Reporting a heating problem and asking for another room | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ich rufe aus meinem Zimmer an, weil die Heizung nicht funktioniert.

   I am calling from my room because the heating is not working.

   rufe … an

   call

   aus

   from

   meinem

   my

   Zimmer

   room

   weil

   because

   Heizung

   heating

   nicht

   not

   funktioniert

   works

   More detail

   rufe … an: These two separated parts belong to the verb anrufen, “to call” (usually by phone). In the present tense, the first-person form is ich rufe ... an: the prefix an moves to the end of the main clause. Example: Ich rufe meine Schwester an. — “I call my sister.” aus: aus commonly means “from” when describing the place of origin or starting point. It takes the dative case. Here it introduces the room as the place from which the speaker is calling. meinem: This is the dative masculine/neuter form of the possessive determiner mein, meaning “my.” Its form is selected because aus requires dative and Zimmer is neuter. Compare mein Zimmer (nominative or accusative) with meinem Zimmer (dative). The determiner expresses possession, not a numerical count. Zimmer: Zimmer means “room.” It is a neuter noun: das Zimmer. After aus, it appears in the dative phrase aus meinem Zimmer. weil: weil means “because” and introduces a reason clause. In a standard weil clause, the finite verb goes to the end. Pattern: ..., weil ... funktioniert. Heizung: Heizung means “heating” or “heating system.” It is feminine: die Heizung. Here it is the subject of the reason clause, so the verb agrees with it in the third-person singular. nicht: nicht expresses negation. In nicht funktioniert, it negates the heating’s functioning: it is not working. This is different from negating a noun with kein, as in keine Heizung (“no heating system”). funktioniert: This is the third-person singular present form of funktionieren, “to function” or “to work.” The subject is singular die Heizung, giving die Heizung funktioniert. Example: Die Lampe funktioniert. — “The lamp works.” Together, Ich rufe ... an says “I am calling,” aus meinem Zimmer gives the calling location, and weil die Heizung nicht funktioniert gives the reason. The complete meaning is: “I am calling from my room because the heating is not working.”

2. Das tut mir leid. Ist das Zimmer kalt, seit Sie angekommen sind?

   I am sorry about that. Has the room been cold since you arrived?

   Das tut mir leid

   I am sorry about that

   Ist

   is

   Zimmer

   room

   kalt

   cold

   seit

   since

   Sie

   you (formal)

   angekommen

   arrived

   More detail

   Das tut mir leid is a reusable German expression meaning “I am sorry about that.” Literally, Das is “that,” tut is the present-tense form of tun (“do”), and leidtun expresses that something is regrettable to the speaker. Learn the expression as a whole rather than translating each word separately. Example: Das tut mir leid. — “I’m sorry about that.” Ist is the third-person singular present form of sein (“be”). Here it begins a yes/no question: Ist das Zimmer kalt? — “Is the room cold?” German places the finite verb first in this type of question. In the English translation, the larger combination with seit is naturally rendered as “has ... been,” but ist itself is still a present form of sein. Zimmer means “room.” Its base form is das Zimmer; the noun is neuter, which is why the definite article here is das. The plural is Zimmer as well: ein Zimmer — “a room”; zwei Zimmer — “two rooms.” kalt means “cold.” It is an adjective, and in das Zimmer ist kalt it appears as a predicate adjective after sein, so it does not take an adjective ending. Its comparative is kälter (“colder”), and its opposite is warm (“warm”). Example: Das Wasser ist kalt. — “The water is cold.” seit means “since” when it introduces the starting point of a situation that continues up to the relevant present time. A time expression can follow it: seit heute Nachmittag — “since this afternoon.” It can also introduce a subordinate clause, as in this sentence. In that clause, the finite verb moves to the end. Sie means formal “you” here. It is capitalized to distinguish formal singular or plural Sie from lowercase sie, which can mean “she” or “they”; the exact number of the formal addressee is not established by this sentence. In the subordinate clause, Sie is the subject of angekommen sind. angekommen is the past participle of ankommen (“arrive”). German forms the perfect of this movement verb with sein: Sie sind angekommen — “you arrived” or “you have arrived.” In the seit-clause, sind is the finite auxiliary and appears at the end of the clause, after angekommen: seit Sie angekommen sind — “since you arrived.” Together, Ist das Zimmer kalt? asks about the room’s current condition. Seit Sie angekommen sind supplies the starting point for that continuing condition. The whole utterance therefore means: “Has the room been cold since you arrived?” The opening Das tut mir leid adds the speaker’s apology, giving the complete meaning: “I am sorry about that. Has the room been cold since you arrived?”

