GRAMMAR 2
2)
PRESENT TENSE OF WERDEN - ARTICLES AND NOUNS --
AGREEMENT OF PRONOUNS -- ORDER OF ADVERBS
a)
Present Tense of werden (become)
(Principal parts: werden - wurde
- geworden)
|
ich werde |
wir werden |
|
du wirst |
ihr werdet |
|
er wird |
sie werden |
Progressive and emphatic forms are
missing from German.
In English we can say, ”I become”, “I am becoming”, “I do become”.
1. ”I become” is the simple (one-word) form.
2. “I am becoming” is the progressive form, as is “I am working”, etc.
3. “I do become”, and “I do work” are emphatic forms.
In German, “Er wird müde” may be
translated “He gets tired”, “He is
getting tired”, or “He does get tired”.
b)
The Definite Article, nominative forms.
General remarks. Nouns have three
grammatical genders in German - masculine, feminine and neuter. How does grammatical gender differ
from natural gender? The
grammatical gender is a property of the noun itself, rather than the thing that
the noun stands for.
The definite article ’der’ (the) can assume various forms in
German:
’der’ is used with
masculine nouns,
’die’ is used with
feminine nouns,
’das’ is used with
neuter nouns, and
’die’ is used with
plural nouns, all genders.
|
masculine |
feminine |
neuter |
plural |
|
der Mann (man) |
|
|
die Männer |
|
der Löffel (spoon) |
|
|
die Löffel |
|
der Tisch (table) |
|
|
die Tische |
|
|
die Frau (woman) |
|
die Frauen |
|
|
die Gabel (fork) |
|
die Gabeln |
|
|
die Luft (air) |
|
(no pl.) |
|
|
|
das Kind (child) |
die Kinder |
|
|
|
das Messer (knife) |
die Messer |
|
|
|
das Haus (house) |
die Häuser |
For this reason, it is customary to
learn the definite article together with each German noun, so that the gender
may be readily recalled. Grammatical
gender may not always agree with natural gender, for example das Fräulein
(young lady), die Person (person), die Geisel (hostage).
c) The Indefinite Article (a, an), nominative forms; ein, eine, ein.
|
masculine |
feminine |
neuter |
|
ein Mann |
eine Frau |
ein Kind |
|
ein Löffel |
eine Gabel |
ein Messer |
|
ein Tisch |
eine Schule |
ein Haus |
The indefinite article has no plural form.
d) Nouns
i) All nouns are capitalized in German.
ii) Nouns, as explained above, possess a grammatical gender.
(1) Nouns denoting adult male and female beings usually match their natural gender.
(2) Nouns denoting inanimate objects may be masculine, feminine, or neuter.
iii) Methods of pluralization
(1) No ending is added. Sometimes the vowel will add an umlaut, sometimes not.
(2) The ending -e is added. In about half the cases, the vowel will also umlaut.
(3) The ending -er is added. The vowel will umlaut whenever possible.
(4) The ending -(e)n
is added. No umlaut is added.
All the above methods apply to native and assimilated German words.
(5)
The ending -(e)s is added. No umlaut. Mainly used
for foreign borrowings, especially from English and French.
In addition to learning the gender
of each new German noun, it is also a good idea to memorize, or at least take
note of, its plural form. Thus: der Bruder, die Brüder; die Schule, die
Schulen; das Fenster, die Fenster.
These forms will be found in vocabularies and dictionaries in shortened
form: der Bruder (¨), die Schule
(-n), das Fenster (-). Dictionaries
also tend to use the abbreviations m. f. and n., rather
than der, die and das.
e) Agreement of pronouns.
When a noun is introduced in conversation, its gender and number are
established. To refer to the noun
again, a pronoun is typically used. The
following sentences refers to a sword.
In each case, the pronoun maintains the same grammatical gender that the
noun established.
Ist die Waffe stark? - Ja, sie ist stark. -- Is the weapon
strong? Yes, it is strong.
Ist der Stahl nötig.? Ja, er ist
nötig. -- Is the steel
necessary? Yes, it is necessary.
Ist das Schwert glänzend? Nein, es
ist matt. -- Is the sword shiny.
No, it is dull.
f)
Order of Adverbs - the “TMP” rule.
Adverbs of time always precede adverbs of manner and place.
Wo ist der Mann? -- Er ist jetzt zu
Hause. -- Where is your husband?
-- He is home now.
The usual rule is given as “TMP” - time, manner, place.
Wir haben gestern viel im Garten gespielt.
-- We played a lot in the
garden yesterday.
Du hast lange bequem auf dem Sofa geschlafen. -- You slept
comfortably on the sofa for a long time.
This is unlike English, where time is seldom put first.
Er fährt morgen mit dem Bus nach Frankfurt. -- He is travelling by
bus to Frankfurt tomorrow. - or -- He
is travelling to Frankfurt tomorrow by bus.
g) Position
of Predicate Adjectives.
Predicate adjectives tend to go to the end of the clause.
Der Lehrer wird jetzt müde. - The teacher is getting tired now.
