Waiting in the right line | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ist das die richtige Schlange?

   Is this the right line?

   Ist das

   Is this?

   richtige

   right; correct

   Schlange

   line; queue

   More detail

   Ist das is a reusable yes/no-question pattern meaning “Is this ...?” Here ist is the third-person singular present form of sein (“to be”), and das is the demonstrative pronoun meaning “this” in the fixed translation. The question asks whether the indicated thing has the identity described by the noun phrase that follows. For example: Ist das dein Platz? — “Is this your seat?” richtige comes from the adjective richtig, “right” or “correct.” In this sentence it describes Schlange, so it has the feminine singular form richtige: the definite article die and the adjective ending together mark the noun phrase as feminine singular in this position. The useful comparison chain is richtig — richtiger — am richtigsten (“right/correct” — “more right/correct” — “the most right/correct”), although ordinary usage often prefers a more specific expression for comparisons. Schlange is a feminine noun: die Schlange; its plural is Schlangen. Its basic meaning is “snake,” but in this fixed context, supported by the translation and the following statement about going to the front desk, it means a line or queue. The noun itself is not changed to show this context; the intended meaning comes from the situation. Example: Die Schlange ist lang. — “The line is long.” Together, Ist das + die richtige Schlange? asks whether the indicated line is the correct one: “Is this the right line?”

2. Sie geht zum Empfang.

   It goes to the front desk.

   Sie

   it

   geht

   goes

   zum Empfang

   to the front desk

   More detail

   Sie is the subject here and means “it,” as fixed by the translation. In German, sie is also used for “she” and “they”; the form alone does not identify a specific referent. In this sentence, its grammatical form is singular feminine, while the English translation uses “it” for the intended inanimate referent. geht is the third-person singular present form of gehen, “to go.” The useful pattern is ich gehe (“I go”), du gehst (“you go”), and sie geht (“she/it goes”). German present tense can describe an action happening now or a current movement toward a destination. zum Empfang means “to the front desk.” zum is the contraction of zu dem; zu expresses movement toward a destination and takes the dative case. Empfang is masculine, so der Empfang becomes dem Empfang after zu, contracted as zum. In this context, Empfang means the reception or front desk, not the act of receiving. Together, Sie geht zum Empfang. means “It goes to the front desk.” The structure is subject + movement verb + destination: X geht zum Empfang (“X goes to the front desk”).

3. Ist der Empfang dort vorne?

   Is the front desk up ahead?

   Ist

   is

   Empfang

   front desk

   dort vorne

   up ahead

   More detail

   Ist is the third-person singular present form of sein (“to be”). In a yes/no question, German places this finite verb first: Ist ...? (“Is ...?”). The corresponding statement pattern is Der Empfang ist dort vorne. (“The front desk is up ahead.”). Empfang is a masculine noun meaning “reception” or “front desk” here. Its gender is shown by the masculine article in related forms: der Empfang (nominative), den Empfang (accusative), and zum Empfang (“to the front desk,” as in the preceding context). The noun can also refer to receiving something or to a reception event in other contexts, but the fixed translation selects the front-desk meaning here. dort vorne means “up ahead” or “over there in front.” dort points to a place, while vorne specifies a forward/front position. Together they form a reusable location phrase, as in Der Laden ist dort vorne. (“The shop is up ahead.”) The whole utterance follows the German yes/no-question pattern Ist + subject + location?: Ist der Empfang dort vorne? means “Is the front desk up ahead?”

4. Wir können ihn von hier aus sehen.

   We can see it from here.

   Wir können

   we can

   ihn

   it

   von hier aus

   from here

   sehen

   see

   More detail

   Wir können means “we can” here. Wir is the first-person plural subject, and können is the present-tense form of können (“can, be able to”) used with wir. With a modal verb such as können, the other verb normally remains an infinitive and moves to the end of the clause. Example: Wir können warten. — “We can wait.” ihn is the accusative form of the third-person singular masculine pronoun. In this sentence it is the object of seeing, and the fixed translation supports “it”; the available information does not identify what “it” refers to. Compare the forms er (nominative, “he”) and ihn (accusative, “him/it” when the referent is grammatically masculine). Example: Ich sehe ihn. — “I see him.” von hier aus is a reusable expression meaning “from here,” marking the place from which an action is possible or performed. von introduces the starting point, while hier means “here” and aus completes this expression. Example: Von hier aus können wir den Eingang sehen. — “From here we can see the entrance.” sehen is the infinitive “to see.” Its base form is also sehen; here it follows können, so it does not carry the finite tense or person marking. The same verb can be finite without a modal: Wir sehen ihn. — “We see him.” Together, Wir können gives the ability, ihn identifies the thing being seen as the object, von hier aus gives the viewpoint, and sehen completes the modal-verb construction. The whole utterance means: “We can see it from here.”

5. Soll ich mich hinter dich stellen?

   Should I stand behind you?