3. Es ist kalt, seit ich heute Nachmittag eingecheckt habe.

   It has been cold since I checked in this afternoon.

   Es ist

   it is

   kalt

   cold

   seit

   since

   ich

   I

   heute

   today

   Nachmittag

   afternoon

   eingecheckt

   checked in

   More detail

   Es ist is the German subject–verb frame “it is.” In this context, the utterance reports the room’s cold condition. Es is the formal or impersonal subject used in this condition statement; its form does not identify the room by grammatical gender. German uses this frame for weather and other conditions: Es ist ruhig. = “It is quiet.” kalt means “cold” here, describing the temperature. It is an adjective; the form does not show a comparative. The common comparison is kalt – kälter – am kältesten (“cold – colder – coldest”). seit introduces the point from which a situation has continued. With a subordinate clause, it means “since …”: Seit ich hier wohne, ist es ruhig. = “It has been quiet since I have lived here.” The continuing condition is expressed with ist, while the event marking its starting point is expressed by eingecheckt habe. ich is the first-person singular pronoun, “I.” Its form is independent of grammatical gender. In German, the subject pronoun is normally paired with a verb form that agrees in person and number; here the form is habe in the subordinate clause. heute means “today.” It can modify a time expression directly: heute Abend = “this evening.” Nachmittag means “afternoon.” Together, heute Nachmittag means “this afternoon.” German writes this noun with a capital letter because nouns are capitalized. Nachmittag is masculine, as shown by der Nachmittag; the phrase here has no article. eingecheckt is the past participle of einchecken, “to check in.” The useful chain is einchecken – checkte ein – hat eingecheckt (“check in – checked in – has checked in”). In the fixed sentence, it occurs with habe as eingecheckt habe; because this is a subordinate clause introduced by seit, the conjugated verb habe comes at the end, after the participle. Einchecken is a separable verb in some finite forms, for example Ich checke ein. = “I check in.” The pieces combine as follows: Es ist kalt states the continuing cold condition. seit introduces its starting point, and ich heute Nachmittag eingecheckt habe means “I checked in this afternoon.” The complete utterance therefore means, “It has been cold since I checked in this afternoon.” The present form ist presents the cold as still holding at the reference time, while the check-in is the completed event that began that period.

4. Ich kann sofort jemanden von der Haustechnik schicken, um es zu überprüfen.

   I can send maintenance to inspect it right away.

   Ich kann

   I can

   sofort

   right away

   jemanden

   someone

   Haustechnik

   maintenance

   schicken

   send

   es

   it

   überprüfen

   inspect

   More detail

   Ich kann introduces the speaker and the ability or possibility to do something. kann is the present-tense form of können for ich; the following verb stays in the infinitive: Ich kann helfen means “I can help.” Here it does not mean that the sending has already happened. sofort means that the action can happen immediately, without waiting. It can be reused with many actions, for example: Ich komme sofort. — “I’m coming right away.” jemanden is the accusative form of the indefinite pronoun jemand (“someone”). The accusative marks the person directly affected by schicken: Ich sehe jemanden. — “I see someone.” The form contrasts with nominative jemand, as in Jemand wartet. — “Someone is waiting.” Haustechnik names the building-maintenance or facilities service. In von der Haustechnik, von requires the dative, so the feminine article appears as der; the noun itself remains Haustechnik. This expression identifies the service or staff being sent, not necessarily one specifically identified individual. schicken is the infinitive “to send.” Its useful forms include schicken (infinitive), ich schicke (present tense), and geschickt (past participle). In this sentence, kann carries the finite verb form and schicken remains at the end in the infinitive. The pattern jemanden schicken means “to send someone.” es is an accusative neuter pronoun meaning “it” here. The fixed translation confirms that it refers to the thing to be inspected, but the supplied sentence does not identify that thing more specifically. The pronoun’s grammatical form is independent of the person sent by the maintenance service. überprüfen means “to inspect” or “to check.” In um es zu überprüfen, the infinitive with zu expresses the purpose of sending someone: “in order to inspect it.” The separable prefix is not involved here; überprüfen is written as one word in this use. For example, Sie kommt, um den Schaden zu überprüfen. — “She is coming to inspect the damage.” The sequence jemanden von der Haustechnik schicken means “send someone from maintenance.” The purpose construction um es zu überprüfen adds what that person will do. Together with Ich kann and sofort, the whole utterance means: “I can send someone from maintenance right away to inspect it.”

