Thanks for the conclusive overview! I am from Germany, so I should know all about it already, but it is good to get it explained and to get the translation… For the exceptions, I have a few alternative translations:
The car was driving too fast [to read the license plate].
-> Das Auto ist zu schnell gefahren zum Lesen des Nummernschilds.
or
-> Das Auto ist zu schnell gefahren zum Nummernschildlesen.
or
-> Das Auto ist zum Nummernschildlesen zu schnell gefahren.
This lecture was too difficult [to understand].
-> Diese Vorlesung war zum Verstehen zu schwer.
Although your translations for the above are more natural, I think that “zu x zum Y” would be the direct translation of “too x to y”, and without exceptions.
I don’t know how to do that.
-> Ich weiß nicht, wie das zu tun ist.
“Ich weiß nicht, wie das zu machen ist” would also work, but I would think it is more natural to use “zu tun” here.
I don’t know when to stop.
-> Ich weiß nicht, wann anzuhalten.
or
-> Ich weiß nicht, wann aufzuhören.
or
-> Ich weiß nicht, wann zu stoppen.
I remember who to ask to get information.
-> Ich merke mir, wen ich fragen muss, um Informationen zu bekommen.
or
-> Ich weiß (noch), wen ich/man fragen muss, um Informationen zu bekommen.
or your translation.
The problem with “Ich erinnere mich wen zu fragen um Infos zu bekommen” is not the grammar, but that “wen” does not necessarily tanslate to “who” here. It could also be back-translated to “I remember to ask someone to get info”.
Regards,
Lukas
Hello Emanuel.
Regarding some normal verbs that don’t need “zu”, such as hören, sehen.
may I ask which sentences of these verbs are more proper?
In my opinion, the second sentence is more proper because both sentences consist of two actions “sehe” and “isst”. The box for action “isst” answers what-box for the action “sehe”.
I feel that the first sentence isn’t completed somehow when I try to create images in my brain (But I don’t know if it’s correct or not).
Thank you so much
Great question!
Both versions are correct, but the meaning is slightly different.
The first one is about you watching the process of the unicorn grazing, the second one sounds more focused on seeing/acknowledging the fact visually that the unicorn is grazing, but you’re not necessarily watching.
Hope that helps!
A quick follow question on the use of zu/um zu. If the ‘other verb’ is a (real) reflexive verb, does the reflexive pronoun go after the first verb?
This question came up in the context of the mysterious case of brauchen, but I guess its a general question:
ich möchte mich um dich kümmern – makes sense with modals/haben/sein
Ich brauche mich um dich nicht zu kümmern ???
(google wants me to put the nicht earlier but I want to put it in front second verb, but presumable before the zu as well, but is it correct to have the mich right after the brauche?)
Ich lese das, um mich um dich zu kümmern ??? I really had no idea here, and I’m not even sure which um is which!
Good Day Emanuel –
Doesn’t the following sentence answer the what(what was worth it to her)?
Ja. Aber das war es ihr wert, um dir Karen wegzunehmen.
Also since it’s an um zu construction the subject has to be the same both in both the main sentence and clause….I assume das is the subject in the main clause and it is implied in the clause?
thanks
Great example!
So the answer to “what” was worth it is actually the word “das”, which refers to something she has done in order to take take Karen away from “you”.
As for the subject… the grammatical subject is “es” but that’s NOT the implied subject of the um zu sentence. This is a nice example where the subjects actually don’t match up.
The construction felt a tiny bit weird when I read it first, but I wouldn’t call it wrong. The “actor” in the whole story is “she”, but the phrasing of the first sentence is such that “she” is in Dative (“ihr”).
Does that help?
You can think of the whole thing as
Hi –
Trying to grasp as to why this sentence has an um…zu construction…..
Keine gute Jahreszeit, um ohne Heizung zu sein.
it doesn’t appear to adhere to some of the rules outlined:
1. I don’t think “keine gute Jahreszeit“ can stand on its own?
2. I don’t feel like the um..zu.. is answering in order to or because I want?
Would be curious to get your take.
Thanks
Great example! This is kind of a misfit, indeed.
You can make it work if you modify it like this:
Now, we have a “goal” similar to “I’m going to the kitchen because I want to get a beer (in order to…).”
But ultimately, having NO “um” would be more logical overall. I’d take this one as an actual exception, for which the tests do not work.
Why is the unicorn essen rather than fressen?
Because they’re self aware and have good table manners :).
By the way… for most animals, you’d indeed use fressen, but for a cat for example, being as picky as they usually are, many people tend to use essen.
Hi Emanuel,
Forgive me if you covered it already, but I didn’t see mention of “da-” clauses. In such cases where we use an infinitive in a da- clause, do we use “zu” with it? For example: Ich träume davon, nach Deutschland zu fahren.
True! I forgot to include an example for those. They totally tie in with the system though as you can ask for them using “preposition+what”.
– Ich träume davon, ….
– You’re dreaming of/about what?
So we’re asking for an object, only that this time it comes with a preposition.
Does that help?
Yes, thanks! As you said, it conforms to your rule.
