Explaining a dashboard bug and a temporary workaround | Learn German in English

Sentence explanations

1. Das Dashboard hat einen Fehler, aber ich kann ihn ohne technische Details erklären.

   The dashboard has a bug, but I can explain it without technical details.

   Dashboard

   dashboard

   hat

   has

   Fehler

   bug; error

   aber

   but

   ich kann

   I can

   ihn

   it

   erklären

   explain

   ohne

   without

   technische

   technical

   Details

   details

   More detail

   Dashboard is the subject noun here. German uses the neuter article das Dashboard; the borrowed noun refers to a dashboard or overview interface. Example: Das Dashboard ist neu. — “The dashboard is new.” hat is the present-tense third-person singular form of haben (“to have”). With the singular subject das Dashboard, German uses hat. The phrase einen Fehler is its accusative object: ein Fehler becomes einen Fehler because Fehler is masculine and is the object of haben. Fehler means an error or bug. In this sentence it means a problem in the dashboard, as confirmed by the fixed translation. Its singular form is der Fehler; its plural is die Fehler. Example: Der Fehler ist behoben. — “The bug is fixed.” aber connects two contrasting clauses and corresponds to “but.” It does not itself change the case or tense of the surrounding words. ich kann combines the first-person singular pronoun ich with kann, the present form of the modal verb können. Together they express the speaker’s ability to do something. With a modal verb, the other verb normally goes to the end of the clause in the infinitive: Ich kann den Fehler erklären. — “I can explain the bug.” ihn is the masculine accusative form of the pronoun er. Here it refers to the bug/error, matching the translation’s “it.” German uses er for nominative masculine reference and ihn for accusative masculine reference. This is a grammatical match to the masculine noun Fehler; an English “it” does not always correspond to ihn in German. erklären is the infinitive “to explain.” It remains in the infinitive because it follows the modal kann, and it appears at the end of this clause. Its stem is erklär-; a finite present form is ich erkläre when no modal requires the infinitive. Example: Sie erklärt den Fehler. — “She explains the error.” ohne means “without” and governs the accusative case in standard German. Here it introduces the plural noun phrase technische Details. technische describes Details and means “technical.” Its base form is the adjective technisch. The ending -e here results from strong adjective inflection: the adjective is before a plural accusative noun phrase and there is no article or other determiner supplying the case marking. Compare die technischen Details, where the definite article marks the case and the adjective has -en. Example: Wir brauchen technische Hilfe. — “We need technical help.” Details means “details.” It is the plural of the neuter noun Detail; the plural form is required because the phrase refers to more than one detail. The adjective-noun group technische Details means “technical details.” As a whole, Das Dashboard hat einen Fehler states that the dashboard has a bug. aber ich kann ihn ... erklären contrasts this with the speaker’s ability to explain that bug. ohne technische Details specifies that the explanation can be given without technical details. Together, the utterance means: “The dashboard has a bug, but I can explain it without technical details.”

2. Bitte erklär es, denn das Vertriebsteam muss nur wissen, welche Auswirkungen das hat.

   Please do, because the sales team only needs to know the impact.