5. Wenn es heute Abend nicht repariert werden kann, ist ein anderes Zimmer verfügbar?

   If it cannot be fixed tonight, is another room available?

   Wenn

   if

   es

   it

   heute Abend

   tonight

   repariert werden kann

   can be repaired

   anderes

   another, different

   Zimmer

   room

   verfügbar

   available

   More detail

   Wenn introduces a condition: “if/when.” It sends the following clause into a conditional frame. Example: Wenn du Zeit hast, ruf mich an. — “If you have time, call me.” es is the neuter third-person pronoun meaning “it” here. The fixed translation identifies it as the thing that may be repaired, but does not identify that thing more specifically. German es can refer to a neuter noun or function as a pronoun for an already understood situation or object; its exact referent must come from context. heute Abend means “tonight,” literally “today evening.” heute means “today,” while Abend means “evening.” Together they form a time expression. Example: Wir kommen heute Abend. — “We are coming tonight.” repariert werden kann expresses “can be repaired.” repariert is the past participle of reparieren, “to repair.” werden forms the passive, so the focus is on the thing receiving the repair rather than on the person doing it. kann is the third-person singular present form of können, “to be able to/can.” In this subordinate clause, the passive material comes before the modal verb, giving the pattern ..., [subject] repariert werden kann. anderes means “another” or “different” here. It is the neuter singular nominative form of the adjective ander, “other/different,” and it agrees with Zimmer in ein anderes Zimmer. The form is not itself a numeric statement; it selects a room different from one previously under consideration. Example: Wir brauchen ein anderes Zimmer. — “We need a different room.” Other common forms include anderer and andere; the ending changes with the grammatical context. Zimmer means “room.” Its singular form is das Zimmer; the plural is die Zimmer, so the plural has the same visible form. Here the singular is shown by ein anderes Zimmer, and the adjective and article carry the relevant agreement marking. verfügbar means “available.” It is an adjective used after ist to describe the room’s status. The verb ist is the third-person singular present form of sein, “to be.” Example: Das Zimmer ist verfügbar. — “The room is available.” The first clause, Wenn es heute Abend nicht repariert werden kann, sets the condition: if the thing cannot be repaired tonight. nicht negates the possibility expressed by repariert werden kann; it is not part of the quoted phrase repariert werden kann itself. The second clause, ist ein anderes Zimmer verfügbar?, asks whether a different room is available. Because the sentence is a yes/no question, the finite verb ist comes first, followed by the subject ein anderes Zimmer and the adjective verfügbar. Together, the utterance means: “If it cannot be fixed tonight, is another room available?”

6. Ich prüfe die Verfügbarkeit und halte ein ähnliches Zimmer bereit, falls wir eines haben.

   I will check availability and hold a similar room if we have one.