VOCABULARY 2
|
die Aufgabe (die Aufgaben) - lesson |
interessant interesting |
|
die Eltern (plur.) parents |
müde tired |
|
das Kind (die Kinder) - child |
oder or |
|
der Lehrer (die Lehrer) - teacher |
heute today |
|
der Schüler (die Schüler) - pupil |
jetzt now |
|
das Wetter (no plural) weather |
der, die, das - the |
|
alt old |
ein, eine, ein - a, an; one |
|
jung young |
Frau Moser - Mrs. Moser |
|
heiß hot |
die junge Frau Moser - Miss Moser |
|
kalt cold |
|
werden (wurde, geworden) - become, get
Expression:
Nicht wahr? - (literally) Not true? Isn’t it? Hasn’t he? Don’t they? Doesn’t he? etc.
PRACTICE 2
Hier sind Harry und Dudley. Sie sind Kinder. Sie sind Schüler. Ein Schüler ist nicht hier. Er ist zu Hause. Der Lehrer ist Herr Moser. Er ist jetzt hier, aber Frau Moser und Wolfgang sind zu Hause.
Sind die Kinder müde? Nein, sie sind nicht müde. Sind die Kinder alt oder jung? Sie sind jung, nicht wahr? Ein Lehrer ist alt; Herr Moser ist nicht sehr alt, aber er wird alt. Die Eltern werden alt.
Die junge Frau Moser ist jung und schön. Wo ist sie heute? Sie ist jetzt zu Hause. Frau Moser ist auch zu Hause. Ist die Aufgabe heute interessant? Ja, sie ist heute sehr interessant. Die Aufgaben werden jetzt interessant, nicht wahr? Auch der Lehrer ist interessant.
Das Wetter ist heute schön, nicht wahr? Ja, es ist sehr schön. Ist es heiß oder kalt? Es ist jetzt heiß, aber es wird kalt. Heute sind die Schüler gut. Heute ist der Lehrer gut. Heute ist die Aufgabe interessant. Jetzt ist das Wetter schön aber heiß.
Translate into German:
1. A teacher gets tired. 2. A lesson becomes interesting. 3. A pupil gets old. 4. We are getting old, aren’t we? 5. Is the teacher old or young? 6. Why isn’t Mr. Moser here today? 7. Where are Mrs. Moser and Miss Moser today? 8. Frau Moser, you are young and beautiful, aren’t you? 9. I am young, but I am tired. 10. The lesson is interesting. 11. Are the lessons now getting interesting? 12. Where is the lesson today? 13. The weather is cold now, but it is beautiful. 14. Why aren’t the parents here? 15. Are they getting old, too?
ENGLISH APPROXIMATIONS FOR VOCABULARY 2
OWF-gah-beh, EL-tuhn, kint, KIN-duh, LAY-ruh, (no approximation for Schüler), VET-tuh, , (no approximation for müde), ahlt, yoong, hice, kahlt, in-te-res-SAHNT, OH-duh, HOI-teh, yetst, day-uh (say it as a single syllable), dee, dahss, ine, INE-eh, frow MOH-zuh, FROI-line, VAYR-den, VOOUH-deh, geh-VOR-den
FOREIGN BORROWINGS IN LESSONS 1 AND 2
There is often something out of the ordinary that marks a word as a foreign borrowing. These words seemed to me to stand out, and I have cheked their orgins. End-stress and pluralizing with ‘s’ are not typical of native German words.
· interessant -- end-stressed, from French ‘intéressant’, and Latin ‘interesse’
· die Person -- end-stressed, from Latin ‘persona’
·
das Sofa -- ‘e’
would be your typical German ending for similar words; i.e. die Sonne (sun). In addition, Sofa pluralizes with
‘s’. It is originally from French, but
seems no longer in vogue there. It was
also adopted by English.
LONG AND SHORT VOWEL SOUNDS
Help with pronunciation. German vowels are pronounced either long or short. Diphthongs begin with one sound, and glide into a second sound. They are always considered long. Here is an outline, followed by a review of all the longs and shorts using words from the first two lessons. The supplement to Lesson 3 will deal with consonants.
1. Vowels.
a. Pronounced long.
i. Without umlaut: ‘a’, ‘e’, ‘i’, ‘o’, ‘u’
ii. With umlaut: ‘ä’, ‘ö’, ‘ü’
b. Pronounced short.
i. Without umlaut: ‘a’, ‘e’, ‘i’, ‘o’, ‘u’
ii. With umlaut: ‘ä’, ‘ö’, ‘ü’
2. Diphthongs
a. Without umlaut: ‘au’, ‘ei’, ‘eu’
b. With umlaut: ‘äu’
VOWELS PRONOUNCED LONG, WITHOUT UMLAUT -- ‘A’, ‘E’, ‘I’, ‘O’, ‘U’
Vowels are generally pronounced long when they are followed by a single consonant, doubled, or followed by ‘h’. The use of ess-tset (ß), effectively a double ‘s’ which is written as a single character, indicates that the preceding vowel is long.
