Team updates and approval blockers | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Lassen Sie uns dieses Update-Meeting kurz halten und die Tagesordnung durchgehen.

   Let's keep this update meeting short and work through the agenda.

   Lassen Sie uns

   let’s

   dieses

   this

   Update-Meeting

   update meeting

   kurz

   short

   halten

   keep

   Tagesordnung

   agenda

   durchgehen

   work through

   More detail

   Lassen Sie uns is the polite German “let’s” construction: the formal imperative Lassen Sie combines with uns (“us”) and an infinitive. The speaker is proposing a joint action, not asking someone merely to permit something. The formal address form Sie is capitalized. For example, Lassen Sie uns anfangen. means “Let’s begin.” dieses means “this” and agrees with the neuter accusative noun Update-Meeting, because that noun is the object of halten. The form is singular neuter accusative; the same demonstrative has other forms, such as dieser for masculine nominative and diese for feminine nominative or plural contexts. Here it identifies the meeting as the one being discussed. Update-Meeting is a compound noun meaning an update meeting. Its head is Meeting, which is neuter in this compound, as shown by dieses. German compounds are written as one word, while the meaning combines the modifying element with the final noun. kurz is the adjective “short.” In this sentence it describes the meeting’s intended duration or length and remains uninflected because it is used predicatively after halten, rather than directly before the noun. Compare ein kurzes Meeting, where the adjective appears before the neuter noun and receives an ending. halten is the infinitive “to keep” or “to hold.” With an object plus an adjective, etwas kurz halten means “keep something short.” In the Lassen Sie uns ... construction, halten stays in the infinitive. For example, Lassen Sie uns die Besprechung kurz halten. means “Let’s keep the meeting short.” Tagesordnung means “agenda.” It is a feminine noun, normally used with die: die Tagesordnung. In this sentence it is the object of the second coordinated action. A useful related expression is auf der Tagesordnung stehen, “to be on the agenda,” though that is a different grammatical pattern. durchgehen means “to go through” or “work through” something systematically. It is a separable verb in finite clauses, for example Wir gehen die Tagesordnung durch. (“We are going through the agenda.”) After Lassen Sie uns, it appears as the infinitive durchgehen at the end of its coordinated part. The sentence first proposes the joint action with Lassen Sie uns. The two infinitives, kurz halten and durchgehen, are linked by und: the participants should keep dieses Update-Meeting short and work through die Tagesordnung. Together, the fixed utterance means “Let’s keep this update meeting short and work through the agenda.”

2. Ich kann mit dem Fortschritt bei der Designaufgabe beginnen.

   I can start with progress on the design task.

   Ich kann

   I can

   Fortschritt

   progress

   Designaufgabe

   design task

   beginnen

   to begin

   More detail

   Ich kann: können means “can” or “be able to.” kann is its present-tense form for ich. With a modal verb, the other verb stays in the infinitive and appears at the end of the main clause. Example: Ich kann heute beginnen. — “I can begin today.” Fortschritt: This masculine noun means “progress” here. In mit dem Fortschritt, mit requires the dative, so the masculine singular article is dem. The noun itself remains Fortschritt in this form. Example: Wir sprechen über den Fortschritt. — “We are talking about the progress.” Designaufgabe: This compound noun means “design task.” It combines Design and Aufgabe, and the compound is feminine: die Designaufgabe. In bei der Designaufgabe, bei requires the dative, so die becomes der. Example: Sie arbeitet an einer Designaufgabe. — “She is working on a design task.” beginnen: This is the infinitive “to begin” or “to start.” Because it follows the modal kann, it remains an infinitive and stands at the end of the main clause. anfangen is another common verb meaning “to begin,” often more conversational. Example: Ich kann morgen beginnen. — “I can begin tomorrow.” Together, Ich kann ... beginnen means “I can start ...”. mit dem Fortschritt expresses what the speaker can start with, while bei der Designaufgabe identifies the design task associated with that progress. The modal kann occupies the second position in this main clause, and the infinitive beginnen comes at the end, producing the fixed meaning: “I can start with progress on the design task.”

3. Nenne danach bitte alle Hindernisse, die den Zeitplan beeinflussen könnten.

   After that, please mention any blockers that could affect the timeline.