   prüfe

   check

   Verfügbarkeit

   availability

   halte … bereit

   hold ... ready

   ähnliches

   similar

   Zimmer

   room

   falls

   if

   eines

   one

   haben

   have

   More detail

   prüfe is the first-person singular present form of prüfen, “to check” or “to examine.” German present tense can also describe a planned or imminent action, so the fixed translation’s “I will check” is compatible with this form. Example: Ich prüfe die Daten. — “I am checking the data.” Verfügbarkeit is a feminine noun meaning “availability,” especially whether something can be obtained or used. In the sentence, die Verfügbarkeit is the definite noun phrase. Example: Die Verfügbarkeit ist begrenzt. — “Availability is limited.” halte ... bereit is the separated form of bereithalten, meaning “to keep or hold something ready.” In the first-person singular present, the finite part is halte, while the separable element bereit appears later. The construction is reusable as Ich halte X bereit. — “I keep X ready.” Here, ein ähnliches Zimmer is what is held ready. ähnliches comes from the adjective ähnlich, “similar.” It describes Zimmer and has the neuter singular ending -es in ein ähnliches Zimmer. More precisely, this is an accusative neuter singular noun phrase with the indefinite article ein, so the adjective takes the mixed-declension ending -es; ähnliches is not a form of Zimmer. Example: ein ähnliches Problem — “a similar problem.” Zimmer is a neuter noun meaning “room.” Its usual article is das Zimmer; after ein, the phrase here is ein ähnliches Zimmer. In the full sentence, this noun phrase is the object that is held ready. falls introduces a condition meaning “if” or “in case.” It starts a subordinate clause, and German normally places the finite verb at the end of that clause. The condition here is falls wir eines haben, “if we have one.” eines is a neuter singular pronoun meaning “one” here. It stands for one room of the relevant kind, as reflected by the fixed translation “if we have one.” Its form is distinct from the noun Zimmer: the pronoun is neuter singular, while the exact referent is understood from the utterance’s meaning. Example: Wir haben mehrere Zimmer; eines ist frei. — “We have several rooms; one is free.” haben is the present-tense form of haben, “to have.” With the subject wir, the first-person plural form is haben, which is identical in shape to the infinitive. At the end of the subordinate clause, wir eines haben means “we have one.” Together, Ich prüfe die Verfügbarkeit means “I will check availability.” und halte ein ähnliches Zimmer bereit adds the coordinated action “and hold a similar room ready.” The conditional falls wir eines haben limits that second action to the case in which such a room is available: “if we have one.” The whole utterance therefore means: “I will check availability and hold a similar room ready if we have one.”

7. Ich brauche kein Upgrade, sondern nur ein warmes Zimmer zum Schlafen.

   I do not need an upgrade, just a warm room for sleeping.

   brauche

   need

   kein

   no; not any

   Upgrade

   upgrade

   sondern nur

   but only

   warmes

   warm

   Zimmer

   room

   zum Schlafen

   for sleeping

   More detail

   brauche is the first-person singular present form of brauchen (“to need”): ich brauche = “I need.” In this sentence, kein negates the noun phrase, so ich brauche kein Upgrade means “I do not need an upgrade.” kein is not a stated numerical quantity; it is the negative counterpart of an indefinite article. Here Upgrade is a neuter noun (das Upgrade), and its accusative form remains Upgrade. kein expresses “no/not any” directly with a noun. German can also use nicht for other kinds of negation, but nicht Upgrade would not be the normal form for negating this indefinite noun phrase. sondern nur introduces a correction after the negation: instead of needing an upgrade, the speaker needs only the thing that follows. sondern commonly follows a negative statement and means “but rather,” while nur limits the request to “only/just.” Together, they connect the two alternatives without changing the subject: “but only …” warmes is the form of the adjective warm (“warm”) used in ein warmes Zimmer. Its ending shows the adjective’s grammatical environment: Zimmer is neuter, singular, and accusative here, and the indefinite article ein has no visible ending in this form, so the adjective carries -es. The base form is warm; warmes is not a form of Zimmer. Zimmer means “room.” It is a neuter noun: das Zimmer. In ein warmes Zimmer, the noun phrase means “a warm room.” The article ein presents an unspecified room; the sentence’s main point is the requested type of room, not a separately emphasized count. zum Schlafen expresses purpose: “for sleeping.” zum is the contraction of zu dem. Schlafen is the capitalized nominalized infinitive of schlafen (“to sleep”); after zu dem, this form is used as a noun-like expression. Compare the verb in a complete sentence: Ich schlafe. — “I am sleeping.” Assembled in order, Ich brauche kein Upgrade says “I do not need an upgrade,” and sondern nur ein warmes Zimmer zum Schlafen replaces that need with the limited request for “just a warm room for sleeping.” The complete meaning is: “I do not need an upgrade, just a warm room for sleeping.”

8. Wir versuchen zuerst, es zu reparieren, und halten ein anderes Zimmer bereit, falls nötig.

   We will try the repair first and keep another room ready if needed.

