Choosing an activity based on the weather | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Sollen wir morgen etwas drinnen oder draußen machen?

   Should we do something indoors or outdoors tomorrow?

   Sollen wir

   shall we

   morgen

   tomorrow

   etwas

   something

   drinnen

   indoors

   draußen

   outdoors

   machen

   do; make

   More detail

   Sollen wir combines the present-tense form sollen with wir (“we”). In this question, sollen asks about a proposed course of action: “shall we …?” The verb sollen is a modal verb, so the other verb appears as an infinitive at the end: Sollen wir … machen? The word order with the finite verb first marks a yes/no question. Compare the statement pattern Wir sollen … machen (“We are supposed to … do”). morgen means “tomorrow” and identifies the time of the proposed activity. It is an adverb, so it does not change form for number or gender. Example: Wir arbeiten morgen. — “We are working tomorrow.” etwas is an indefinite pronoun meaning “something” here. It refers to an unspecified thing or activity rather than naming one particular option. It is not an article and does not itself state a numeric count. Example: Ich möchte etwas essen. — “I would like to eat something.” drinnen is an adverb meaning “indoors” or “inside,” describing a location. draußen is the contrasting adverb meaning “outdoors” or “outside.” These forms describe where an activity takes place; they are not the corresponding movement forms. For example, Wir bleiben drinnen. means “We are staying indoors,” while Wir spielen draußen. means “We are playing outdoors.” machen is the infinitive of machen, a very common verb meaning “to do” or “to make.” In this utterance it has the broad sense “do” an unspecified activity. After the modal verb sollen, it remains in the infinitive rather than taking a present-tense ending. Example: Was sollen wir machen? — “What should we do?” Together, Sollen wir introduces a suggestion or question about a shared action; morgen places it on the following day; etwas machen means doing some unspecified activity; and drinnen oder draußen offers the location alternatives. The complete meaning is: “Should we do something indoors or outdoors tomorrow?”

2. Schauen wir auf die Wettervorhersage, bevor wir uns entscheiden.

   Check the forecast before we decide.

   Schauen wir

   Let's check

   auf

   at

   Wettervorhersage

   weather forecast

   bevor

   before

   uns entscheiden

   decide

   More detail

   Schauen wir is the first-person plural form used to make a suggestion: “let’s look/check.” It has the same form as present-tense wir schauen, but its verb-first position gives it this suggestion-like reading. Compare Schauen wir den Film! — “Let’s watch the film!” auf occurs with schauen in the pattern auf etwas schauen: “to look at something.” In this sentence, auf takes the accusative phrase die Wettervorhersage; the article die is not part of the selected quote, but it marks the noun phrase here. This is a fixed preposition–verb pattern, not the English preposition chosen word for word. Wettervorhersage means “weather forecast.” It is a compound noun: Wetter means “weather,” and Vorhersage means “forecast.” German nouns are capitalized, and this noun is feminine: die Wettervorhersage in the singular. Example: Die Wettervorhersage ist gut. — “The weather forecast is good.” bevor introduces a time clause meaning “before.” The clause after it has its finite verb at the end: bevor wir uns entscheiden. Example: Ruf mich an, bevor du gehst. — “Call me before you leave.” uns entscheiden means “decide” here. The verb is sich entscheiden; uns is the first-person plural reflexive form matching wir. In the fixed sentence, no object or specific choice is stated after entscheiden; the context makes the decision about what to do. Compare Wir entscheiden uns morgen. — “We’ll decide tomorrow.” Together, Schauen wir auf die Wettervorhersage means “Let’s check the forecast,” and bevor wir uns entscheiden adds the time condition “before we decide.” The complete utterance is therefore: “Check the forecast before we decide.”

3. In der Vorhersage steht, dass es am Morgen sonnig sein wird.

   It says the morning will be sunny.