· These words use LONG ‘A’, as in father.
war, Vater, ja, aber, da, Gabel, Stahl, haben, geschlafen, wahr, nach, Aufgabe
· These words use LONG ‘E’, as in the first part of hay; that is, without the y-glide.
gewesen, er, sehr, der, Schwert, dem, Lehrer. werden, werde, werdet
· These words use LONG ‘I’. ‘I’ is long when followed by ‘e’, and sounds like the English ‘ee’ in ‘meet’.
sie, wir, ihr, hier, Friedrich, die, viel, gespielt
· These words use LONG ‘O’, like the ‘o’ in ‘bone’.
wo, groß, Moser, Person (stress 2nd syllable), Sofa, oder
· These words use LONG ‘U’. Like English ‘root’.
du, gut, zu, Schule, Bruder
VOWELS PRONOUNCED LONG, WITH UMLAUT -- ‘Ä’, ‘Ö’, ‘Ü’
· These words use LONG ‘Ä’. This is a long, raspy sound, as in fair.
fährt, Väter (fathers)
· These words use LONG ‘Ö’. Similar to the ‘o’ sound in English ‘word’, or the ‘eu’ sound in French ‘feu’, but longer.
schön, nötig
· These words use LONG ‘Ü’. No English equivalent. Like French ‘u’ in ‘une’.
Brüder, Schüler, müde
Foreign borrowings may use ‘y’ as a vowel. This is pronounced exactly like ‘ü’.
der Physiker (prounouce like German PHÜ-si-ker) - physicist
VOWELS PRONOUNCED SHORT, WITHOUT UMLAUT -- ‘A’, ‘E’, ‘I’, ‘O’, ‘U’
Vowels are generally pronounced short when they are followed by two or more consonants. (Count ‘ch’ and ‘sch’ as a single consonant.)
·
These words use SHORT ‘A’, as in cart.
das, warum (stress 2nd syllable), Mann, Waffe, stark, matt,
Garten, hast, lange, Frankfurt, alt, kalt, interessant (this word is
end-stressed)
· There are three sounds which use SHORT ‘E’, that require extra attention. First there is the regular counterpart to the long ‘E’, which is:
(1)
SHORT, STRESSED ‘E’, as in bed. This occurs in the words (first syllables only)
es, Herr, Messer, gestern, Eltern, Wetter, jetzt.
Next there is:
(2)
SHORT, UNSTRESSED ‘E’
-- This occurs at the end of
words we have already seen, such as
Schule, müde, Waffe, Tische, etc.
These endings sound something like English ‘eh’.
Say SHOO-leh, VAFF-eh, TISH-eh.
They should be made distinct from the sound described next.
(3)
SHORT, UNSTRESSED ‘ER’
-- which is an ending for the
words such as Messer and Wetter, seen above, and
Vater, aber, Lehrer, Bruder, Schüler, etc.
Both the ‘e’ and the ‘r’ have reduced values in these words. Say MESS-uh, VETT-uh, FAH-tuh, AH-buh,
LAY-ruh, BROO-duh., SHÜÜ-luh
To hear the difference between ‘e’ and ‘er’ as endings, make sure your
computer’s sound is turned on and go to the following website,
http://www.languageguide.org/im/school/de/
Then pass your cursor over the pictures of the ink [blot], die Tinte, and
the fountain-pen, der Füller.
· These words use SHORT ‘I’, as in mist.
ich, bin, bist, ist, sind, Kinder, nicht, wirst, wird, Tisch, Tische, im, mit, Kind, interessant (this word is end-stressed)
· These words use SHORT ‘O’, as in border.
Wolfgang, geworden, morgen
· These words use SHORT ‘U’, as in look.
und, wurde, Luft, Bus, jung
VOWELS PRONOUNCED SHORT, WITH UMLAUT -- ‘Ä’, ‘Ö’, ‘Ü’
· These words use SHORT ‘Ä’. This is a short sound, as in bed.
Männer, glänzend
· This word uses SHORT ‘Ö’. Similar to the ‘o’ sound in English ‘word’, or the ‘eu’ sound in French ‘feu’.
Löffel
· This word uses SHORT ‘Ü’. No English equivalent. Like French ‘u’ in ‘une’.
der Müll - trash
The foreign-borrowed ‘y’, pronounced exactly like German ‘ü’, can also be short.
die Physik (prounouce like German phü-SIEK) - physics
DIPHTHONGS, WITHOUT UMLAUT -- ‘AU’, ‘EI’, ‘EU’
· These words use the diphthong ‘AU’; sounds like English mouse.
Frauen, auch, Frau, Haus, auf, Aufgabe
· These words use the diphthong ‘EI’. Sounds like English eye.
sein, seid, klein, nein, Geisel, heiß, ein, eine
Other diphthongs pronounced exactly the same way are ‘ai’, ‘ay’, and ‘ey’.
· This word uses the diphthong ‘EU’. Sounds like ‘oi’ in ‘oil’.
heute
DIPHTHONG WITH UMLAUT -- ‘ÄU’
· These words use the diphthong ‘ÄU’, also like the ‘oi’ in ‘oil’.
Häuser, Fräulein
8/20/2009