   Soll ich

   should I

   mich

   myself

   hinter

   behind

   dich

   you

   stellen

   position

   More detail

   Soll ich forms a yes/no question with the modal verb sollen (“should; be supposed to”) and the subject ich (“I”). In this question type, the conjugated modal comes first. sollen is followed by an infinitive at the end: Soll ich gehen? = “Should I go?” mich is the reflexive pronoun used with the subject ich, meaning “myself” here. It shows that the speaker is positioning themself. A reusable pattern is ich ... mich ...; for example, Ich setze mich. = “I sit down.” hinter means “behind.” For a change of position or placement toward a location, this two-way preposition is used with the accusative: hinter dich = “behind you.” For a fixed location, it commonly occurs with the dative: Ich stehe hinter dir. = “I am standing behind you.” dich is the accusative form of du (“you”). Here, hinter takes the accusative because the sentence concerns positioning the speaker behind the other person. The form changes from nominative du to accusative dich. stellen is the infinitive of stellen, meaning “to place” or “to position.” With the reflexive pronoun in sich stellen, it means “to position oneself”; in this sentence, mich ... stellen describes the speaker taking a position. Because sollen is the conjugated modal, stellen remains an infinitive at the end. Compare Ich stelle mich hinter dich. = “I position myself behind you.” Together, Soll ich asks whether an action is advisable or wanted, mich ... stellen describes the speaker positioning themself, and hinter dich gives the destination or resulting position. The whole utterance means: “Should I stand behind you?”

6. Bleib dicht bei mir; hier ist nicht viel Platz.

   Stay close; there isn't much space.

   Bleib

   stay

   dicht bei mir

   close to me

   hier

   here

   nicht viel

   not much

   Platz

   space

   More detail

   Bleib is the singular informal imperative of bleiben, “to stay/remain.” It addresses one person with du. For example: Bleib hier! — “Stay here!” dicht bei mir means “close to me.” dicht bei is a useful way to express physical closeness, and mir is the dative form of ich after the preposition bei. The phrase therefore identifies the speaker as the person to whom the listener should stay close. Example: Das Kind bleibt dicht bei mir. — “The child stays close to me.” hier means “here,” referring to the current location. German commonly places a location such as hier at the start of a clause; when it does so, the finite verb still comes before the subject or subject-like noun phrase: Hier ist .... nicht viel means “not much” in this sentence. nicht negates the amount, while viel expresses a large amount. viel is used with the mass-like noun Platz here; compare viel Zeit — “a lot of time” — and nicht viel Zeit — “not much time.” Platz means “space” here, specifically available room. It can also mean “place” or “seat” in other contexts, but the fixed sentence uses the available-room meaning. Example: Wir haben noch Platz. — “We still have room.” Together, Bleib dicht bei mir gives the instruction “Stay close to me.” hier ist nicht viel Platz says “there isn’t much space here.” The semicolon joins the instruction with its immediate reason or circumstance, producing: “Stay close; there isn’t much space.”

7. Die Schlange bewegt sich langsam.

   The line is moving slowly.

   Schlange

   line; queue

   bewegt sich

   is moving

   langsam

   slowly

   More detail

   Schlange means “line” here, specifically a queue of people, as supported by the fixed translation and the nearby mention of limited space. The noun is feminine: die Schlange (singular), die Schlangen (plural). In another context, Schlange can mean “snake,” but that is not the intended meaning here. bewegt sich comes from sich bewegen, “to move.” The observed form is present tense, third-person singular: sie bewegt sich = “it/she is moving” or “it/she moves,” depending on context. The pronoun-like sich is the reflexive part of this verb and agrees with the third-person subject; it is not a separate object meaning a particular person. The base verb is bewegen, but this meaning normally uses the reflexive construction sich bewegen. Example: Die Schlange bewegt sich. — “The line is moving.” langsam means “slowly” here and describes how the movement happens. The same form can also be the adjective “slow” before or after a noun, for example ein langsamer Zug — “a slow train”; the ending changes there because the word is modifying a noun. In this sentence it is used adverbially, so it has no ending. Together, Die Schlange identifies the queue, bewegt sich says that it is moving, and langsam specifies the manner. The complete meaning is: “The line is moving slowly.”

8. Wir können noch ein bisschen warten.

   We can wait a little longer.

   Wir können

   we can

   noch

   still; longer

   ein bisschen

   a little

   warten

   wait

   More detail

   Wir können means “we can” here. Wir is the first-person plural subject (“we”), and können is the finite form of the modal verb können (“can, be able to”) for wir. Useful forms include ich kann (“I can”), du kannst (“you can”), and wir können (“we can”). With a modal verb, German normally places the other verb in the infinitive at the end of the clause. noch modifies the waiting situation here. It indicates continuation or extension: the waiting can continue for a little longer. Its meaning in this sentence is therefore close to “still” or “longer,” rather than introducing a new object or a new numerical amount. ein bisschen is a compact expression meaning “a little” or “a bit.” It expresses a small degree or amount. Here it modifies the duration of waiting; it does not assert a precise count. Example: Ich bin ein bisschen müde. — “I am a little tired.” warten is the infinitive “to wait.” It is the base form used after the modal können; the modal carries the finite verb marking, while warten remains in the infinitive. Example: Wir können hier warten. — “We can wait here.” Together, Wir können + noch + ein bisschen + warten produces “We can wait a little longer.” The modal expresses possibility or ability, noch ein bisschen extends the duration slightly, and the final infinitive identifies the action. The structure is reusable as Wir können noch [infinitive]: Wir können noch bleiben. — “We can stay a little longer.”