Choosing an Online Language Course | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ich möchte einen Online-Sprachkurs auswählen.

   I want to choose an online language course.

   Ich möchte

   I want to / I would like to

   Online-Sprachkurs

   online language course

   auswählen

   choose / select

   More detail

   Ich möchte expresses the speaker’s desire: “I want to” or, often more politely, “I would like to.” möchte is the first-person singular form used for this meaning; it is related to mögen, but do not replace the observed form with mag here. With a following infinitive, the infinitive normally goes to the end of the clause. Example: Ich möchte einen Tee trinken. — “I would like to drink a tea.” Online-Sprachkurs is a compound noun meaning an online language course. The final element, Kurs, is the head noun, so the compound is masculine: der Online-Sprachkurs. In the sentence it is the object of the selection, so the preceding article appears as accusative masculine einen. Example: Ich suche einen Online-Sprachkurs. — “I am looking for an online language course.” auswählen means “to choose” or “to select.” It is a separable verb built from aus- and wählen; the form shown here is the infinitive, so it remains together after möchte. In a finite present-tense clause, the prefix separates: Ich wähle einen Kurs aus. — “I choose a course.” The sentence combines the desire expression Ich möchte with the object einen Online-Sprachkurs and the infinitive auswählen. Together, these parts mean: “I want to choose an online language course.”

2. Vergleiche den Zeitplan, die Bewertungen und den Unterrichtsstil.

   Compare the schedule, reviews, and teaching style.

   Vergleiche

   compare

   Zeitplan

   schedule

   Bewertungen

   reviews

   Unterrichtsstil

   teaching style

   More detail

   Vergleiche is the informal singular imperative of vergleichen (“to compare”). It addresses one person and asks that person to compare the listed items. The formal imperative is Vergleichen Sie; with several people addressed informally, use Vergleicht. Example: Vergleiche die Preise. — “Compare the prices.” Zeitplan means “schedule” or “timetable.” The form in the sentence is singular: der Zeitplan is the base form, while den Zeitplan is the accusative form used because it is the object of Vergleiche. The article den shows masculine accusative singular here. Example: Ich prüfe den Zeitplan. — “I check the schedule.” Bewertungen means “reviews” in this context. Its singular base form is die Bewertung (“review” or “rating”), and Bewertungen is the plural form. The article die marks the plural object here: die Bewertungen. Example: Wir lesen die Bewertungen. — “We read the reviews.” Unterrichtsstil means “teaching style.” It is a compound noun made from Unterricht (“teaching” or “instruction”) and Stil (“style”); the compound’s grammatical gender follows its final element, so it is masculine: der Unterrichtsstil. In this sentence, den Unterrichtsstil is masculine accusative singular, again because it is an object of Vergleiche. Example: Der Unterrichtsstil ist klar. — “The teaching style is clear.” The three objects are coordinated in one list: den Zeitplan, die Bewertungen und den Unterrichtsstil. The accusative marking applies separately to each noun phrase: masculine singular nouns use den, while the plural noun phrase uses die. Together with the imperative, the sentence means: “Compare the schedule, reviews, and teaching style.”

3. Dieser Kurs ist kürzer, hat aber weniger Lektionen.

   This course is shorter but has fewer lessons.

   Dieser

   this

   Kurs

   course

   ist

   is

   kürzer

   shorter

   hat

   has

   aber

   but

   weniger

   fewer

   Lektionen

   lessons

   More detail

   Dieser means “this” here and is the masculine singular nominative form of the demonstrative determiner. It matches Kurs, so dieser Kurs means “this course.” The form changes with grammatical gender, number, and case; for example, diese Lektion means “this lesson.” Kurs is a masculine noun meaning “course.” Its plural is Kurse. In this sentence it is the subject of both coordinated verb phrases: the course is shorter and has fewer lessons. ist is the third-person singular present form of sein (“to be”): sein → ist. With a singular subject such as dieser Kurs, it means “is.” After sein, the adjective kürzer remains in its basic predicate form rather than taking a noun-ending. kürzer is the comparative of kurz (“short”): kurz → kürzer (“shorter”) → am kürzesten (“shortest”). German commonly forms this comparative with -er, and the vowel changes here from u to ü. A reusable comparison is Der Kurs ist kürzer als der andere. — “The course is shorter than the other one.” hat is the third-person singular present form of haben (“to have”): haben → hat. Here haben describes what the course contains or offers: it “has fewer lessons.” aber is a coordinating conjunction meaning “but.” It connects the two statements without changing the word order of the clauses: ..., aber .... weniger means “fewer” here because it quantifies the plural count noun Lektionen. It is related to wenig (“little; few”): wenig can refer to a small amount, while weniger expresses comparison. With a singular or non-count noun, weniger can mean “less,” as in weniger Zeit — “less time.” Lektionen means “lessons.” It is the plural of Lektion; the plural ending is -en. The noun is the object of hat, and weniger specifies that its quantity is lower in comparison with another course. Together, Dieser Kurs ist kürzer says “This course is shorter,” and hat aber weniger Lektionen adds the contrasting fact “but has fewer lessons.” The complete utterance is therefore: “This course is shorter but has fewer lessons.”

