B1 halfway chest in German

What you'll learn

• Describe past experiences using obwohl, während, wenn and als.
• Review dachte, wusste and brachte, plus nominative and accusative relative clauses.
• Express plans, purposes and results using Futur I, infinitive constructions, damit and sodass.
• Review adjective endings, two-way prepositions, sobald and solange.

German phrases for b1 halfway chest

• Obwohl du müde warst, hast du die Blätter beobachtet, während ich neben dem Kinderwagen saß.

  Although you were tired, you watched the leaves while I sat beside the pram.

  Obwohl and während send their conjugated verbs to the end. Neben dem Kinderwagen describes a location and takes the dative.

• Immer wenn du nachts aufgewacht bist, wusste ich, dass du unter der weichen Decke kuscheln wolltest.

  Whenever you woke during the night, I knew you wanted a cuddle under the soft blanket.

  Immer wenn marks repeated past events. Wusste is the simple past of wissen; kuscheln means to cuddle or snuggle.

• Als du zum ersten Mal auf die Spielmatte gekrabbelt bist, dachte ich, dass du sehr stolz aussahst.

  When you crawled onto the play mat for the first time, I thought you looked very proud.

  Als introduces a single past occasion. Auf die Spielmatte takes the accusative because it describes movement onto the mat.

• Papa brachte saubere Handtücher, die wir nach deinem Bad brauchten.

  Dad brought clean towels that we needed after your bath.

  Brachte is the simple past of bringen. The relative pronoun die is accusative plural: the towels are what we needed.

• Sobald der Teddy, der neben deinem Babybett liegt, trocken ist, werde ich ihn wieder auf das Regalbrett legen.

  As soon as the teddy that is lying beside your cot is dry, I will put it back on the shelf.

  The relative pronoun der is nominative because the teddy is the subject of liegt. Werde … legen expresses the future.

• Ich sitze neben dir, um dich langsam zu füttern, damit du Zeit zum Schlucken hast.

  I sit beside you in order to feed you slowly, so that you have time to swallow.

  Um … zu shares the main clause's subject, ich. Damit introduces a purpose with a different subject, du.

• Ich habe die Tür geschlossen, ohne ein Geräusch zu machen, sodass du weitergeschlafen hast.

  I closed the door without making a noise, with the result that you stayed asleep.

  Ohne … zu describes what did not happen. Sodass introduces the result: your baby continued sleeping.

• Solange du dich wohlfühlst, habe ich vor, weiter auf ruhigen Wegen spazieren zu gehen.

  As long as you are comfortable, I plan to keep walking along quiet paths.

  Solange sets the condition for continuing. Vorhaben takes a zu-infinitive; auf ruhigen Wegen describes where the walking happens.

Key words

Review: obwohl, während, sobald and solange

These conjunctions introduce subordinate clauses with the conjugated verb at the end. If the subordinate clause comes first, the main clause begins with its conjugated verb.

Review: wenn versus als in the past

Use wenn for repeated past occasions and als for a single past occasion or period. Immer wenn makes the meaning whenever explicit.

Review: lexical Präteritum

These simple-past forms are useful for recounting memories. Common forms such as dachte and wusste can naturally appear alongside the conversational Perfekt. Brachte is also correct, though habe gebracht is common in everyday speech.

Review: relative clauses

A relative pronoun matches its noun's gender and number, but its case depends on its role inside the relative clause. Use commas around an inserted relative clause and put its verb last.

Review: Futur I

Form Futur I with a conjugated form of werden and an infinitive at the end. German normally uses the present tense after sobald even when referring to the future.

Review: adjective endings

Adjective endings depend on the article, case and number. In the dative, adjectives after a definite article take -en. Without an article, plural adjectives take -e in the nominative and accusative, but -en in the dative.

Review: two-way prepositions

With prepositions such as auf, neben and unter, use the dative for where something happens and the accusative for a destination or change of position. Movement alone does not require the accusative.

Review: purpose and result

Um … zu expresses purpose when both actions share a subject. Damit expresses purpose in a full clause and allows a different subject. Sodass describes a result rather than a purpose.

Review: ohne … zu and dependent zu-infinitives

Ohne … zu means without doing something and normally shares the main clause's subject. Vorhaben means to plan or intend and takes a dependent zu-infinitive.

More examples

Keep going in German