   Nenne

   mention / name

   danach

   after that

   bitte

   please

   alle

   all / any

   Hindernisse

   blockers / obstacles

   Zeitplan

   timeline / schedule

   beeinflussen

   affect / influence

   könnten

   could

   More detail

   Nenne is the informal singular imperative of nennen (“to name” or “to mention”). The ending -e is a possible imperative form here; the shorter form Nenn! is also used. For example: Nenne drei Gründe. — “Name three reasons.” danach is a temporal adverb meaning “after that” or “afterwards.” It places the requested action after an already established event or step. Example: Danach prüfen wir die Zahlen. — “After that, we check the figures.” bitte means “please.” In this sentence it softens the imperative, but it does not change who is being addressed or turn the command into a different verb form. alle is the plural form used with Hindernisse here and means “all”; in this context, the translation “any” conveys the request to mention whatever blockers there are. It does not itself state a numerical count. Example: Nenne bitte alle Änderungen. — “Please mention all the changes.” Hindernisse is the plural of the neuter noun das Hindernis, “obstacle” or “blocker.” The plural changes the ending and adds an e: das Hindernis → die Hindernisse. In this sentence it is the object requested by Nenne. Zeitplan is the masculine noun “schedule” or “timeline.” It is a compound noun, and its gender is determined by its final element, Plan: der Zeitplan. In the sentence, den Zeitplan is the accusative object of beeinflussen; the article den marks that masculine accusative form. Example: Wir ändern den Zeitplan. — “We are changing the schedule.” beeinflussen is the infinitive “to affect” or “to influence.” It is the lexical verb in the relative clause and takes den Zeitplan as its object. Example: Viele Faktoren beeinflussen den Plan. — “Many factors affect the plan.” könnten comes from können (“can, be able to”) and is its Konjunktiv II form meaning “could.” Here it expresses a possible effect, not necessarily an effect that will occur. Its plural form matches the plural relative-clause subject referring to the Hindernisse. In a subordinate clause with this modal construction, the infinitive beeinflussen comes before the finite modal könnten: die ... beeinflussen könnten. The structure is Nenne danach bitte [alle Hindernisse], [die den Zeitplan beeinflussen könnten]: “After that, please mention all/any blockers that could affect the timeline.” die introduces a relative clause describing which obstacles are relevant; inside that clause, the obstacles are the possible agents affecting the schedule. The complete utterance is therefore a polite request to name the blockers whose effects on the timeline are possible.

4. Das größte Hindernis ist, dass wir auf die Genehmigung der Rechtsabteilung warten.

   The main blocker is waiting for approval from the legal team.

   größte

   biggest

   Hindernis

   obstacle; blocker

   ist

   is

   dass

   that

   wir

   we

   auf

   for

   Genehmigung

   approval

   Rechtsabteilung

   legal department

   warten

   wait

   More detail

   größte describes the obstacle as the biggest or most significant one here. It is the superlative of groß (“big”): groß → größer (“bigger”) → am größten (“biggest”) when used independently. In this phrase, the attributive form is größte because it stands before the neuter noun Hindernis with the definite article das. Hindernis means an obstacle; in this context, it is a blocker that prevents or delays progress. Its plural is Hindernisse. Example: Zeitmangel ist ein Hindernis. — “Lack of time is an obstacle.” ist is the third-person singular present form of sein (“to be”). Here it links Das größte Hindernis with the following dass-clause, which explains what the blocker consists of. dass introduces a subordinate clause meaning “that.” In a German dass-clause, the finite verb normally moves to the end. The reusable pattern is X ist, dass ... [verb]: “X is that ... [verb].” wir means “we.” It is the first-person plural subject of warten, so the clause presents the waiting as something done by the speaker together with others. Example: Wir warten. — “We are waiting.” auf belongs to the construction auf etwas warten, “to wait for something.” With this meaning, auf takes the accusative: Wir warten auf die Genehmigung. — “We are waiting for the approval.” This is a useful pattern to learn as a whole rather than translating auf in isolation. Genehmigung means “approval” or “authorization.” It is a feminine noun: die Genehmigung; its plural is Genehmigungen. In this sentence, die Genehmigung is the accusative object after auf; for this feminine noun, the definite article looks the same in nominative and accusative singular. Rechtsabteilung means “legal department.” It is a feminine compound noun: die Rechtsabteilung; its plural is Rechtsabteilungen. The phrase der Rechtsabteilung uses the genitive singular to express “of the legal department” or “from the legal department” in the fixed translation. The form der here is determined by the feminine genitive noun phrase, not by Genehmigung. warten is the base form “to wait.” In wir warten, it is the present-tense first-person plural form. The verb comes at the end because it is inside the dass-clause. Example: Sie warten auf eine Antwort. — “They are waiting for an answer.” Together, Das größte Hindernis ist means “The biggest/main blocker is,” and dass wir auf die Genehmigung der Rechtsabteilung warten means “that we are waiting for approval from the legal department.” The complete utterance therefore says: “The main blocker is waiting for approval from the legal team.”