4. Der andere wirkt anfängerfreundlicher.

   The other one looks more beginner-friendly.

   Der andere

   the other one

   wirkt

   looks; seems

   anfängerfreundlicher

   more beginner-friendly

   More detail

   Der andere means “the other one.” Der and the ending in andere show masculine singular nominative in this use; the phrase stands for an understood alternative, whose specific noun is supplied by context rather than repeated. The form andere can also occur with other grammatical forms, for example die andere for a feminine singular referent and das andere for a neuter singular referent. wirkt comes from wirken and is the third-person singular present form. Here it describes the impression something gives: “seems” or “comes across as.” A reusable pattern is X wirkt + adjective, as in the example Der Plan wirkt einfach. — “The plan seems simple.” anfängerfreundlicher is the comparative of anfängerfreundlich, meaning “beginner-friendly.” The comparative ending -er gives the meaning “more beginner-friendly”; its comparison partner is understood from the context. Because the adjective follows wirken as a predicate, it has no additional case or gender ending here. The superlative can be formed as am anfängerfreundlichsten (“the most beginner-friendly” when used predicatively). Together, Der andere wirkt anfängerfreundlicher. says that the other option gives a more beginner-friendly impression than the comparison option already understood. The sentence does not explicitly state what feature makes it seem that way; it simply presents that overall assessment.

5. Ich kann nur am Wochenende lernen.

   I can only study on weekends.

   Ich kann

   I can

   nur

   only

   am Wochenende

   on weekends

   lernen

   study

   More detail

   Ich kann combines the first-person subject Ich (“I”) with kann, the present-tense first-person singular form of können (“can; be able to”). In this sentence it expresses ability or availability. German places the conjugated modal verb in the main-clause second position, while the other verb stays in the infinitive at the end. nur means “only” and restricts what follows in the sentence: the speaker can study only at the specified time. Its position directly before the time expression makes the time restriction especially clear. am Wochenende means “at/on the weekend”; here, with the fixed translation and context, it refers to studying on weekends. am is the contraction of an dem, and Wochenende is the neuter noun das Wochenende. The dative form appears after an in this time expression. For a specific weekend, English may also use “this weekend,” but the German phrase itself does not explicitly add “this.” lernen is the infinitive “to study” or “to learn.” Its base form is lernen; after the modal kann, German uses this infinitive rather than a conjugated form. For example: Ich kann heute lernen. — “I can study today.” Together, Ich kann ... lernen gives “I can study,” and nur am Wochenende limits that ability or availability to the weekend period. The complete utterance therefore means: “I can only study on weekends.”

6. Dann wähle den Kurs mit Unterricht am Wochenende.

   Then choose the course with weekend classes.

   Dann

   then

   wähle

   choose

   Kurs

   course

   Unterricht

   classes; instruction

   Wochenende

   weekend

   More detail

   Dann means “then” here, linking this choice to the preceding situation. It is also common at the beginning of German instructions: Dann nimm den Bus. — “Then take the bus.” wähle is the singular informal imperative of wählen (“to choose”). The understood subject is du, so this form addresses one person informally: Wähle einen Kurs. — “Choose a course.” The imperative is not the same as the present-tense form du wählst (“you choose”). Kurs means “course.” In den Kurs, the article shows that the noun is the direct object of wähle; den is the masculine accusative singular form of der. The noun itself remains Kurs. A useful contrast is der Kurs (“the course,” subject or citation form) versus den Kurs (“the course,” direct object). Unterricht means “instruction” or “classes” in this context. It is commonly used as a mass noun for teaching or class instruction rather than as a simple count of individual lessons. In mit Unterricht, mit introduces what the course includes and requires the dative; Unterricht has the same visible form here because this noun does not show a distinct article or ending in the phrase. Wochenende means “weekend.” The form am is the contraction of an dem, and am Wochenende is the usual German time expression for “on the weekend” or, in this context, “on weekends.” The noun is neuter: das Wochenende; after an in this time expression, the dative form is dem Wochenende, contracted to am Wochenende. Together, wähle den Kurs gives the instruction “choose the course.” mit Unterricht am Wochenende specifies which course: the one that has classes on weekends. Thus the whole utterance means, “Then choose the course with weekend classes.”