   Vorhersage

   forecast

   steht

   says; states

   am Morgen

   in the morning

   sonnig

   sunny

   sein wird

   will be

   More detail

   Vorhersage means “forecast” here. Its base form is die Vorhersage; the plural is die Vorhersagen. In in der Vorhersage, the feminine article appears as der because in takes the dative for a fixed location or context. Example: Die Vorhersage ist zuverlässig. — “The forecast is reliable.” steht is the third-person singular present form of stehen (“to stand”). With information in a text, report, or forecast, stehen means that something is written or stated there: Im Bericht steht, dass es regnet. — “The report says that it is raining.” This use is different from the literal meaning “stands.” am Morgen means “in the morning.” It is the contraction of an dem Morgen; dem is the dative form used in this time expression. Example: Am Morgen ist die Luft kühl. — “In the morning, the air is cool.” sonnig is an adjective meaning “sunny.” Used after a form of sein, it is a predicate adjective and therefore has no adjective ending: Der Tag ist sonnig. — “The day is sunny.” Its comparison forms are sonniger (“sunnier”) and am sonnigsten (“sunniest”). sein wird expresses “will be.” sein is the infinitive of “to be,” while wird is the third-person singular present form of werden; together they form the German future construction. In the dass clause, the finite verb wird comes at the end, after the infinitive: ..., dass es morgen warm sein wird. — “...that it will be warm tomorrow.” Taken together, In der Vorhersage steht introduces information written in the forecast, and dass es am Morgen sonnig sein wird gives that information as a subordinate clause. es is the impersonal subject used for the weather condition; it does not identify a particular person or object. The complete meaning is: “The forecast says that it will be sunny in the morning.”

4. Dann könnten wir vor dem Mittagessen spazieren gehen.

   Then we could take a walk before lunch.

   Dann

   then

   könnten wir

   we could

   vor dem

   before the

   Mittagessen

   lunch

   spazieren gehen

   go for a walk

   More detail

   Dann means “then” here: it connects this suggestion to the earlier situation and places it as a possible next step. It can also refer to a time already established in context, but here the natural meaning is “then.” könnten wir expresses “we could.” The form könnten is the subjunctive II (Konjunktiv II) form of können, used here for a possibility or gentle suggestion rather than a firm plan. The subject is wir (“we”), and könnten agrees with that plural subject. Compare wir können (“we can”) for present ability or availability with wir könnten (“we could”) for a proposed or conditional possibility. Example: Wir könnten heute kochen. — “We could cook today.” vor dem means “before the” in this sentence. vor marks the earlier time, and with a time expression it takes the dative here. The article dem is the dative form used with the neuter noun Mittagessen; it is not a separate indication of quantity. The reusable pattern is vor dem + noun, as in vor dem Unterricht — “before class.” Mittagessen means “lunch.” It is a noun, so it is capitalized in German. Its article is das Mittagessen in the basic form, while dem Mittagessen is the dative form required after vor in this temporal expression. Example: Nach dem Mittagessen lese ich. — “After lunch, I read.” spazieren gehen is the reusable expression “to go for a walk.” The two words form a walking activity: gehen is the verb “go,” while spazieren specifies that the going is for a walk. In this sentence both remain in the infinitive construction after the modal verb könnten; the finite verb is könnten, and the activity comes at the end. Example: Wir gehen am Abend spazieren. — “We go for a walk in the evening.” Together, Dann könnten wir gives the suggestion “Then we could,” vor dem Mittagessen identifies when it would happen, and spazieren gehen identifies the activity. The complete meaning is: “Then we could take a walk before lunch.”

5. Wenn es später regnet, können wir in ein Café gehen.

   If it rains later, we can visit a cafe.

   Wenn

   if

   später

   later

   regnet

   rains

   können wir

   we can

   in ein

   into a

   Café

   café

   gehen

   go

   More detail

   Wenn introduces a condition: “if” here. In a reusable pattern, Wenn ... , ... presents a possible condition before the result. In a subordinate clause introduced by wenn, the conjugated verb normally goes to the end. später means “later,” referring to a later time than the relevant present or previously mentioned time. It is an adverb, so it does not change for grammatical gender, number, or case. Example: Wir treffen uns später. — “We’ll meet later.” regnet is the present-tense third-person singular form of regnen, “to rain”: es regnet — “it rains.” German uses the impersonal subject es for this weather expression; es is not a person identified by the sentence. In the conditional clause, regnet appears at the end: wenn es regnet — “if it rains.” können wir combines the modal verb können with the subject wir, “we.” können is the present-tense form used with wir and means “can” here, expressing possibility or availability. With a modal verb, the other verb normally appears as an infinitive at the end of the clause: Wir können gehen. — “We can go.” in ein begins the destination phrase. With in expressing movement toward or into a place, German uses the accusative here. ein is the form of the indefinite article used in the accusative with the neuter noun Café; for this neuter noun, nominative and accusative are both ein. This article does not by itself assert a numerical count; it introduces an unspecified café. Café is the noun “café.” Its spelling, including the accent, is part of the observed form. German nouns are capitalized. Example: Das Café ist offen. — “The café is open.” gehen is the infinitive “to go.” After können, it stays in the infinitive rather than taking a present-tense ending. The combination in ein Café gehen means “go to a café” or, in the fixed translation, “visit a café.” Together, Wenn es später regnet sets the condition “If it rains later.” The comma separates this subordinate conditional clause from the main clause. können wir in ein Café gehen then states the possible plan: “we can go to a café.” The whole utterance is therefore: “If it rains later, we can visit a cafe.”

