Basic invitations and shared action | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Gehen wir jetzt.

   Let us go now.

   Gehen

   go

   wir

   we

   jetzt

   now

   More detail

   Gehen means “go” here. Its form is the infinitive, which is also identical to the present-tense form used with wir; in the verb-first pattern Gehen wir ...? or Gehen wir ...!, it helps express “let’s go ...”. This is different from the ordinary statement order Wir gehen ... (“We are going ...”). wir is the first-person plural pronoun, meaning “we.” In Gehen wir, it identifies the group that is being invited to go, including the speaker. German uses wir for this group; the verb form itself is not marked for gender. jetzt is the adverb “now,” specifying the time of going. It can also be placed elsewhere for emphasis, for example: Wir gehen jetzt. — “We are going now.” Together, Gehen wir forms a reusable German invitation meaning “let’s go,” and jetzt adds the time: Gehen wir jetzt. means “Let us go now.” The same verb-first invitation pattern appears in Essen wir zusammen. — “Let us eat together.”

2. Essen wir zusammen.

   Let us eat together.

   Essen

   eat

   wir

   we

   zusammen

   together

   More detail

   Essen is the verb essen, “to eat.” Here it is the first-person-plural suggestion “let’s eat,” formed by putting the verb before the subject. Compare the ordinary statement Wir essen. — “We eat” or “We are eating.” In the fixed utterance, the verb-first order makes it a proposal rather than a statement. wir means “we,” referring to the speaker together with at least one other person. In the proposal pattern Verb + wir ..., it identifies the group invited to do the action. For example: Gehen wir! — “Let’s go!” zusammen means “together.” It describes the eating as a shared activity. It can also be used in other sentences, such as Wir lernen zusammen. — “We study together.” Together, Essen wir zusammen. means “Let’s eat together.” The structure is Essen wir (“let’s eat”) plus zusammen (“together”). This is a concise, natural suggestion.

3. Fangen wir jetzt an.

   Let us start now.

   Fangen … an

   start; begin

   wir

   we

   jetzt

   now

   More detail

   Fangen … an is the separated form of anfangen, “to start” or “to begin.” In this sentence, fangen is the present-tense form used with wir, and the separable prefix an appears at the end of the clause. The standalone verb fangen can mean “to catch,” but here fangen and an work together as the verb anfangen, so that is the relevant meaning. The pattern Fangen wir … an? is a first-person-plural suggestion, equivalent here to “Shall we start …?” or “Let us start …”. Example: Wir fangen morgen an. — “We are starting tomorrow.” wir is the first-person-plural nominative pronoun “we.” Here it is the subject of fangen; the English suggestion uses “let us” rather than a direct subject-for-subject translation. jetzt means “now” and places the starting action at the present time. It can also appear elsewhere in a German sentence depending on emphasis; here it stands between the subject and the separated prefix. Together, Fangen wir jetzt an. forms a suggestion: “Let us start now.” The finite part fangen appears at the front, wir identifies the proposed actors, jetzt specifies the time, and the separable prefix an completes anfangen at the end. The same fronted suggestion pattern is reusable with other separable verbs, provided their appropriate finite form and prefix are used.

4. Hören wir hier auf.

   Let us stop here.

   Hören … auf

   stop

   wir

   we

   hier

   here

   More detail

   Hören … auf is the split form of the German verb aufhören, meaning “to stop” here. Its base form is aufhören; in a main clause, this separable verb places hören in the clause position and auf at the end. hören by itself commonly means “to hear” or “to listen,” so the final auf is essential to the meaning “stop.” In the fixed sentence, Hören wir auf! is a first-person-plural exhortation meaning “Let’s stop!” wir means “we” and is the subject form used for the speaker together with one or more others. In this pattern, Hören wir ... auf is a reusable verb-first pattern for making a suggestion equivalent to “Let’s ...”. It is not the object form “us”; the German object form is uns. hier means “here,” referring to the current place or point in the activity. It can also mark a point in a process, as in this sentence’s “stop here.” Together, Hören wir hier auf. means “Let us stop here.” The reusable pattern is Verb + wir + ... + separable prefix, as in Fangen wir jetzt an. = “Let’s start now,” where anfangen is likewise split. The present-tense form and the period present the suggestion directly and neutrally.

5. Komm mit mir.

   Come with me.

   Komm

   come

   mit mir

   with me

   More detail

   Komm means “come” here. It is the imperative singular form of kommen (“to come”), used to give a direct instruction to one person. The present-tense form for “you come” is du kommst, but the imperative is Komm!. Example: Komm hierher! — “Come here!” mit mir means “with me.” The preposition mit expresses accompaniment and is followed by the dative case. mir is the first-person singular dative pronoun, corresponding to “me” after mit; it does not mean “I” in this phrase. Compare ich (“I,” nominative) and mich (“me,” accusative) in contexts that require those cases. Example: Geh mit mir. — “Go with me.” Together, Komm gives the instruction “come,” and mit mir specifies accompaniment: the complete utterance means “Come with me.”

6. Warte auf mich.

   Wait for me.

   Warte

   wait

   auf mich

   for me

   More detail

   Warte is the informal singular imperative of warten (“to wait”). It addresses one person directly: Warte hier. — “Wait here.” The form for a polite or plural command is different, so Warte is specifically the familiar singular command. auf mich belongs to the reusable pattern auf jemanden warten (“to wait for someone”). With warten, auf is followed by the accusative. mich is the accusative form of the first-person pronoun ich (“I/me”); its dative form is mir, as in the preceding mit mir (“with me”). Together, Warte + auf mich means “Wait for me.” The imperative supplies the command, and auf mich identifies the person being waited for.