   Wir

   we

   versuchen

   try

   zuerst

   first

   es

   it

   zu reparieren

   to repair

   halten

   keep

   anderes

   another

   Zimmer

   room

   bereit

   ready

   falls nötig

   if needed

   More detail

   Wir is the first-person plural pronoun: “we.” It identifies the speaker together with at least one other participant, but the sentence does not specify who else is included. Example: Wir warten. — “We are waiting.” versuchen means “try” here. It is the present-tense form for wir; the base form is versuchen. German commonly uses the present tense for a planned or expected future action when the time is clear, which supports the translation “we will try.” The pattern versuchen, etwas zu tun means “try to do something.” Example: Wir versuchen, das Problem zu lösen. — “We are trying to solve the problem.” zuerst means “first” or “as the first step.” It orders this action before the later contingency described in the sentence. Example: Wir prüfen zuerst den Schlüssel. — “We will check the key first.” es is a third-person singular neuter pronoun functioning here as the object of reparieren, “it.” Its grammatical form is neuter singular, but the supplied sentence does not uniquely identify the concrete thing it refers to. The pronoun’s role is clear even when its referent is understood from the surrounding situation. zu reparieren is the zu-infinitive of reparieren, “to repair.” With versuchen, the pattern versuchen, ... zu reparieren expresses an attempt to carry out the repair. The infinitive stays at the end of this infinitive clause; es appears before it as the object. Example: Ich versuche, die Tür zu öffnen. — “I am trying to open the door.” halten means “keep” in this sentence. Its base form is also halten; halten is the present-tense form for wir. In the construction etwas bereit halten, halten combines with bereit to mean “keep something ready,” rather than simply “hold” something physically. Example: Wir halten Wasser bereit. — “We keep water ready.” anderes means “another” here. It is the inflected form of the adjective ander-, agreeing with the neuter singular noun Zimmer in the accusative phrase ein anderes Zimmer. The ending belongs to anderes, not to Zimmer. Compare ein anderes Zimmer — “another room” — with eine andere Tür — “another door.” Zimmer means “room.” It is a neuter noun: das Zimmer; after the verb halten, it is the object in ein anderes Zimmer. Example: Das Zimmer ist frei. — “The room is available.” bereit means “ready.” It is an adjective used after halten as part of the construction etwas bereit halten; it describes the state in which the object is kept. Unlike anderes, it is not inflected here because it is used predicatively after the verb. Example: Ich halte den Tisch bereit. — “I keep the table ready.” falls nötig means “if needed” or “if necessary.” falls introduces a condition, while nötig means “necessary.” This is a shortened conditional expression; the full idea can be understood as “if that is necessary.” It does not itself specify who would need it. Example: Rufen Sie mich an, falls nötig. — “Call me if necessary.” Together, Wir versuchen zuerst, es zu reparieren says that the group will first try to repair it. und halten ein anderes Zimmer bereit adds the alternative preparation: they will keep another room ready. falls nötig makes that preparation conditional. The complete meaning is: “We will try the repair first and keep another room ready if needed.” The present-tense German forms are understood as referring to the planned future action in this context.

9. Bitte rufen Sie mich an, bevor die Haustechnik zu meinem Zimmer kommt.

   Please call before maintenance comes up.