5. Wer sollte sich nach diesem Gespräch bei ihnen melden?

   Who should follow up with them after this call?

   Wer sollte

   who should

   sich … bei ihnen … melden

   follow up with them

   nach

   after

   diesem

   this

   Gespräch

   conversation

   More detail

   Wer sollte asks which person is expected or advised to act. Wer is the question word for a person; unlike was, it asks “who?”. sollte is the third-person singular form of the modal verb sollen in the Konjunktiv II form. In this use, it commonly expresses “should,” such as a suggestion or expected action: Wer sollte anrufen? means “Who should call?” sich belongs to the reflexive construction sich bei jemandem melden. Here it refers back to the person who is to make contact; it is not an independently identified participant. The construction means to contact or follow up with someone. The verb is melden; in this use, the reflexive form and bei phrase are part of the reusable pattern. For example, Ich melde mich morgen bei ihr. means “I’ll get in touch with her tomorrow.” bei ihnen identifies the people receiving the follow-up. bei takes the dative in this construction, and ihnen is the dative form of the third-person plural pronoun, meaning “them” here. The lowercase spelling distinguishes it from formal singular Ihnen, meaning “you” in a formal address. The pronoun’s grammatical form is clear even though the specific people are not named in this sentence. nach means “after” when it places one event later than another. In this temporal use, it is followed by the dative: nach dem Gespräch means “after the conversation.” diesem is the dative form of the demonstrative determiner dieser, meaning “this” in this phrase. Its form agrees with the neuter noun Gespräch and also marks the dative required by nach: dieses Gespräch is nominative or accusative, while diesem Gespräch is dative. Gespräch is a neuter noun meaning “conversation” or “discussion.” Its plural is Gespräche. In this fixed utterance, the translation presents the conversation as a call, so the intended meaning is the relevant follow-up after that call or conversation. Together, nach diesem Gespräch means “after this conversation,” and sich bei ihnen melden means “follow up with them.” The full question asks which person should follow up with them after the conversation: “Who should follow up with them after this call?”

6. Ich kann das machen, aber ich brauche zuerst die aktuelle Version des Dokuments.

   I can do it, but I need the latest document version first.

   Ich kann

   I can

   das

   it

   machen

   do

   aber

   but

   brauche

   need

   zuerst

   first

   aktuelle

   current; latest

   Version

   version

   Dokuments

   document

   More detail

   Ich kann means “I can.” kann is the first-person singular present form of können (“to be able to; can”). A modal verb is followed by an infinitive, so the ability is completed by the infinitive machen later in the clause. Example: Ich kann heute kommen. — “I can come today.” das means “it” here. It is an accusative neuter demonstrative pronoun used as the object of machen; its specific referent is not named in this sentence. German das can also function in other grammatical roles, so its form alone does not identify a particular thing. machen means “do” here. It is the infinitive of machen, and it stays in the infinitive because it follows the modal kann. Example: Wir können das morgen machen. — “We can do it tomorrow.” aber means “but” and connects two contrasting clauses: the speaker's ability to do something and the speaker's need for the document version first. brauche means “need.” It is the first-person singular present form of brauchen (“to need”): ich brauche, du brauchst, er/sie braucht. Example: Ich brauche mehr Zeit. — “I need more time.” zuerst means “first” here, indicating that the version is needed before the relevant action. It is an adverb and does not inflect. aktuelle means “current” or, in this context, “latest.” It is the adjective aktuell (“current; up to date”) with an ending agreeing with the feminine singular noun Version in the accusative after the definite article die: die aktuelle Version. The adjective itself, not Version, carries the -e ending in this phrase. Example: die aktuelle Liste — “the current list.” Version means “version.” It is a feminine noun: die Version. In die aktuelle Version des Dokuments, it is the direct object of brauche. Dokuments means “document” as a genitive singular form of the neuter noun Dokument (das Dokument), marked here by -s. In the full phrase des Dokuments, the determiner des and the genitive form together express “of the document.” The genitive phrase specifies which version is needed. Example: die Farbe des Autos — “the color of the car.” Taken together, Ich kann das machen says “I can do it,” with the modal kann and its infinitive machen. aber contrasts this with ich brauche zuerst die aktuelle Version des Dokuments, “but I need the latest version of the document first.” The complete utterance is: “I can do it, but I need the latest document version first.”