   Bitte

   please

   erklär

   explain

   es

   it

   Vertriebsteam

   sales team

   muss

   must

   nur

   only

   wissen

   know

   Auswirkungen

   effects

   hat

   has

   More detail

   Bitte makes the request polite. It can stand alone as “please” or appear with an imperative: Bitte erklär .... erklär is the informal singular imperative of erklären (“to explain”). The subject is understood as du; the form addresses one person informally. For a formal request, German uses Erklären Sie ... instead. es is an accusative pronoun meaning “it” here. Its grammatical form is neuter singular, but the fixed sentence does not uniquely identify one concrete referent for it. Example: Ich erkläre es später. — “I’ll explain it later.” Vertriebsteam is a compound noun meaning “sales team”: Vertrieb relates to sales/distribution and Team means team. The whole noun is neuter singular: das Vertriebsteam; its plural is die Vertriebsteams. muss is the third-person singular present form of the modal verb müssen (“must / have to”). In this sentence, das Vertriebsteam is singular, so the form is muss. With a plural subject, the present form is müssen. nur means “only” and limits what is required. Here it limits the team’s need: the team needs to know the effects, without the sentence asserting that it needs no other information in every respect. wissen is the infinitive “to know.” After a modal verb such as muss, the other verb stays in the infinitive and appears at the end of the clause: Das Team muss wissen .... Compare Das Team weiß ... (“The team knows ...”), where weiß is the present form of wissen. Auswirkungen is the plural of the noun Auswirkung, meaning “effects” or “impacts.” In welche Auswirkungen, welche asks which effects; the plural form fits the plural noun. The singular is eine Auswirkung (“an effect”). hat is the third-person singular present form of haben (“to have”). In the subordinate clause welche Auswirkungen das hat, it comes at the end, as German finite verbs normally do in such a clause. The subject of hat is das, while Auswirkungen is what is had: literally, “what effects that has.” Together, Bitte erklär es is “Please explain it.” denn introduces the reason, and das Vertriebsteam muss nur wissen says that the sales team only needs to know. The embedded question welche Auswirkungen das hat means “what effects that has.” Thus the whole utterance is: “Please explain it, because the sales team only needs to know what impact it has.”

3. Einige Diagramme zeigen weiterhin alte Zahlen an, nachdem die Nutzer den Datumsfilter geändert haben.

   Some charts keep showing old numbers after users change the date filter.

   Einige

   some; several

   Diagramme

   charts; diagrams

   zeigen … an

   display; show

   weiterhin

   still; continuing to

   alte

   old

   Zahlen

   numbers; figures

   nachdem

   after

   Nutzer

   users

   Datumsfilter

   date filter

   geändert

   changed

   More detail

   Einige means “some” or “several” and refers to a non-specific part of a plural set. It does not by itself state an exact number. Compare einige Diagramme (“some charts”) with alle Diagramme (“all charts”). Diagramme is the plural of das Diagramm (“the chart/diagram”). In this sentence it is the subject: the charts perform the showing. Example: Das Diagramm zeigt einen Trend an. — “The chart displays a trend.” zeigen ... an is the separable verb anzeigen, “to display” or “to show.” In the present tense, its stem appears as zeigen in the main clause while the prefix an moves to the end: Die Diagramme zeigen Werte an. — “The charts display values.” The two quoted parts belong together even though another word comes between them. weiterhin means “still” or “continuing to.” It presents the displaying as continuing at the relevant time. It is different from wieder (“again”), which normally indicates that something happens another time after an interruption or earlier occurrence. alte is the adjective alt, “old,” in the form used with plural Zahlen here. It describes the numbers as old rather than current. A useful comparison is alt (“old”), älter (“older”), am ältesten (“oldest”). Example: Wir verwenden alte Daten. — “We use old data.” Zahlen is the plural of die Zahl, “number.” Here it means numerical figures or values being displayed; it is the direct object of anzeigen, so the charts display the numbers. Example: Der Bericht enthält neue Zahlen. — “The report contains new figures.” nachdem introduces a time clause meaning “after.” It places the event in that clause before the relevant event in the main clause. In German, a subordinate clause introduced by nachdem sends its finite verb to the end. Nutzer means “users.” The form is plural here because die Nutzer is the subject of haben; the noun Nutzer has the same visible form in the singular and plural, while the article and verb provide the number information. Example: Die Nutzer öffnen den Bericht. — “The users open the report.” Datumsfilter is a compound noun meaning “date filter”: Datum (“date”) plus Filter (“filter”). In den Datumsfilter, it is the object of ändern; the masculine accusative article is den. Example: Der Nutzer setzt den Datumsfilter zurück. — “The user resets the date filter.” geändert is the past participle of ändern, “to change.” The clause uses geändert haben: haben is the present-tense plural auxiliary agreeing with die Nutzer, and geändert names the completed change. Because the clause begins with nachdem, the finite auxiliary haben stands at the end: nachdem die Nutzer den Datumsfilter geändert haben — “after the users have changed the date filter.” Together, Einige Diagramme zeigen weiterhin alte Zahlen an says that some charts continue to display old figures. nachdem die Nutzer den Datumsfilter geändert haben adds the time condition: this remains the case after the users have changed the date filter. The whole utterance therefore means: “Some charts keep showing old numbers after users change the date filter.”

