A Study Break | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ich lerne schon lange.

   I've been studying for a long time.

   Ich

   I

   lerne

   study

   schon lange

   for a long time

   More detail

   Ich is the first-person singular pronoun, meaning “I.” It is the subject here, so it identifies the person doing the studying. For example: Ich arbeite. — “I work.” lerne comes from the verb lernen, “to learn” or, in this context, “to study.” It is the present-tense form for ich: ich lerne. German present tense can describe an activity that started earlier and is still continuing; English often uses “have been studying” for that meaning. Example: Ich lerne Deutsch. — “I am studying German.” schon lange combines schon, “already,” with lange, “for a long time.” Together here they express that the studying has continued over a substantial period up to now. The adverb lange is the form used with this duration meaning; it is not an adjective modifying a noun. Example: Sie wartet schon lange. — “She has been waiting for a long time.” Together, Ich lerne schon lange. means “I've been studying for a long time.” The German uses the present-tense verb lerne with a duration expression, while the natural English translation uses the present perfect progressive to show that the activity began earlier and continues up to the present.

2. Leg deine Arbeit beiseite.

   Put your work aside.

   Leg … beiseite

   set aside

   deine

   your

   Arbeit

   work

   More detail

   Leg … beiseite is the informal singular imperative of the separable verb beiseitelegen, “to put/set aside.” The verb is split here: Leg comes first and beiseite appears at the end. Leg is the imperative form addressed to one person; the subject du is understood rather than stated. Example: Leg das Buch beiseite. — “Put the book aside.” deine means “your” here and agrees with Arbeit, the thing being put aside. In this phrase it is feminine singular accusative: the possessive form changes according to the noun’s grammatical gender, number, and case. Example: Deine Tasche ist hier. — “Your bag is here.” Arbeit is the feminine noun “work.” Its basic form is die Arbeit; after the verb legen in this use, it appears as the accusative object, with the form itself unchanged. Example: Ich beende die Arbeit. — “I am finishing the work.” Together, Leg deine Arbeit beiseite. means “Put your work aside.” It is a direct informal instruction to one person: the person should stop attending to their work and place it aside. The following Ruh dich einen Moment aus. uses the same informal singular imperative style, but it is a separate instruction.

3. Ruh dich einen Moment aus.

   Rest for a moment.

   Ruh … aus

   rest

   dich

   yourself

   Moment

   moment

   More detail

   Ruh ... aus is the separable imperative of sich ausruhen (“to rest”). The base verb is ausruhen; in this command, its second-person singular informal imperative is ruh ... aus, with the prefix aus placed at the end of the clause. Example: Ruh dich kurz aus. — “Rest for a short while.” dich is the second-person singular reflexive pronoun in the accusative case. It refers back to the person being addressed and is required by the reflexive use of sich ausruhen: du ruhst dich aus (“you rest”). For formal address, Sie ruhen sich aus is used; Sie can address one person or multiple people. The form changes with the person: ich ruhe mich aus, du ruhst dich aus. Moment is a masculine noun meaning “moment.” Here it is part of the time expression einen Moment, meaning “for a moment.” The masculine accusative form uses einen after this expression; the indefinite article does not by itself state a numeric count. Example: Warte einen Moment. — “Wait a moment.” Together, Ruh dich ... aus gives the reusable command “rest,” and einen Moment limits the duration: “Rest for a moment.”

4. Es ist jetzt schwer, sich zu konzentrieren.

   It's hard to concentrate now.

   Es ist

   it is

   jetzt

   now

   schwer

   hard; difficult

   sich zu konzentrieren

   to concentrate

   More detail

   Es ist is an impersonal pattern meaning “it is” here. The es does not identify a particular object or person; it fills the subject position while the following description states the situation. The same pattern is reusable with an adjective: Es ist wichtig. — “It is important.” jetzt means “now” and places the situation in the present time. It can also be moved for emphasis without changing the basic meaning: Jetzt ist es schwer. — “Now it is difficult.” schwer means “hard” or “difficult” in this sentence. It is the adjective describing how difficult the activity is. Its comparison is schwer — “difficult,” schwerer — “more difficult,” am schwersten — “most difficult.” Example: Deutsch zu lernen ist schwer. — “Learning German is difficult.” sich zu konzentrieren is the infinitive phrase “to concentrate.” The verb is konzentrieren; with this meaning, German uses the reflexive form sich konzentrieren, and zu marks the infinitive in this construction. The reflexive form changes with the subject: Ich versuche, mich zu konzentrieren. — “I try to concentrate.” The sich in the fixed sentence is the form used with an impersonal es construction; it does not identify a separate person. Together, Es ist schwer says that something is difficult, and sich zu konzentrieren specifies the activity. With jetzt, the complete utterance means: “It’s hard to concentrate now.”