7. Ich werde jemanden bitten, es heute zu schicken.

   I'll ask someone to send it today.

   Ich werde

   I will

   jemanden

   someone

   bitten

   ask; request

   es

   it

   heute

   today

   zu schicken

   to send

   More detail

   Ich werde means “I will” here. werde is the first-person singular present form of werden; with an infinitive, it forms the future construction. In this sentence, the main infinitive is bitten: Ich werde ... bitten = “I will ask ...”. The later zu schicken belongs inside the action being requested, so this does not mean “I will send.” jemanden means “someone” here. It is the accusative form of the indefinite pronoun jemand: jemand (nominative), jemanden (accusative), and jemandem (dative). bitten uses the accusative for the person being asked: jemanden bitten = “to ask someone.” bitten means “to ask” or “to request.” A reusable pattern is jemanden bitten, etwas zu tun = “to ask someone to do something.” Example: Ich bitte ihn, zu warten. — “I ask him to wait.” es means “it” here. It is the accusative neuter personal pronoun and is the object of schicken. The item referred to is not named in this utterance. heute means “today.” It is an adverb and does not change form. In this sentence, it specifies when the sending is to happen. zu schicken means “to send.” schicken is the infinitive, and zu introduces the requested action in the pattern jemanden bitten, ... zu schicken. Together, Ich werde jemanden bitten means “I will ask someone”; es heute zu schicken states the requested action and its time: “to send it today.” The complete utterance is: “I’ll ask someone to send it today.”

8. Dann sollten wir trotzdem bis zum geplanten Termin fertig werden können.

   Then we should still be able to finish by the planned deadline.

   Dann

   Then

   sollten wir

   we should

   trotzdem

   still

   bis zum

   by the

   geplanten

   planned

   Termin

   deadline

   fertig werden

   finish

   können

   be able to

   More detail

   Dann means “then” here, pointing to the situation or time established by the surrounding context. It is a temporal adverb and can also introduce a consequence: Dann machen wir weiter. — “Then we’ll continue.” sollten wir contains wir, “we,” and sollten, the Konjunktiv II form of sollen. In this sentence, sollten expresses an expectation or recommendation corresponding to “should”; it is not simply a past-tense form. The subject is wir, first-person plural. Compare indicative wir sollen (“we are supposed to / we should according to an instruction”) with wir sollten (“we should / we ought to,” often softer or more conditional). trotzdem means “still” or “nevertheless.” It marks a continuation despite a difficulty or contrasting circumstance. For example: Es regnet, aber wir gehen trotzdem. — “It’s raining, but we’re going anyway.” Its meaning belongs to this adverb alone; the full sense of what is being continued emerges from the rest of the sentence. bis zum is the contracted form of bis zu dem, meaning “by the” or “until the.” In this sentence, the intended reading is a deadline, so it means that the completion is to occur no later than that point. zu takes the dative here, and dem contracts with zu as zum. The contraction does not itself state a number. geplanten is the inflected form of the adjective geplant, “planned.” It modifies Termin and has the ending -en because it is in a masculine dative noun phrase after the definite article: zu dem geplanten Termin, contracted as zum geplanten Termin. The adjective’s base form is geplant; geplanten is not derived from Termin. Termin is a masculine noun meaning an arranged date, appointment, or scheduled deadline. Here, with geplant and the completion context, it means the planned deadline. Its plural is Termine. The gender is a grammatical property of the noun: der Termin, zum Termin. fertig werden literally presents the subject as becoming finished or ready. With wir as the subject, the sentence means that we complete the work, rather than that we finish some separately named object. fertig is a descriptive adjective, and werden is the verb “become”; together they form a useful construction. Example: Die Arbeit wird heute fertig. — “The work will be finished today.” können is the infinitive of können, “can” or “be able to.” It adds ability or feasibility to fertig werden: fertig werden können means “be able to finish.” With a modal verb, the other verb remains in the infinitive, while the modal occupies the finite position. In this sentence, sollten is finite and können is placed at the end. The structure is Dann sollten wir trotzdem bis zum geplanten Termin fertig werden können: “Then” + “we should” + “still/nevertheless” + “by the planned deadline” + “become finished” + “be able to.” Thus the whole utterance says that, despite the relevant difficulty or contrast, we are expected to be able to finish by the planned deadline. The final sequence fertig werden können is a modal infinitive combination, while sollten carries the sentence’s “should” meaning.

