blackverve Senior Member Canada Joined 4733 days ago 40 posts - 46 votes Studies: German
| Message 1 of 4 11 February 2012 at 3:53am | IP Logged |
Hello fellow learners! I found these conversational connectors online (forgot where) and I was hoping for a German native to correct any spelling, grammar errors etcetera before I bake them all into my brain. I'm particularly interested in how natives in Berlin speak. So, if some regions definitely do not say some of these connectors please let me know.
Also, I have some questions about some sentences which I'll type after <--- .
I think we should start a different thread for each language to keep track of more connectors which will be useful to beginning learners as they struggle to speak. Add new connectors below...German only in this thread. Thanks.
OPENING CONNECTORS
thank you heartily – herzlichen Dank <--- shouldn't there be an "e"?
that is a good question – das ist eine gute Frage
that is such a difficult question – das ist eine so schwierige Frage
once upon a time, long ago – vor langer Zeit
FILLER CONNECTORS
understandably – verständlicherweise
frankly speaking – auf gut Deutsch
between you and me – unter uns gesagt
anyway – jedenfalls
well then – na dann
well, as a matter of fact – nun, tatsächlich
how can I put it? - wie soll ich es sagen?
I must say that – ich muss schon sagen, dass <--- why is there a comma before dass?
firstly – als erstes
secondly – als zweites
I would like you to know that – ich möchte, dass du weißt, dass || ich möchte, dass ihr wisst, dass || ich möchte, dass Sie wissen, dass <--- what is the difference between the three ways? Which phrase is more common?
I am afraid that – ich fürchte, dass
now and then it seems to me that – machmal scheint es mir, als ob <--- is the comma after mir necessary?
after all – im Grunde <--- Grunde has to be capitalized?
as far as I am concerned – soweit es mich betrifft
more and more – immer mehr
actually – eigentlich
all joking aside – Spaß beiseite <--- the "s" has to be captalized?
now seriously – im Ernst || ernsthaft <--- what is the difference between them? Which context they are used in?
APOLOGISING CONNECTORS
don't be upset, but – reg dich nicht auf, aber || regt euch nicht auf, aber || regen Sie sich nicht auf, aber <--- why are the three so different grammatically? When would I use each?
it was a slip of the tongue – das/es war ein Versprecher <--- Das or es? How do I know when to use each one?
I said it by mistake – ich habe das/es aus Versehen gesagt <--- why are there two ways?
I am sorry that – es tut mir leid, dass
QUALIFYING CONNECTORS
to tell the truth – um ehrlich zu sein
I presume that – ich nehme an, dass
I hope that – ich hoffe, dass
in my opinion – meiner Meinung nach
if that is true – wenn das/es stimmt
I don't know exactly – ich weiß es nicht genau
I would like to think that – ich würde gerne denken, dass
the way I see it is that – ich sehe es so, dass
as you may know – wie du vielleicht weißt
I don't have a big interest in that – ich interessiere mich nicht sehr dafür
if I understand correctly – wenn ich richtig verstehe
as you already know – wie du bereits weißt || wie ihr bereits wisst || wie Sie bereits wissen <--- there's three ways because of the "respect" thing, right?
that isn't such a big problem – das ist kein so großes Problem
that is a matter of opinion – das ist Ansichtssache
as far as I know – soweit ich weiß
I have the impression that – es kommt mir vor, als ob
it is usually true that – normalerweise stimmt, dass
you never know, but – man kann es nie wissen, aber
I haven't thought about it before, but – darüber habe ich noch nicht nachgedacht, aber
if I am not mistaken – wenn ich mich nicht irre
I am not certain whether – ich bin mir nicht sicher, ob
like every other man – wie jeder andere auch
I have my own opinion on it, but – ich habe meine eigene Meinung dazu, aber
I am not such an expert, but – ich bin kein Experte, aber
AGREEING AND DISAGREEING CONNECTORS
one hundred percent – hundertprozentig
without question – ohne Frage
exactly right – absolut richtig
most certainly – sicherlich
without doubt – unzweifelhaft
in no case – keinesfalls
that isn't true at all – das stimmt überhaupt nicht
that is an exaggeration – das ist eine Übertreibung
in principle that is true, but – im Prinzip ja, aber
admittedly that is true, but – das ist zugegebenermaßen wahr, aber
that's one way to say it – so kann man es auch sagen
only up to a certain point – nur bis zu einem gewissen Punkt
certainly, why not? - sicher, warum nicht?
I agree – ich stimme zu
ELABORATE CONNECTORS
to be more precise – um es genauer zu sagen
and what's more – und darüber hinaus
while I am already talking about it – wenn ich schon darüber spreche
I would like to emphasise that – ich möchte betonen, dass
should I explain in greater detail? - soll ich das/es detaillierter erklären?
allow me to say it another way – lass es mich anders sagen || lasst es mich anders sagen || lassen Sie es mich anders sagen <--- what is the difference between the three?