5. Das bedeutet normalerweise, dass dein Gehirn eine Pause braucht.

   That usually means your brain needs a break.

   Das

   that

   bedeutet

   means

   normalerweise

   usually

   dass

   that

   dein

   your

   Gehirn

   brain

   Pause

   break

   braucht

   needs

   More detail

   Das is a demonstrative pronoun here: “that,” referring to the situation or information being interpreted. It is neuter singular in form, but the supplied sentence does not identify a more specific noun referent. Compare the reusable pattern Das bedeutet ... (“That means ...”) with Das hilft. (“That helps.”). bedeutet is the third-person singular present form of bedeuten (“to mean”). The ending -t fits a singular subject such as das; the infinitive is bedeuten. For example, Das bedeutet viel. means “That means a lot.” normalerweise is an adverb meaning “usually” or “normally.” It describes how generally the statement applies, not the meaning of bedeutet itself. For example, Normalerweise lerne ich morgens. means “I usually study in the morning.” dass introduces the content of what something means: Das bedeutet, dass ... = “That means that ...”. Unlike the first Das, this word is a conjunction, not a pronoun. In the clause introduced by dass, the finite verb normally goes to the end. dein is a possessive determiner meaning “your.” In dein Gehirn, its form agrees with the possessed noun: das Gehirn is neuter singular, so the nominative form is dein; it does not agree with the person who possesses it. Compare deine Pause, where the feminine noun die Pause requires deine. Gehirn means “brain.” Its base dictionary form is das Gehirn, and its plural is die Gehirne. In this sentence, Gehirn is the subject of the dass clause. For example, Mein Gehirn braucht Ruhe. means “My brain needs rest.” Pause means “break” or “pause.” The noun is feminine: die Pause; after the indefinite article, eine Pause means “a break.” Its plural is Pausen: Wir machen Pausen. means “We take breaks.” braucht is the third-person singular present form of brauchen (“to need”). The subject is dein Gehirn, so the singular form braucht is used; the infinitive is brauchen. In the dass clause, it appears at the end: ..., dass dein Gehirn eine Pause braucht. This means “... that your brain needs a break.” Brauchen expresses need here, whereas müssen would express “must” or “have to.” Together, Das bedeutet normalerweise gives “That usually means,” and dass dein Gehirn eine Pause braucht gives “that your brain needs a break.” The complete utterance is therefore: “That usually means your brain needs a break.”

6. Soll ich später Vokabeln wiederholen?

   Should I review vocabulary later?

   Soll ich

   Should I…?

   später

   later

   Vokabeln

   vocabulary

   wiederholen

   review

   More detail

   Soll ich combines the first-person singular form soll of sollen with ich. In this question, sollen asks whether the speaker ought to do something, so Soll ich ...? is a reusable pattern meaning “Should I ...?” The verb comes before the subject because this is a yes/no question. Compare the statement Ich soll ... (“I am supposed to ...”) with the question Soll ich ...?. Example: Soll ich anfangen? — “Should I start?” später is an adverb meaning “later,” referring to a time after now or after the relevant current activity. It does not itself specify exactly when. Its position here places the time information before the action expressed by wiederholen. Vokabeln is the plural form of Vokabel, used here for vocabulary items or words being learned. The plural ending -n is part of this noun’s plural form; it does not mean that the sentence states a particular number of words. In German, Vokabeln lernen means “learn vocabulary,” while Vokabeln wiederholen means “review vocabulary.” wiederholen is the infinitive meaning “to repeat” or, in a learning context such as this one, “to review.” It is the action governed by soll: Soll ich ... wiederholen? The form remains an infinitive after the modal verb sollen and appears at the end of this question. Its first-person present form without a modal is ich wiederhole (“I repeat / review”). Together, Soll ich asks whether the speaker should perform the action, später places that action later, Vokabeln identifies the material, and wiederholen names the action. The complete utterance therefore means: “Should I review vocabulary later?”

7. Fang mit den einfacheren Wörtern an, wenn du zurückkommst.

   Start with the easier words when you come back.

