How do we emphasize the urgency of a situation or immediacy of an event? How can we reassure someone that something will be taken care of right away?

The adverb gleich is used a lot and has many possible translations in this context. You might be thinking about it as an adjective meaning "same" or "alike," and we also have a lesson on that topic. But here we are looking at how it is used to define something as happening "in just a minute," "immediately," or "momentarily." 

Gut, vielen Dank. Ich mache mich gleich auf den Weg.

Good, many thanks. I'll be on my way immediately.

Caption 14, Berufsleben - Probleme mit Mitarbeitern

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Warum hab ich das nicht gleich erkannt?

Why didn't I realize that right away?

Caption 80, Die Pfefferkörner - Endspurt - Part 12

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Ja, Moment, ich habe es gleich.

Yes, one moment, I'll have it momentarily.

Caption 30, Der Merkelpilot - der kleine Mann, der es macht

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There is another way to say that something will happen "any minute now," and it's very similar to how it's said in English:

Aber der Reparaturdienst müsste jede Minute da sein.

But the repair service should be here any minute.

Caption 8, Die Pfefferkörner - Endspurt - Part 18

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Another adverb to know is sofort, which is even more urgent than gleich, and is pretty much always translated as "at once," "right away," or "immediately."

Kein Problem, Frau Schmidt. Ich werde es Ihnen sofort schicken.

No problem, Ms. Schmidt. I will send it to you immediately.

Caption 67, Berufsleben - das Vorstellungsgespräch

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Sie ist sofort abgehauen, als Frau Lenz die Sache angesprochen hat.

She immediately took off when Ms. Lenz raised the matter.

Caption 65, Die Pfefferkörner - Endspurt - Part 2

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In more formal contexts, you may hear unverzüglich ("without delay") and umgehend. 

Er muss unverzüglich Waffenstillstandsverhandlungen mit Eisenhower und Montgomery aufnehmen.

He must immediately begin armistice negotiations with Eisenhower and Montgomery.

Caption 81, Die Stunde der Offiziere - Dokudrama über den 20. Juli 1944

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Oder noch besser, komm umgehend ins Kontor.

Or better yet, come to the office immediately.

Caption 65, Die Pfefferkörner - Alles auf Anfang

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Although unmittelbar is also translated as "immediate," it is often related to space rather than time: 

Wir sind, äh, hab ich schon gesagt,

We are, uh — as I've already said —

in unmittelbarer Nähe, äh, von Saarbrücken.

in the immediate vicinity, uh, of Saarbrücken.

Captions 37-38, Nachbarn - Andrea aus Forbach

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Daher ordne ich an, dass Sie unmittelbar wieder die Ehe schließen.

Therefore I order you to remarry immediately.

Captions 34-35, Yabla Gerichtshof - Probleme des Zusammenlebens

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For urgency, there is the word dringend, which like many German words functions as both an adjective and an adverb depending on how it's integrated in the sentence: 
 

Ich brauche dich hier dringend im Innendienst.

I need you urgently here in the office.

Caption 63, Großstadtrevier - Von Monstern und Mördern

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Further Learning
You will find many examples of these words used on Yabla German. In particular, keep an eye on how the translation of gleich changes depending on the context. 

In parts I and II of this lesson, we talked about office supplies that are not specifically related to the ever-present digital devices in the workplace and at school. Let's take a look today, in the final installment of this topic, at some more German names for office items that may be new to you.

Das ist ein Umschlag und das ist die Briefmarke.

This is an envelope and this is the stamp.

Caption 22, Nicos Weg: Das hört sich gut an!

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You probably knew der Umschlag (or der Briefumschlag) and die Briefmarke already, although these days we use them far less frequently than in the stone age of the pre-digital era.

Die häng ich immer an so eine Pinnwand und dafür brauch ich eine Pinnnadel.

I always hang them on a pinboard like this one, and for that I need a push-pin.

Captions 57-58, Deutsch mit Eylin Dinge auf meinem Schreibtisch - Part 2

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Die Pinnnadel is one of those German words with three consonant letters in a row, although in this case, the spelling Pinn-Nadel is also grammatically acceptable. Eine Pinnnadel usually has a round or oblong plastic head, as opposed to its flat-headed cousin der Reißnagel (or die Reißzwecke), which is a thumbtack. The advantage of push-pins is that they are much easier to pull out of harder surfaces like wood than thumbtacks are.