4. Können Nutzer weiterhin den richtigen Bericht herunterladen?

   Can users still download the correct report?

   Können Nutzer

   can users

   weiterhin

   still

   richtigen

   correct; right

   Bericht

   report

   herunterladen

   download

   More detail

   Können Nutzer combines können with the plural subject Nutzer (“users”). Here, können expresses ability or possibility. Its base form is können, and the finite form for a third-person plural subject is also können. In a yes/no question, the finite verb comes first: Können Nutzer ...? means “Can users ...?” weiterhin means that a situation continues: “still.” It does not itself express a past or future tense. Example: Sie arbeitet weiterhin hier. — “She still works here.” richtigen is the adjective richtig, meaning “correct” or “right,” in an inflected form. Here it describes Bericht. The ending -en is required because the adjective follows den, the definite article in the accusative masculine singular form. The adjective’s base form is richtig; richtigen is not a separate base word. Compare: der richtige Bericht — “the correct report” (nominative) and den richtigen Bericht — “the correct report” (accusative). Bericht is a masculine noun meaning “report.” Its plural is Berichte. In this sentence, den Bericht is the object of the downloading action, so it is accusative: der Bericht becomes den Bericht. Example: Ich lese den Bericht. — “I am reading the report.” herunterladen means “to download.” It is a separable verb: the base form is herunterladen, but in a normal present-tense main clause its parts separate, as in Sie laden den Bericht herunter. — “They download the report.” With the modal verb können, the lexical verb remains as an infinitive at the end: Können Nutzer den Bericht herunterladen? The modal is finite, while herunterladen names the action. Together, Können Nutzer asks about the users’ ability or possibility, weiterhin says that this possibility continues, den richtigen Bericht identifies the report being downloaded, and herunterladen supplies the action. The whole utterance therefore means: “Can users still download the correct report?”

5. Die exportierten Berichte sind korrekt, daher sind sie eine gute vorübergehende Lösung.

   The exported reports are correct, so they are a good temporary workaround.

   exportierten

   exported

   Berichte

   reports

   sind

   are

   korrekt

   correct

   daher

   therefore

   sie

   they

   gute

   good

   vorübergehende

   temporary

   Lösung

   solution or workaround

   More detail

   exportierten means “exported” here: it is the past participle of exportieren, used attributively before Berichte. In the plural phrase die exportierten Berichte, the definite article die and plural noun require the adjective ending -en. As a verb, exportieren can also be used in the present: Wir exportieren die Daten. — “We export the data.” Berichte is the plural of der Bericht (“report”). The plural form is useful to recognize because it takes die and plural verb agreement. Example: Die Berichte sind vollständig. — “The reports are complete.” sind is the third-person plural present form of sein (“to be”): ich bin, du bist, er/sie/es ist, wir/sie/Sie sind. Here it links the plural subject Die exportierten Berichte with the description korrekt. korrekt means “correct” in this sentence. It is an adjective whose form does not change here because it follows sind as a predicate adjective, rather than standing directly before a noun. Example: Die Angaben sind korrekt. — “The information is correct.” daher means “therefore” or “so” and expresses the result of the preceding statement. It appears first in the second clause, and the finite verb follows it immediately: Daher sind sie ... This is a useful German word-order pattern: when another element occupies the first position, the finite verb still comes before the subject. sie means “they” here and refers to the exported reports. As a pronoun, it is third-person plural; the same written form can have other grammatical functions in German, but the plural verb sind and the fixed translation support “they” in this sentence. gute means “good.” It is the adjective gut with the ending -e in eine gute ...: the feminine noun Lösung is singular, and the indefinite article eine supplies the relevant determiner marking. Compare ein guter Bericht (“a good report”) with eine gute Lösung (“a good solution”); the adjective ending changes with the noun phrase. vorübergehende means “temporary.” Its base form is vorübergehend; here it stands before the feminine singular noun Lösung after eine, so it has the ending -e. Example: Das ist eine vorübergehende Maßnahme. — “That is a temporary measure.” Lösung means “solution”; in this context, the translation “workaround” gives the intended practical sense: a temporary way to deal with a problem. It is the feminine noun die Lösung, and its plural is die Lösungen. Example: Wir brauchen eine Lösung. — “We need a solution.” Together, Die exportierten Berichte sind korrekt says “The exported reports are correct.” Daher introduces the consequence, and sind sie eine gute vorübergehende Lösung says “so they are a good temporary workaround.” The whole utterance therefore means: “The exported reports are correct, so they are a good temporary workaround.”