9. Nach dem Meeting werde ich eine schriftliche Zusammenfassung der Entscheidungen schicken.

   After the meeting, I'll send a written summary of the decisions.

   Nach dem

   after the

   Meeting

   meeting

   werde ich

   I will

   schriftliche

   written

   Zusammenfassung

   summary

   Entscheidungen

   decisions

   schicken

   send

   More detail

   Nach dem introduces a time: nach means “after” here and takes the dative in this use. dem is the dative masculine/neuter singular form of the definite article. With the neuter noun Meeting, the phrase is nach dem Meeting. Meeting is a neuter loan noun: das Meeting; its plural is die Meetings. The fixed sentence uses the singular because it refers to one meeting. werde ich combines first-person singular werde, the form of werden used here as a future auxiliary, with ich, “I.” Because the time phrase comes first, the finite verb comes before the subject: Nach dem Meeting werde ich .... In a future construction, the lexical infinitive normally goes to the end: Ich werde morgen arbeiten. — “I will work tomorrow.” schriftliche is the feminine singular accusative form of the adjective schriftlich, “written,” agreeing with Zusammenfassung. The ending reflects the noun phrase, not Meeting: eine schriftliche Zusammenfassung. The adjective’s base form is schriftlich; its comparative is schriftlicher and its superlative is am schriftlichsten, although the basic form is the natural choice here. Zusammenfassung is a feminine noun, die Zusammenfassung, meaning a summary or concise account. Its plural is Zusammenfassungen. In this sentence it is the direct object of schicken, so the phrase uses the accusative: eine schriftliche Zusammenfassung. Entscheidungen is the plural of die Entscheidung, “decision.” Here der Entscheidungen is a genitive plural phrase meaning “of the decisions,” specifying what the summary concerns. The same plural form can have other case functions, but the surrounding der and the relation to Zusammenfassung give it the genitive meaning here. schicken is the infinitive “to send.” Its present-tense first-person form is ich schicke; after future werden, the infinitive remains schicken: Ich werde die Datei schicken. — “I will send the file.” Together, Nach dem Meeting sets the time, werde ich ... schicken expresses a future action by the speaker, and eine schriftliche Zusammenfassung der Entscheidungen is the object being sent. The complete meaning is: “After the meeting, I’ll send a written summary of the decisions.”

10. Das wird allen helfen, den Überblick über die nächsten Schritte zu behalten.

    That will help everyone stay clear on the next steps.

    Das wird

    That will

    allen

    everyone

    helfen

    help

    Überblick

    overview

    nächsten

    next

    Schritte

    steps

    zu behalten

    to keep

    More detail

    Das wird: Das means “that” here and points to the situation or action mentioned in context. It is a demonstrative pronoun; in this use, its neuter form does not require an explicitly named neuter noun. Wird is the third-person singular present form of werden (werden – wird – wurde – ist geworden). With a following infinitive, werden forms the future: “will …”. allen: This is the dative plural form of all (“all/everyone”). The verb helfen takes a dative recipient, so allen helfen means “help everyone.” The form allen itself does not state a numerical count. helfen: This is the infinitive “to help.” Here it follows the future auxiliary wird; the finite verb is wird, while helfen stays in the infinitive. A useful pattern is jemandem helfen (“to help someone”), with the person helped in the dative. Example: Ich helfe meiner Schwester. — “I help my sister.” Überblick: der Überblick means an overall view or clear understanding of something. In the reusable expression den Überblick behalten, it means “to keep track” or “to stay clear about something.” Überblick is a masculine noun; in this expression, den is its accusative singular article because behalten has it as its object. nächsten: This is the adjective form of nächst-, meaning “next” in an order or sequence. In die nächsten Schritte, it has the ending -en because it modifies the plural noun Schritte in the accusative after über. It is not a comparative form of another adjective. Schritte: This is the plural of der Schritt (“step”). The phrase die nächsten Schritte means “the next steps.” In this sentence, über introduces what the overview concerns; in this meaning, über is followed by the accusative. zu behalten: behalten means “to keep” or “to retain,” and zu behalten is its infinitive with zu. Together with den Überblick, den Überblick behalten means “to keep track” or “to maintain a clear overview.” The pattern jemandem helfen, etwas zu tun means “to help someone do something”: the recipient is in the dative, and the second action appears as a zu-infinitive. Putting the parts together, Das wird gives the future “That will,” allen helfen gives “help everyone,” and den Überblick über die nächsten Schritte zu behalten gives “to keep track of the next steps.” The complete meaning is: “That will help everyone stay clear on the next steps.”