O nein, das ist Lisas Mappe. Bringt Lisa die Mappe.

Oh no, that's Lisa's folder. Bring the folder to Lisa.

Captions 22-23, Nicos Weg: Mein Beruf

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Eine Mappe is usually a simple folder that can hold loose papers.

Auf Ihrem Arbeitsplatz werden Sie einen Ordner namens „Deutsche Werbung“ finden.

On your desktop, you'll find a folder with the name "German Advertising."

Caption 39, Berufsleben: das Vorstellungsgespräch

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So while both die Mappe and der Ordner are usually translated as "folder," eine Mappe usually means a large ring binder that most Germans use to store important paperwork such as tax documents. In Berlin, I've often noticed that non-Europeans tend to prefer filing cabinets or pouches, but somewhere in most German homes you will find a wall of bookshelves filled with Ordner. I'm doing my best to avoid an unfortunate pun on the unfortunate German cliché Ordnung muss sein. It's just not true, at least if you're creatively inclined.

Du siehst, ich liebe Büromaterial, und ich liebe es auch, Ordnung zu halten auf meinem Schreibtisch.

You see, I love office supplies, and I also love keeping order on my desk.

Captions 68-69, Deutsch mit Eylin: Dinge auf meinem Schreibtisch

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At least some people are capable of keeping their desk clean! The term der Schreibtisch is outdated for many of us, as we barely even write anymore, at least in the sense of taking a pen or pencil in hand. Another common German word for "office supplies" is der Bürobedarf, which is usually also what shops are called that sell them.

Further Learning
Review our other two newsletters about office supplies and test your knowledge of the German words for the vast array of articles that are commonly used in office situations. Then go to the videos above on Yabla German and see these words in the context in which they are used.

This week, let's look at some verbs related to computers and technology! Many of these phrases are intuitive for anyone who speaks English, for example eine Mail öffnen or ein Fenster schließen, or ein Programm neu starten. 

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Below, you can see that the verb anhängen ("to attach") also works for email attachments:

Es sieht so aus, als hätte ich die PDF-Datei an die E-Mail angehängt.

It looks as though I attached the PDF file in an email.

Caption 36, Berufsleben - Probleme mit Mitarbeitern - Part 1

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However, it is often necessary to learn some new vocabulary. For example, to unlock a computer or cell phone, we use the verb entsperren or freischalten, and not aufschließen or entriegeln as you would for a door. And then, of course, there are the words that are relatively new to both languages. 

Den Mac-Nutzern empfehlen die Spezialisten, ein von Apple bereitgestelltes Sicherheitsupdate herunterzuladen und zu installieren.

The specialists recommend Mac users download and install a security update that has been provided by Apple.

Captions 15-16, Apple-Trojaner - Wie man ihn beseitigt

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Mein Management hat mir eine E-Mail weitergeleitet.

My management forwarded me an e-mail.

Caption 23, Schauspielerin - Jessica Schwarz - Part 1

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Ich habe auch ein E-Mail-Konto für Sie eingerichtet, welches Sie überprüfen können, sobald Sie eingeloggt sind.

I have set up an email account for you as well, which you can check as soon as you are logged in.

Captions 34-35, Berufsleben das Vorstellungsgespräch - Part 4

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The infinitive forms of the verbs and participles from the examples above are anhängen ("to attach"), herunterladen ("to download"), installieren ("to install"), weiterleiten ("to forward"), and sich einloggen ("to log in").

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Further Learning
For a list of words (including nouns and adjectives) related to computers and technology, you can look at this extensive list. Missing from this list are many "Denglisch" verbs related to technology (downloaden, updaten...), but these should not be used in your German class anyway! They are often used in office settings, but are still essentially slang and used mostly among younger co-workers. It is best to know the real German words.

Like English, 45% of which comes from French or Latin language sources, German has many French loan words or Gallicisms. If you can learn to recognize words in your native English as having a French origin, there is a fair chance that they are used in German. 