that is to say – nämlich
and more specifically – und genauer
nevertheless – trotzdem
even though – obwohl
that sounds like – das/es klingt als ob
and that is why – und deshalb
in other words – in anderen Worten
to say it another way – um es anders zu sagen
QUOTING CONNECTORS
she said something like – sie hat so etwas gesagt, wie
my wife pointed out that – meine Frau hat darauf hingewiesen, dass
recently, I heard that – neulich habe ich gehört, dass
my better half said that – meine bessere Hälfte hat gesagt dass
SWITCHING CONNECTORS
now it occurs to me that – jetzt scheint es mir, als ob
by the way – übrigens
I have an interesting story about it – dazu habe ich eine interessante Geschichte
and besides that – und außerdem
oh, I nearly forgot that – oh, ich hätte fast vergessen, dass
and one more thing – und eines noch
on the other hand - andererseits
CLOSING CONNECTORS
that is all there is to say – das ist alles, was es dazu zu sagen gibt
that is all for now – das war's für's erste
to sum up – zusammenfassend
and there is the problem – und genau das ist das Problem
I hope it is only a question of time – ich hoffe, dass es nur eine Frage der Zeit ist
that remains to be seen – das wird sich herausstellen
PASSING CONNECTORS
can you tell me please – kannst du mir bitte sagen || könnt ihr mir bitte sagen || können Sie mir bitte sagen
would you be interested in us talking about something else? - sollen wir lieber über etwas anderes sprechen?
and what do you think? - und was denkst du? || und was denkt ihr? || und was denken Sie?
Thank you all for helping me. I'd be lost without you.
Edited by blackverve on 11 February 2012 at 3:57am
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Kisfroccs Bilingual Pentaglot Senior Member Switzerland Joined 5410 days ago 388 posts - 549 votes Speaks: French*, German*, EnglishC1, Swiss-German, Hungarian Studies: Italian, Serbo-Croatian
| Message 2 of 4 13 February 2012 at 9:02pm | IP Logged |
OPENING CONNECTORS
thank you heartily – herzlichen Dank <--- shouldn't there be an "e"?
der Dank aber Danke ! (thanks). The first is a noun, the second a greeting. Two different things.
FILLER CONNECTORS
I must say that – ich muss schon sagen, dass <--- why is there a comma before dass?
Everytime you say something like "I must say THAT...", before the that (dass), there is a comma. It's a rule.
I would like you to know that – ich möchte, dass du weißt, dass || ich möchte, dass ihr wisst, dass || ich möchte, dass Sie wissen, dass <--- what is the difference between the three ways? Which phrase is more common?
1) 1st person sg (I = ich) --> 2sd person sg (you = du)
2) 1st person sg (I = ich) --> 2sd person plural (you = ihr)
3) 1st person sg (I = ich) --> 3rd person sg/ plural (depends), to express politeness
now and then it seems to me that – machmal scheint es mir, als ob <--- is the comma after mir necessary?
So it depends on who you adress.
after all – im Grunde <--- Grunde has to be capitalized?
it is a noun. Every noun has to be capitalized in German.
all joking aside – Spaß beiseite <--- the "s" has to be captalized?
same here.
now seriously – im Ernst || ernsthaft <--- what is the difference between them? Which context they are used in?
It's used in the same context as in English. "Im Ernst" it's a noun, ernsthaft is an adverb.
APOLOGISING CONNECTORS
don't be upset, but – reg dich nicht auf, aber || regt euch nicht auf, aber || regen Sie sich nicht auf, aber <--- why are the three so different grammatically? When would I use each? It's the same I explained before, only for the imperativ.
1) don't be upset (telling your friend)
2) don't be upset (telling friends)
3) don't be upset (telling a person to whom you are polite)
it was a slip of the tongue – das/es war ein Versprecher <--- Das or es? How do I know when to use each one?
das refer to the slip of the tongue, "es" to the whole phrase which contains the slip of the tongue. Both are correct.
I said it by mistake – ich habe das/es aus Versehen gesagt <--- why are there two ways?
"das" refer to the thing you said by mistake, "es" is more general, and refer to the phrase which contains your mistake.
QUALIFYING CONNECTORS
as you already know – wie du bereits weißt || wie ihr bereits wisst || wie Sie bereits wissen <--- there's three ways because of the "respect" thing, right?
It depends who you adress, and which level of familiarity you have with this person. Same as before.
allow me to say it another way – lass es mich anders sagen || lasst es mich anders sagen || lassen Sie es mich anders sagen <--- what is the difference between the three?
It's the same pattern as before : you allow someone to say it another way. This someone, you will adress him in regards of your familiarity with him, or the number of person you adress. In English, it would be something like "allow me to say "to you"". As the verb is in imperativ, you don't have pronouns, the verb contains them. That's why the verb change.
Eeehm... I don't know it these explanations helepd you, but I hope so !
Viel Glück mit deinen Deutschstudien !
Kisfröccs
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blackverve Senior Member Canada Joined 4733 days ago 40 posts - 46 votes Studies: German
| Message 3 of 4 17 February 2012 at 12:44pm | IP Logged |
Kisfroccs wrote:
now and then it seems to me that – machmal scheint es mir, als ob <--- is the comma after mir necessary?
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Thank you so much! I never got a notification that someone answered this post hence the late reply.
So, it's all correct, yes? Also, is the comma after "mir" a rule too like dass?
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Sunja Diglot Senior Member Germany Joined 6086 days ago 2020 posts - 2295 votes 1 sounds Speaks: English*, German Studies: French, Mandarin
| Message 4 of 4 17 February 2012 at 1:06pm | IP Logged |
Hi there!
Kisfröccs can respond better to this but I'm pretty sure the answer is yes. The comma is there because "als" is a conjunction like "dass". I'm always reminded of that song from School House Rock: Conjunction Junction, what's your function? Hooking up words and phrases and clauses. In this case it hooks up a subordinate clause (untergeordneter Satz). They follow a comma and they're easy to spot: wenn, weil, wann, dass, ob, wer, wo, wie..
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