7. Die Bewertungen sagen, dass der Lehrer verständlich erklärt.

   The reviews say the teacher explains clearly.

   Bewertungen

   reviews

   sagen

   say

   dass

   that

   Lehrer

   teacher

   verständlich

   clearly; understandably

   erklärt

   explains

   More detail

   Bewertungen means “reviews” here. Its singular base form is die Bewertung; Bewertungen is the plural form, with the ending -en. The noun can refer to written or spoken evaluations, depending on context. Example: Die Bewertungen sind positiv. — “The reviews are positive.” sagen is the base form “to say.” In the sentence, sagen is the present-tense form for the plural subject Die Bewertungen: “The reviews say.” A useful contrast is sagt with a singular subject: Die Bewertung sagt das. — “The review says that.” dass introduces the content of what is said: “that.” It begins a subordinate clause. In standard German, the finite verb in a dass clause normally moves to the end of that clause. der Lehrer means “the teacher.” Lehrer is a masculine noun in this use, and der is its nominative singular definite article because the teacher is the subject of the subordinate clause. The plural is die Lehrer: the article changes, while the noun form Lehrer stays the same. Example: Die Lehrer erklären die Regel. — “The teachers explain the rule.” verständlich describes something as understandable or clear to the listener. With erklärt, it describes the manner of explaining, so “clearly” is the natural meaning here. It is an adjective that can also be used independently: Die Erklärung ist verständlich. — “The explanation is understandable.” erklärt comes from the verb erklären, “to explain.” Here it is the present-tense, third-person singular form, agreeing in person and number with der Lehrer: Der Lehrer erklärt — “The teacher explains.” The same form can also be a past participle in a different construction, but here it is the finite present-tense verb. Example: Sie erklärt die Regel verständlich. — “She explains the rule clearly.” Together, Die Bewertungen sagen gives the main clause “The reviews say.” dass introduces the reported content, and der Lehrer verständlich erklärt gives that content, with the finite verb at the end of the subordinate clause. The complete meaning is: “The reviews say that the teacher explains clearly.”

8. Das ist wichtiger als ein kürzerer Kurs.

   That matters more than a shorter course.

   Das

   that

   ist

   is

   wichtiger

   more important

   als

   than

   kürzerer

   shorter

   Kurs

   course

   More detail

   Das is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” here. Its neuter singular form is das; as a pronoun, it can refer to an understood thing, fact, or situation. The supplied sentence does not identify that referent more specifically. ist is the third-person singular present form of sein (“to be”): sein → ist. With Das, it forms the statement “that is …”. wichtiger is the comparative form of the adjective wichtig (“important”): wichtig → wichtiger (“more important”) → am wichtigsten (“most important”). Because it follows ist as a predicate adjective, wichtiger does not take a noun-agreement ending here. als introduces the second part of an unequal comparison. The reusable pattern is X ist wichtiger als Y — “X is more important than Y.” German uses als for “than” in this type of comparison. kürzerer is the comparative form of kurz (“short”): kurz → kürzer (“shorter”). In ein kürzerer Kurs, the adjective is placed before the noun and carries the ending -er. This ending is required here because Kurs is masculine singular and the noun phrase is the nominative subject of the comparison after als is understood as the comparison standard. The adjective’s base is kurz, not Kurs. Kurs is a masculine noun meaning “course.” Its plural is Kurse. In the phrase ein kürzerer Kurs, ein marks an indefinite masculine singular noun phrase; it does not by itself assert a numerical count. Together, Das ist wichtiger means “That is more important,” and als ein kürzerer Kurs supplies the comparison standard, “than a shorter course.” The complete utterance therefore means: “That matters more than a shorter course.”