6. So bleibt der Plan flexibel.

   That keeps the plan flexible.

   So

   that way

   bleibt

   remains; stays

   Plan

   plan

   flexibel

   flexible

   More detail

   So means “that way” here: it points to a way of arranging or handling something, so the sentence says that this arrangement has a particular result. A reusable pattern is So + verb + subject ..., meaning “That way, ...”. bleibt comes from bleiben (“to remain, stay”). It is the present-tense third-person singular form: ich bleibe, du bleibst, er/sie/es bleibt, wir/sie bleiben. In this sentence, der Plan is the singular subject, and bleibt describes the plan continuing in a state rather than becoming something else. der Plan: Plan is a masculine noun meaning “plan”; its plural is Pläne. The definite article der marks this singular masculine noun as the subject here. Example: Der Plan ist einfach. — “The plan is simple.” flexibel means “flexible” or “adaptable”. It is used here after bleiben as a predicate adjective, so it has no adjective ending: Der Plan bleibt flexibel. With a noun directly after the adjective, an ending may appear instead: ein flexibler Plan — “a flexible plan.” Together, So bleibt der Plan flexibel. means “That keeps the plan flexible” or, more literally, “That way, the plan remains flexible.” So gives the manner or arrangement, bleibt expresses continued state, and der Plan remains flexible as the result.

7. Planen wir einen Spaziergang am Morgen.

   Let's plan on a morning walk.

   Planen wir

   let’s plan

   Spaziergang

   walk

   am Morgen

   in the morning

   More detail

   Planen wir uses the verb planen (“to plan”) in a verb-first construction with wir (“we”). In this pattern, the first-person plural subject and the verb in first position make a suggestion equivalent to “Let’s …”: Planen wir ... = “Let’s plan ...”. The verb’s infinitive/base form is planen; its present-tense form with wir is also planen. Example: Gehen wir nach Hause. — “Let’s go home.” Spaziergang means a walk or stroll. It is a masculine noun: der Spaziergang; after einen, it appears as einen Spaziergang, the accusative form used here for the thing being planned. The noun is formed from spazieren (“to stroll”) and Gang (“walk” or “going”), but it functions as one noun in this sentence. Example: Wir machen einen Spaziergang. — “We are taking a walk.” am Morgen means “in the morning.” am is the contraction of an dem; here it introduces a time expression, and Morgen is the masculine noun der Morgen in the dative form required after an in this temporal use. The expression identifies the planned time, not a separate object being planned. Example: Ich arbeite am Morgen. — “I work in the morning.” Together, Planen wir introduces a suggestion, einen Spaziergang names the activity, and am Morgen specifies when it is to take place. The whole utterance therefore means: “Let’s plan on a morning walk.”

8. Wenn sich das Wetter ändert, können wir nach drinnen gehen.

   We can move indoors if the weather changes.

   Wenn

   if

   das Wetter

   the weather

   sich … ändert

   changes

   können wir

   we can

   nach drinnen

   indoors

   gehen

   go

   More detail

   Wenn introduces a condition: “if” or “when.” Here it presents the condition. A useful pattern is Wenn ... , ... = “If ..., ...”. In the subordinate clause introduced by wenn, the conjugated verb goes to the end. das Wetter means “the weather.” Wetter is a neuter noun, so its definite article is das. The article does not determine the verb ending; ändert is singular because das Wetter is singular. sich ändert means “changes” here. The base verb is ändern; when something undergoes a change, German commonly uses the reflexive construction sich ändern. ändert is the present-tense, third-person-singular form agreeing with das Wetter. Example: Der Plan ändert sich. — “The plan changes.” können wir expresses “we can.” können is the present-tense form of the modal verb können for wir; its infinitive form is also können. A modal verb is normally followed by another verb in the infinitive: Wir können gehen. — “We can go.” Because the conditional clause comes first, the main clause begins with können and then wir: Wenn ..., können wir .... nach drinnen means “indoors” with a sense of movement toward the inside. nach marks direction here, while drinnen means “inside.” This contrasts with drinnen alone, which describes being inside rather than movement toward it: Wir sind drinnen. — “We are indoors.” gehen means “to go.” It is the infinitive required after the modal können, so it remains uninflected and comes at the end of the main clause. Here, nach drinnen gehen means “go indoors”; the fixed translation’s “move indoors” conveys the same direction. Together, Wenn sich das Wetter ändert means “if the weather changes.” The subordinate clause comes first, and its verb ändert is at the end. können wir nach drinnen gehen means “we can go indoors”: können is conjugated for wir, while gehen stays in the infinitive. The whole utterance therefore means: “We can move indoors if the weather changes.”