Emanuel, hier bin ich wieder.. :-) Ich schreibe dir nach allem was ich tue, weil ich dich dafür bewundere, wie besonders und Leidenschaftlich du bei deiner Arbeit bist weil du, selbst wenn ich so einen berührenden Arbeitstag hatte, wirklich finde immer einen schlauen Weg mich zum lachen zu bringen…!!!!! Ich habe heute Abend mein Deutsch verblüfft und eher als der Unterricht ist ein bisschen schwierig :-/ du findest immer den Weg, mich zu entspannen und fröhlich zu sein :-) . Nicht viele guys hätten so etwas geschafft…you rock!!!! Ich habe das Quiz gemacht und ich werde ihnen ehrlich sagen, ich habe 2 Fehler gemacht. Ich habe die lange Übung noch nicht gemacht. Ich werde nächste Woche mit der anderen turbo-Übung von Relativ Pronomen machen, die du mir so klugerweise empfohlen hast, zu wiederholen. Ich mache beides netto eine Woche, wegen der Bewegung die du machst uns ich gebe dir gerne etwas Entspannung um the movation zu machen :-) Der Unterricht war so perfekt und ideal wie du und macht mich auch, auch wenn es schwer ist, entspannen!!!!! Hab eine sehr sehr süße Nacht Emanuel :-》
Emanuel sorry for my german in my Massage above, but I’ve just noticed today, that from a point and then my german were realy confused and had no a specific meaning..I think, I will never learn not to make mistakes and write thinks no one understands :-( ( I ment, because of the move you told you have to do, I thought it would be better, even if I do again that big exercise of pronouns or if I want to write any other comment to you, to do it next week, you will be more relax and comfortable, in other words, to give some space to do your houseworks… I am really bad student..!! All the others I hope they are written in correct german, because they are true..Will spend 100 years until I learn to speak german right!!!!! And also the very sweet goodnight is still in valid! :-) (sorry again for my silly german, I’m traying to express myself, what I think or what I fell in this beloved language, but it’s very difficult to find the correct words every time)
Hallo
Danke fuer den Artikel! Ich nehme an, dass der Grund, warum dieser Satz eine “um..zu” Konstruktion verwendet, der ist, dass alles bis zum “um” fuer sich selbst stehen kann?
Nach meinem Studienabschluss hatte ich 18 Monaten lang Zeit, um einen neuen Job zu finden.
Danke
Ja, so kannst du es sehen. Aber noch klarer ist es, wenn du überlegst, welche Frage beantwortet wird.
“For what purpose did I have 18 months?”
Und das ist dann klar “um… zu”. Wie im Video erklärt.
Bezüglich Formulierungen wie “Ich sehe das Einhorn Gras fressen,” hast du das jemals in einem weiteren Artikel angesprochen? Ich habe ein paar Fragen, und zwar*, mit welchen anderen Verben funktioniert das? Kann man diese Formulierung benutzen, um etwas wie “I stay up late studying” zu sagen? Mein armes, versuchendes auf Deutsch zu denken** Gehirn will stattdessen eine Konstruktion wie “beim Studium,” aber ich würde gern noch wissen, ob es möglich ist.
Schließlich, wie wäre es im Perfekt? “Ich habe das Einhorn Gras fressen gesehen”?
*Ich habe kein richtiges Sprachgefühl für diesen Begriff, bitte entschuldige mich, während ich ihn unbeholfen ausprobiere
**Ebenso habe ich keine Ahnung wie man das konstruiert, und zwar nicht einmal eine Ahnung wie man solch ein Konzept googelt
Tut mir leid, ich habe grad eben bemerkt, dass Einhorne nicht fressen, sondern essen. Keine absichtliche Beleidigung, Einhorne!
XD
Guck mal hier:
https://yourdailygerman.com/einkaufen-gehen-no-zu-rule/
Das ist nicht genau zu deiner Frage, aber es könnte trotzdem helfen.
Aber nein, du kannst diese Formulierungen nicht generalisieren. Das wird oft falsch werden.
Und zu der Vergangenheit… du hattest es fast richtig, aber das “ge” muss weg.
– .. Gras fressen sehen.
Vielen Dank :)
The article itself is great. Enmanuel explains so well that one feels he is just in person trying to make the lesson so enjoyable and useful for all. Well done .. I enjoyed it.
But please make sure you produce the solutions to the Quizes.
I believe that it is a good pedagogical thing for self-study, that all Quizes have their solutions. I had three questions wrongs in the Quiz about zu and um-zu subject. So, I wasted my time and effort guessing to do this test three times to no avail. So, the idea of the self-study is to have help from the site not to reduce one’s energy and interest trying to get the answers right.
Hey hey, thanks for the feedback! You can actually see all the answers at the end of the quiz on the results page, you just have to click “view questions”.
However, I think you’re right overall and I have now changed the settings so every question is checked immediately and you get to see the answer right away.
Had a minor crisis on Q10 because I was about to click “They’re all correct.” but the question asked for a false statement, but it’s true that they are all correct. It was a real head scratcher for a second there ;)
Whoops, that’s a really weird phrasing indeed :D. Obviously I meant to ask for the “correct” element. I changed it now, thanks for the heads-up :)
I think I have a way to use the What/zu and Why/um zu. In the examples you gave below the what is the car is going too fast. The why is more why do I care or why does it matter, because I couldn’t read the plate.
The lesson was hard. That is the what. Why does it matter? Because I couldn’t understand it.
Does that sound reasonable to you?
Das Auto ist zu schnell gefahren, [um das Nummernschild zu lesen].
Diese Lektion war zu schwierig [zu verstehen].
I think you got it. Using the word “why” is a bit confusing for the car-example, but the broader sense of “goal” is in there.
I want to read the license plate… that’s my “goal”. The car can be slow enough so I can do that. Or it’s too fast.
Maybe use “for what” instead of “why”. That also works in the kitchen-example you mentioned in the other comment :).
You had said that you couldn’t figure out a way of connecting those sentences to the what/why rule you laid out. I thought about what for but I was trying to follow the what/why construction so I manipulated it to be why instead of what for.