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In last week's lesson, we took a look at some of the more commonly used German words with a French origin. These have obvious French word endings such as -ment, -ion, or -age. This week, let's take a look at some more French-derived words in German that also have English counterparts.

Vor genau sechsundsechzig Jahren befreite die Rote Armee die Überlebenden des Nazi-Vernichtungslagers Auschwitz.

Exactly sixty-six years ago the Red Army liberated the survivors of the Nazi extermination camp Auschwitz.

Captions 1-2, Holocaust-Gedenktag - Gespräch mit jüdischen Schülern

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The German word for "army," die Armee, comes from the French word armée. Note that the German capitalizes the noun as per German grammar rules and has dropped the accented letter E. 

„Die Süßigkeit“ ist etwas Süßes: Gummibär, Kaugummi, Bonbon.

"Candy" is something sweet: a gummy bear, a [piece of] chewing gum, a bonbon.

Caption 6, Deutschkurs in Tübingen - Verben der 3. Kategorie - Part 2

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The German Bonbon can be the masculine der but is most commonly the neuter das. The French bonbon is literally "good good," from what a child might say when they see some candy!

Aktualisieren Sie bitte das Budget.

Please update the budget.

Caption 47, Berufsleben - das Vorstellungsgespräch

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Das Budget is the same word "budget" in French and English as well, though the French and German both render the T silent.

Ein bisschen Weihnachtsdekoration, so Engel... -Dekoration, ja.

A little bit of Christmas decoration, such angels... -Decoration, yes.

Captions 22-23, Unterwegs mit Cettina - auf dem Bruchsaler Weihnachtsmarkt

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The word "decoration" in English is closer to the French décoration, but then most hard C sounds in German utilize the letter K!

Das ist tatsächlich ein Hotel in Berlin mit einem ganz verrückten Konzept.

This is, in fact, a hotel in Berlin with a completely crazy concept.

Caption 2, Berlin - Indoor-Camping im „Hüttenpalast“

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The French word hôtel is spelled with a circumflex accent on the O, and of course pronounced entirely differently.

Ich bin bei der Firma SAC Applikations-Ingenieur.

I am an applications engineer for the company SAC.

Caption 2, Bildverarbeitung - Sirius Advanced Cybernetics in Pforzheim

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The German der Ingenieur provides another fairly rare example of the soft G pronunciation in German. It's spelled nearly the same as the French ingénieur. 

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Further Learning
As a general rule, French words found in German are spelled the same, or nearly the same, as the French words found in English, but are pronounced in a German manner and written according to German grammatical rules—with nouns capitalized, for example. Take a look at this list of Gallicisms in German and go to Yabla German to find other real-world examples of the words used in videos.

Irgendwie fängt irgendwann irgendwo die Zukunft an.

Somehow, somewhere the future begins sometime.

Caption 4, Nena - Irgendwie, irgendwo, irgendwann

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Again, we are happy to respond to a subscriber request! The lyrics above by German singer Nena are a good point of departure for a lesson on irgend, which as a prefix has a similar function to “some-” or “any-” in English. It is used to augment adverbs and pronouns to demonstrate a lack of specificity or information. 

Irgendwo is perhaps the simplest of these words, translating to “somewhere.”  

Du wirst bestimmt irgendwo am Strand sein. -Ja, genau. Am Meer.

You will surely be somewhere at the beach. -Yes, exactly. At the sea.

Caption 50, Konjugation - Das Verb „sein“

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Irgendwie translates to “somehow,” but is also used in spoken German to express “in some way,” “in any way,” or even “sort of.”

Irgendwie muss man ihr ja helfen.

Somehow she has to indeed be helped.

Caption 5, Die Pfefferkörner - Gerüchteküche

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The adverb irgendwann covers the English phrases “someday,” “sometime,” or “at some point,” which means it can refer to a non-specific time in either the past or the future. 

Aber irgendwann, als man mich nicht mehr gezwungen hat,

But at some point, when I wasn't forced to anymore

hab ich dann meine persönliche Liebe zur Musik entdeckt.

I discovered my own love for music.