   Bitte

   please

   rufen … an

   call

   Sie

   formal you

   mich

   me

   bevor

   before

   die Haustechnik

   the maintenance service

   zu

   to

   meinem

   my

   Zimmer

   room

   kommt

   comes

   More detail

   Bitte is the standard polite word for “please.” It can introduce a request: Bitte warten Sie. — “Please wait.” rufen ... an is the separable verb anrufen, “to call.” In a main clause, the prefix an moves to the end: Ich rufe dich an. — “I’m calling you.” In this utterance, rufen Sie ... an is the formal imperative: Rufen Sie mich an. — “Call me.” The imperative for formal Sie uses the verb form followed by Sie, while the separable prefix remains at the end. Sie is the formal “you.” Here it is the person being asked to call. This form is used for formal singular or plural “you”; the sentence itself does not specify which number is intended. With informal singular du, the corresponding request is Ruf mich an. — “Call me.” mich means “me” and is the accusative form of ich. It marks the person receiving the call: Sie rufen mich an means “you call me.” Compare Ich rufe Sie an — “I call you formally”; Sie has the same written form here, while the roles are shown by the sentence structure. bevor means “before” and introduces a subordinate clause. German places the conjugated verb at the end of this clause: bevor die Haustechnik kommt — “before the maintenance service comes.” die Haustechnik refers here to the building’s maintenance or technical service. Haustechnik is a feminine singular noun, with the article die. The article does not by itself state how many people the service involves. The compound combines Haus (“building/house”) with Technik (“technology/technical services”), but its established meaning here is the building’s technical or maintenance service. zu means “to” and can introduce a destination or direction toward a person or place. It takes the dative case in this use: zu meinem Zimmer — “to my room.” meinem means “my” in the dative masculine or neuter singular. Here it agrees with neuter Zimmer, so mein Zimmer (“my room”) becomes zu meinem Zimmer (“to my room”). The ending belongs to the possessive determiner mein, not to Zimmer. Zimmer means “room.” It is a neuter noun: das Zimmer. In meinem Zimmer, the accompanying possessive determiner shows the dative role after zu; the noun itself has no visible case ending here. Example: Ich gehe zu meinem Zimmer. — “I’m going to my room.” kommt means “comes” here and is the third-person singular present form of kommen (“to come”). The subject is die Haustechnik, so the singular form is used. In the subordinate clause after bevor, kommt appears at the end: bevor die Haustechnik zu meinem Zimmer kommt — “before the maintenance service comes to my room.” Together, Bitte rufen Sie mich an is the polite request “Please call me,” and bevor die Haustechnik zu meinem Zimmer kommt specifies when: “before the maintenance service comes to my room.” The complete utterance is therefore “Please call me before the maintenance service comes to my room.”

10. Ich rufe Sie an, bevor die Haustechnik kommt, und noch einmal, wenn ich Neuigkeiten habe.

    I will call you before they come up and again when I have an update.

    rufe … an

    call

    bevor

    before

    Haustechnik

    building maintenance

    kommt

    comes

    noch einmal

    again

    wenn

    when

    Neuigkeiten

    updates

    habe

    have

    More detail

    rufe ... an is the split form of the separable verb anrufen, “to call”. The base form is anrufen; with the subject ich, its present-tense form is rufe, while the particle an moves to the end of the main clause. German present tense can refer to a planned future event when the time context makes that clear, which gives the intended “I will call” here. Example: Ich rufe dich morgen an. — “I’ll call you tomorrow.” bevor introduces an event that must happen before another event. In the following subordinate clause, the finite verb comes at the end: bevor die Haustechnik kommt — “before building maintenance comes.” The fixed context supports Haustechnik as the maintenance service or staff, not as a separately identified individual. Haustechnik is a noun meaning “building maintenance” or “building-services staff”. It is a singular noun in this sentence, so the verb referring to it is singular. German compounds such as this one are written as one word; do not treat Haus and Technik here as two separate nouns in the sentence. kommt is the third-person singular present form of kommen, “to come”. The base/current pair is kommen → kommt. Here it describes the maintenance service’s arrival. In the subordinate clause introduced by bevor, this finite verb appears at the end. noch einmal means “again” or “one more time”. It marks a second call, but it does not by itself specify an exact number beyond the repeated event expressed here. Example: Bitte sagen Sie das noch einmal. — “Please say that again.” wenn introduces the time condition “when”. In this sentence it presents the time at which the second call will happen: the speaker calls again when the speaker has news. In a different context, wenn can also introduce a condition, but the intended use here is temporal. Neuigkeiten means “updates” or “news”. It is the plural form of Neuigkeit, “piece of news” or “update”. The plural form presents the speaker as having news or updates, without stating how many individual items there are. Example: Ich habe Neuigkeiten. — “I have an update.” habe is the first-person singular present form of haben, “to have”: haben → ich habe. It agrees with the subject ich in the clause introduced by wenn. The verb is at the end of that subordinate clause, as it is in the bevor clause. Together, the main clause says that the speaker calls the addressee, with the formal second-person pronoun Sie. The first time reference places that call before the arrival of building maintenance. und noch einmal adds a repeated call, and wenn ich Neuigkeiten habe gives the time for that second call: it happens when the speaker has updates. Thus the utterance expresses two calls by the speaker to the addressee, each timed by one of the two subordinate clauses.