   Fang … an

   start / begin

   einfacheren

   easier

   Wörtern

   words

   zurückkommst

   come back

   More detail

   Fang ... an is the informal singular imperative of anfangen (“to start, begin”). The prefix an- is separable in this command, so the verb appears as Fang at the beginning and an at the end of the command. Example: Fang jetzt an! — “Start now!” einfacheren means “easier” here. It is the comparative form of the adjective einfach (“easy”): einfach → einfacher (“easier”). In this sentence, mit requires the dative, and the adjective has the dative plural ending -en because it describes Wörtern. Wörtern is the dative plural of Wort (“word”). The ordinary plural is Wörter; in the dative plural, German adds -n: mit Wörtern — “with words.” Example: Ich lerne mit kurzen Wörtern. — “I learn with short words.” zurückkommst comes from zurückkommen (“to come back”). It is the present-tense du form: du kommst zurück in a main clause, but wenn du zurückkommst in this subordinate clause. After wenn, the conjugated verb goes to the end. The present tense here refers to the return as a future or later event, matching “when you come back.” Together, Fang mit den einfacheren Wörtern an means “Start with the easier words.” The prepositional phrase mit den einfacheren Wörtern identifies what to start with: den and Wörtern mark the plural dative, and einfacheren agrees with them. wenn du zurückkommst adds the time condition “when you come back.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Start with the easier words when you come back.”

8. Ich schließe das Heft, während ich mich ausruhe.

   I'll close the notebook while I rest.

   Ich

   I

   schließe

   close

   Heft

   notebook

   während

   while

   mich

   myself

   ausruhe

   rest

   More detail

   Ich is the first-person singular pronoun, “I.” It is the subject of the main clause and of the subordinate clause here. The form does not change for grammatical gender; compare du (“you,” singular) and wir (“we”). schließe means “close” here. Its base form is schließen; schließe is the present-tense first-person singular form: ich schließe. In the main clause, the finite verb occupies the usual second position. Example: Ich schließe die Tür. — “I close the door.” Heft means “notebook” here. Heft is a neuter noun, and the complete noun phrase is das Heft. This noun phrase is accusative because it is the object being closed. The neuter definite article das has the same form in nominative and accusative, so the article’s form alone does not distinguish those cases. The article does not by itself assert a numerical count. während means “while” and introduces a subordinate clause describing an action happening at the same time as the main action. A German clause introduced by während normally places its finite verb at the end. Example: Sie liest, während ich koche. — “She reads while I cook.” mich is the first-person singular accusative reflexive pronoun, “myself.” It refers back to the subject ich within the subordinate clause. German uses a reflexive pronoun when the subject and the affected participant are the same: Ich wasche mich. — “I wash myself.” ausruhe means “rest” here, as in “I rest.” Its base form is the separable verb sich ausruhen. In a main clause, its parts separate: Ich ruhe mich aus. In the subordinate clause after während, the finite form appears at the end as one word: während ich mich ausruhe. The reflexive element mich belongs with this verb and shows that the subject is taking a rest. Together, Ich schließe das Heft means “I’ll close the notebook” in the fixed translation; the present tense can express this intended future action. während ich mich ausruhe adds the simultaneous action “while I rest.” The complete utterance is therefore: “I’ll close the notebook while I rest.”

9. Dann können wir ruhiger weitermachen.

   Then we can continue more calmly.

   Dann

   then

   können wir

   we can

   ruhiger

   more calmly

   weitermachen

   continue

   More detail

   Dann means “then” and places the situation after an understood earlier point in time or sequence. It is a time adverb and does not itself identify how much time passes. können wir combines können with wir. können is the modal verb “can/be able to”; kann is its first-person singular form, while können is also used with wir. Here it expresses ability or possibility, and wir is the subject “we.” With a modal verb, the other verb normally appears as an infinitive at the end: Wir können weiterarbeiten. — “We can continue working.” ruhiger is the comparative form of the adjective ruhig (“calm” or “quiet”), used here adverbially to describe how the continuing happens: “more calmly.” The basic comparison is ruhig → ruhiger → am ruhigsten (“calm” → “calmer/more calmly” → “most calmly,” depending on the use). The comparative indicates a greater degree of calm than an understood earlier or alternative situation; it does not by itself specify what that comparison is with. weitermachen means “to continue” or “to carry on.” It is a separable verb built from weiter (“further/on”) and machen (“make/do”), but as an infinitive after können it remains together: Wir können weitermachen. — “We can continue.” In a finite main clause, the parts separate: Wir machen weiter. — “We continue.” Together, Dann + können wir + ruhiger + weitermachen gives: “Then we can continue more calmly.” The modal construction presents continuing as possible for “we,” ruhiger describes the manner of that continuation, and Dann links it to the preceding point in the sequence.