6. Wie lange wird es dauern, das Dashboard zu reparieren?

   How long will it take to fix the dashboard?

   Wie lange

   how long

   wird es

   will it

   dauern

   take; last

   Dashboard

   dashboard

   zu reparieren

   to repair

   More detail

   Wie lange asks about duration: “how long.” It is different from wie viel, which asks about an amount or quantity. Example: Wie lange dauert die Reparatur? — “How long does the repair take?” wird es combines the future form of werden with es. Here wird is the third-person singular present form of werden, used as a future auxiliary, and es is the formal subject in the time expression; it does not refer to a person or object named in the sentence. The pattern Wie lange wird es ...? is reusable for asking how long a future process will take. Example: Wie lange wird es dauern? — “How long will it take?” dauern means “to take [time]” or “to last.” It is the infinitive of dauern; the finite form agrees with the subject, as in Die Reparatur dauert zwei Stunden — “The repair takes two hours.” In this question, dauern remains an infinitive because wird carries the future marking. Dashboard is a neuter German noun, normally used with the article das: das Dashboard. It refers here to the dashboard that is to be repaired. German nouns are capitalized, and the noun’s gender is a grammatical property of the noun, not a claim about the object’s physical characteristics. zu reparieren means “to repair” in the zu-infinitive. reparieren is the base verb, and zu reparieren places that action after another verb or expression. Example: Es ist schwierig, den Fehler zu reparieren. — “It is difficult to repair the error.” The separable-looking placement does not apply here: reparieren is written as one word with zu before it. Together, Wie lange wird es dauern asks for the duration of a future process, and das Dashboard zu reparieren identifies that process: repairing the dashboard. The complete meaning is “How long will it take to fix the dashboard?”

7. Wir können das Problem nachstellen, und ein Update sollte morgen fertig sein.

   We can reproduce the issue, and an update should be ready tomorrow.

   Wir können

   we can

   Problem

   problem / issue

   nachstellen

   reproduce

   Update

   update

   sollte

   should

   morgen

   tomorrow

   fertig

   ready / finished

   sein

   be

   More detail

   Wir können: Wir means “we,” and können is the present-tense form of können for “we.” Together they express ability or possibility: “we can.” With a modal verb such as können, the other verb normally appears as an infinitive at the end of the clause: Wir können das Problem nachstellen. Problem: The noun das Problem means “the problem” or, in this context, “the issue.” Its plural is die Probleme. German nouns are capitalized, and Problem is neuter, shown by das. nachstellen: Here nachstellen means “to reproduce” an issue so that it can be observed again. Its base form is the infinitive nachstellen; the form stays infinitival after können. This is different from wiederholen, which more generally means “repeat” something, not specifically recreate a problem. Update: das Update is a borrowed noun meaning “the update.” Its plural is die Updates. In this sentence it refers to an update that is expected to become ready; the form itself does not indicate what kind of update it is. sollte: sollte is the third-person singular form used here for the modal verb sollen, with the meaning “should” or “is expected to.” The singular subject is ein Update, so sollte agrees with that subject in person and number. Compare muss (“must”) for stronger necessity: Das Update muss fertig sein. means “The update must be ready.” morgen: This adverb means “tomorrow” and places the expected readiness in the day after today. It does not change form for person or number. fertig: Here fertig means “ready” or “finished.” It is used as a predicate adjective with sein: Das Update ist fertig. means “The update is ready.” In this sentence, fertig does not carry a noun’s gender or number ending because it follows the linking verb sein in this predicate use. sein: sein is the infinitive “to be.” After the modal sollte, the infinitive remains at the end: Das Update sollte morgen fertig sein. The pattern sollte ... sein expresses an expectation about a state, here the update’s being ready. The first coordinated clause is Wir können das Problem nachstellen: “We can reproduce the issue.” The conjunction und links it to the second clause, ein Update sollte morgen fertig sein: “an update should be ready tomorrow.” Together, the utterance says that the speaker’s group is able to reproduce the issue and that an update is expected to be ready tomorrow.