Captions 36-37, Deutsche Bands - Glashaus

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But let’s not stop here! You have also probably seen irgendein and irgendwelche, which translate to “any” or “some.” The important thing to remember is that they behave similarly to adjectives and will always have the appropriate ending based on the conditions of the sentence. As you might guess, irgendein is never used in the plural.

Nun, wenn Sie irgendwelche Fragen haben:

So, if you have any questions,

Ich werde in meinem Büro sein.

I will be in my office.

Caption 49, Berufsleben - das Vorstellungsgespräch

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Haben Sie den Namen von irgendeiner Autovermietung?

Do you have the name of any car rental [company]?

Caption 16, Reiseplanung - Anruf bei einem Reisebüro

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For the pronoun “someone” or “somebody,” it is common to see both irgendwer and irgendjemand. 

Irgendjemand kocht Kaffee In der Luftaufsichtsbaracke.

Someone is making coffee In the air traffic control hut.

Captions 29-30, Reinhard Mey - Über den Wolken

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You may also have seen irgendwas and irgendetwas. These are more or less synonyms, which are even less specific than etwas (“something”) and are usually translated as “anything.”

Sagen Sie mir Bescheid, wenn ich irgendetwas tun kann.

Tell me if I can do anything.

Caption 58, Berufsleben - Probleme mit Mitarbeitern

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Further Learning
There are a myriad of examples on Yabla German where you can see these words in use. Make sure you understand the declensions required for irgendein and irgendwelche. Irgendjemand and irgendwer also sometimes require a different ending — can you figure out when this might occur?

The words in the above headline all mean "at least," but it can be confusing as to which context is correct for the right word. Note too that "at least" is a prepositional phrase in English, whereas in German the expression is usually a simple adverb. The adverb mindestens is probably the most common: 

In Deutschland ist es so:

In Germany, it's like this:

Asylbewerber müssen mindestens drei Monate warten.

Asylum applicants must wait at least three months.

Caption 35, Flüchtlingskrise - 10 Vorurteile, die nicht stimmen

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The adverb mindestens usually, as in the first case above, refers to a length of time or an amount of something:

Heutiger Hochwasserstand: wieder mindestens zehn Zentimeter.

Today's flood water level: at least ten centimeters again.

Caption 44, Die Klasse - Berlin '61

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It's used somewhat less often to refer to circumstances: 

Zwar haben die Zuwanderer in der Regel eine hohe

Indeed, the immigrants normally have a high

oder auch mittlere Qualifikation,

or also mid-level qualification

die also mindestens einem deutschen, äh, Abschluss.

that is at least on par with a German, uh, degree.

Captions 35-36, Rhein-Main-TV aktuell - Mehr Beschäftigung in Rhein-Main

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The related adverb zumindest, on the other hand, is used much more commonly for situations rather than lengths of time or amounts: 

Nun, zumindest habe ich meinen ersten Anruf hinter mir.

So, at least I have my first call behind me.

Caption 69, Berufsleben - das Vorstellungsgespräch

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Be careful not to jumble mindestens and zumindest into one (incorrect) word, something that even native German speakers occasionally do!

Eislaufen ist leicht,

Ice skating is easy,

zumindestens [sic, zumindest] leichter als auf Vanessas Party eingeladen zu werden.

at least easier than getting invited to Vanessa's party.

Captions 82-83, Küss mich, Frosch - Leb wohl, kleiner Prinz

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So remember that mindestens and zumindest are real words, either of which would have been correct in the above sentence, but "zumindestens" is not a proper word at all!

Even less common, but making things even more complex, is the adjective min­des­te / min­des­ter / min­des­tes. This adjective can also be nominalized, or turned into a noun, such as das Mindeste (the least thing), or zum Mindesten (at least). 

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Further Learning
Go to Yabla German and find examples of the above adverbs and adjectives to see how they are used in a real-world conversational context. To go even deeper into the adjectival usage, read the Duden page for min­des­te / min­des­ter / min­des­tes.  

Thank you for reading this newsletter and keep up the good work! If you have any good ideas for lesson topics, please email them to us at newsletter@yabla.com, and you can tweet us @yabla.