8. Dann kann ich dem Team sagen, dass es die exportierten Berichte verwenden soll, bis das Update fertig ist.

   Then I can tell the team to use the exported reports until the update is ready.

   Dann

   then

   kann ich

   I can

   dem Team

   the team

   sagen

   tell

   dass

   that

   es

   it

   exportierten

   exported

   Berichte

   reports

   verwenden

   use

   soll

   should

   bis

   until

   Update

   update

   fertig

   ready

   ist

   is

   More detail

   Dann means “then” and links this action to the situation already mentioned. It is a time or sequence adverb and does not itself specify how much time passes. kann ich contains kann, the first-person singular present form of können (“can, be able to”), followed by the subject ich (“I”). In this main clause, kann expresses the speaker’s ability or possibility. With a modal verb, the other verb stays in the infinitive and appears later: Ich kann helfen. — “I can help.” dem Team is the recipient of the telling. Team is a neuter singular noun here, and the definite article is dem in the dative case. The dative marks the person or group being told: Ich sage dem Team etwas. — “I tell the team something.” The article does not by itself assert a numerical count; it identifies the relevant team. sagen is the infinitive “to say” or “to tell.” With a recipient and a dass-clause, it introduces what is communicated: Ich sage dem Team, dass ... — “I tell the team that ...” The earlier kann licenses this infinitive, so the combination is “I can tell.” dass is a subordinating conjunction meaning “that.” It introduces the content of what is told and sends the finite verb of its clause to the end. The clause beginning with dass therefore has its own subject and verb arrangement rather than following main-clause word order. es is a third-person singular neuter pronoun. Here, the fixed translation identifies it as referring to the team: the team is the one expected to use the reports. In this clause, es is the subject of verwenden soll, not the thing being used. The pronoun’s neuter singular form agrees with the grammatical gender and number of das Team. exportierten is the adjective “exported,” based on the past participle exportiert of exportieren. It describes the reports as already exported. Its -en ending appears because it modifies the plural accusative noun phrase after the definite article die: die exportierten Berichte. The ending belongs to exportierten, not to Berichte. Berichte is the plural of Bericht, “report.” In this sentence it is the accusative object of verwenden, the thing the team is to use. A reusable contrast is ein Bericht — “one report” and mehrere Berichte — “several reports.” verwenden is the infinitive “to use.” It is the lexical verb governed by soll; in the subordinate clause, it comes before the finite modal at the end: ..., dass sie die Datei verwenden soll. — “... that she is supposed to use the file.” soll is the third-person singular present form of sollen (“should, be supposed to”). In this context, after sagen, it conveys the instruction or expectation being communicated to the team: the team is supposed to use the reports. The form agrees with singular neuter es; sollen would be used with a plural subject. Because this is a dass-clause, soll occupies the final position. bis means “until” and introduces the endpoint or condition that limits the intended use. It begins another subordinate clause, so its finite verb goes to the end. Update is the noun “update.” In the source phrase it appears with das, showing neuter singular grammar: das Update. It is the subject of the following clause, not the thing that is ready. fertig is the predicate adjective “ready” or “finished.” With sein, it remains uninflected: Das Update ist fertig. — “The update is ready.” This is different from an attributive adjective, which can take an ending, as in ein fertiges Update — “a finished update.” ist is the third-person singular present form of sein (“to be”), agreeing with singular das Update. The present form describes the state that will mark the endpoint of the period introduced by bis. Taken together, Dann kann ich dem Team sagen means “Then I can tell the team.” The dass-clause gives the content of that telling: es (the team) die exportierten Berichte verwenden soll, “is supposed to use the exported reports.” The final clause, bis das Update fertig ist, limits that instruction in time: it applies until the update is ready. Thus the whole utterance means: “Then I can tell the team to use the exported reports until the update is ready.”

9. Eine kurze Notiz mit Screenshots sollte helfen.

   A short note with screenshots should help.

   kurze

   short

   Notiz

   note

   Screenshots

   screenshots

   sollte

   should

   helfen

   help

   More detail

   kurze describes Notiz as short. It is the inflected form of kurz; here it has the ending -e because it comes before a feminine singular noun in the nominative, after the indefinite article Eine. Compare ein kurzer Text = “a short text” and eine kurze Notiz = “a short note.” Example: Das ist eine kurze Antwort. — “That is a short answer.” Notiz means “note,” here a brief written message or piece of information. Its dictionary form is die Notiz; the plural is die Notizen. Example: Ich schreibe eine Notiz. — “I am writing a note.” Screenshots is the plural of der Screenshot, meaning “screenshots.” After mit, this plural noun is in the dative, but its visible form remains Screenshots. Example: Die Screenshots zeigen den Fehler. — “The screenshots show the error.” sollte expresses an expectation here: “should.” It is a singular form of sollen used with the singular subject Eine kurze Notiz; the following verb is the infinitive helfen. Example: Das sollte funktionieren. — “That should work.” helfen is the infinitive “to help.” German uses this infinitive after sollte: sollte helfen = “should help.” When a beneficiary is stated, helfen commonly takes a dative phrase: Die Anleitung hilft dem Team. — “The instructions help the team.” No beneficiary is specified in the fixed sentence. Together, Eine kurze Notiz means “a short note,” and mit Screenshots adds “with screenshots.” The subject is followed by sollte helfen, producing the complete meaning: “A short note with screenshots should help.”

10. Dadurch wird es leichter, die Nachricht ruhig zu vermitteln.

    That will make the message easier to deliver calmly.

    Dadurch

    thereby; as a result

    wird es

    it becomes

    leichter

    easier

    Nachricht

    message

    ruhig

    calmly

    vermitteln

    deliver; convey

    More detail

    Dadurch means “thereby” or “as a result.” It points to the method or circumstance just mentioned—in this context, the short note with screenshots—and presents it as the reason for the result. A reusable pattern is Dadurch wird ... (“That makes ...” / “As a result, ... becomes ...”). wird es uses the present-tense form wird of werden with es. Here werden means “become,” not “will” and not passive “be delivered.” The es is an anticipatory subject: the real content comes in the infinitive clause after the comma. Thus Es wird leichter, ... zu ... means “It becomes easier to ...”. leichter is the comparative form of leicht (“easy” or “light”): leicht → leichter → am leichtesten. It says that the activity is easier than before or easier under these conditions; it does not itself specify what the comparison point is. die Nachricht means “the message.” Nachricht is a feminine noun, and die here is the feminine accusative singular article because the message is what is conveyed. The same noun appears with eine in the nominative or accusative singular when it is indefinite: eine Nachricht (“a message”). ruhig describes how the conveying is done here, so it functions adverbially as “calmly.” The same form can also be an adjective meaning “calm,” as in eine ruhige Stimme (“a calm voice”); in this sentence it modifies the action rather than a noun. vermitteln is the infinitive meaning “to convey” or, in this context, “to deliver” a message. Its base form is vermitteln; after zu, German uses zu vermitteln (“to convey”). Example: Ich versuche, die Information klar zu vermitteln. — “I try to convey the information clearly.” The structure leichter, ... zu vermitteln expresses that an action becomes easier: Es wird leichter, die Nachricht zu vermitteln means “It becomes easier to deliver the message.” The infinitive clause contains die Nachricht as the thing being conveyed and ruhig as the manner. Putting the parts together, Dadurch wird es leichter, die Nachricht ruhig zu vermitteln. means “That will make the message easier to deliver calmly.”