You may have occasionally seen sentences like the following: Sie sagte, er spreche sehr gut Deutsch. 

You may think, er spreche? What is going on here?

This structure is an example of what is known as the indirekte Rede (in English "reported speech"), which is used more often but not exclusively in written German and formal reporting or storytelling. Sentences like this will involve the verb sagen or other verbs used to talk about what people think and say, such as antworten, äußern, behaupten, berichten, denken, erklären, fragen, glauben, or meinen.

In instances where someone's speech or thoughts are reported, you may see the subjunctive (Konjunktiv I) employed, like in the sentence above. For regular verbs, some of the endings are indistinguishable from other tenses, but some are very different. Here is the complete Konjunktiv I conjugation of the verb sprechen, and here are examples of how it would be used with reported speech:

Er sagte, ich spreche sehr gut Deutsch. ("He said I speak very good German.")
Er sagte, du sprechest sehr gut Deutsch. ("He said you speak very good German.")
Er sagte, er/sie spreche sehr gut Deutsch. ("He said she/he speaks very good German.")
Er sagte, wir sprechen sehr gut Deutsch. ("He said we speak very good German.")
Er sagte, ihr sprechet sehr gut Deutsch. ("He said you speak very good German.")
Er sagte, Sie/sie sprechen sehr gut Deutsch. ("He said they speak very good German.")

In the following examples, you can see the same conjugation pattern with a few other verbs: 

Der König hatte sie nicht eingeladen,

The King hadn't invited her,

weil es hieß, sie habe ein böses Herz.

because it was said she had an evil heart.

Caption 19, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Dornröschen

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Er verband ihm das Bein,

He bandaged his leg,

fragte ihn nicht, wohin er wolle, woher er käme.

did not ask him where he was going, where he had come from.

Captions 7-8, Janoschs Traumstunde - Der Wettlauf zwischen Hase und Igel

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Der hat mir erzählt, er sei echt nur...

he told me that he really just is...

Er fahre eigentlich Mercedes

He actually drives a Mercedes

und kleide sich deshalb so schräg ...

and the reason he dresses so weirdly...

Captions 30-31, Yello-Biographie - Ein Leben für die Avantgarde

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You may have noticed that kommen is irregular. One other irregular verb that you have likely seen conjugated like this is sein:

Von daher werde ich nicht tanzen,

Therefore I won't be dancing,

so dass ich behaupten kann, ich sei ein brillianter Tänzer,

so I can claim that I'm a brilliant dancer

und niemand kann es konterkarieren.

and nobody can disprove it.

Captions 25-26, Deutsche Sporthilfe - Ball des Sports

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Hans erklärte, er sei nicht verzaubert,

Hans explained that he was not bewitched,

sondern wirklich ein Igeljunge.

but really a hedgehog boy.

Caption 71, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Hans mein Igel

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Sie behaupteten, sie seien Weber eines seltenen,

They claimed that they were weavers of a rare,

besonders schönen Stoffes.

especially beautiful cloth.

Caption 25, Märchen - Sagenhaft Des Kaisers neue Kleider

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Further Learning
You will likely come across examples of reported speech on Yabla German from time to time, but structures like Sie sagt, dass er Italienisch spricht are simply more common in spoken German. When you do see an example that uses Konjunktiv I, check to see if it's a regular or irregular verb in terms of its conjugation. 

In light of the recent death of Elizabeth II, Queen of England, we'll take a look today at the German words for royal titles. Just two days before her death, the Queen was still fulfilling her royal duties, meeting with former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his successor Liz Truss at Balmoral Castle.

Aber die Königin starb bald darauf.

But the Queen died soon afterwards.

Caption 11, Märchen - Sagenhaft: Schneewittchen

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Some languages, like English, have completely different names for male and female monarchs. In German, however, most noble titles take the masculine nouns and make their feminine equivalents by giving them an -in  feminine ending.

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Bis 1806 trafen sich hier die Kurfürsten, um den deutschen König und Kaiser zu wählen.

Exactly. Until 1806, the electors met here to choose the German king and emperor.

Captions 68-69, Bundesländer und ihre Rezepte: Hessen

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Der König is easy enough, but what is the difference between der König and der Kaiser? The notorious Kaiser Wilhelm II, who was forced to abdicate after the surrender of Germany in the First World War, was both the King of Prussia and the Emperor of the German Empire. Prior to the end of the monarchy in Germany, which was a result of losing the First World War, the country was comprised of many kingdoms. Each of these kingdoms was ruled by a king or a queen, but the highest ruler of the land was der Kaiser, the Emperor. The title Kaiser derives from the Latin name Caesar.

Until the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, emperors were chosen by a council of nobles called die Kurfürsten. You can still see traces of this antiquated term in street names, such as the famous shopping street in western Berlin called Kurfürstendamm.

Der Prinz und die Prinzessin waren überglücklich und schnell war allen klar, dass sie sich ineinander verliebt hatten.

The Prince and the Princess were overjoyed and soon it was clear to everyone that they had fallen in love with one another.

Captions 85-86, Märchen - Sagenhaft: Dornröschen

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Der Prinz and die Prinzessin are quite easy for English speakers as the words are very close to their English equivalents.

Der bayerische Herzog Wilhelm IV war ein großer Freund des reinen Bieres.

The Bavarian Duke Wilhelm IV was a good friend of pure beer.

Caption 21, Deutsches Bier: 500 Jahre Reinheitsgebot

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The royal title ranking beneath der Prinz is der Herzog, or "duke." The feminine for "duchess" is die Herzogin.

Es gibt Schilderungen, da hatte eine Gräfin von Thun ihn angefleht, auf den Knien, dass er spielt.

There are descriptions where a Countess of Thun had begged him on her knees to play.

Captions 14-16, Ludwig van Beethoven: 250. Geburtstag

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Apparently Beethoven wasn't particularly fond of the aristocracy, since according to this anecdote, he refused to play for her based solely on her rank. The masculine equivalent of die Gräfin is der Graf: "the count."

Eine Lösung für dieses Mobilitätsproblem hatte Karl Freiherr von Drais.

A solution for this mobility problem was found by Baron Karl von Drais.

Caption 7, 200. Geburtstag: Die Geschichte des Fahrrads in 2 Minuten

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Der Freiherr is "baron" in English and feminine equivalent of "baroness" is die Freifrau. German also occasionally uses der Baron and die Baronin as well!

Further Learning
Extend your knowledge of German noble titles by reading the Wikipedia Adelstitel ("noble titles") page. Then you can go to Yabla German and search for some other videos using the words you learned for German titles of nobility.

The German noun die Nachricht is often translated into "message" in English, such as a message left on your voicemail:

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Sie haben eine neue Nachricht.

You have a new message.

Caption 27, Die Pfefferkörner - Gerüchteküche

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In a slightly confusing twist, both the singular and plural form of die Nachricht (plural: die Nachrichten) are often translated into "news" in English: 

Die Nachricht von der schlafenden Prinzessin

The news of the sleeping princess

verbreitete sich in vielen Ländern.

spread throughout many countries.

Captions 58-59, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Dornröschen

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Gute Nachrichten für Hessens Wirtschaftsminister Tarek Al-Wazir.

Good news for Hessia's Minister for Economic Affairs Tarek Al-Wazir.

Caption 1, Frankfurt wird Handelszentrum - für die chinesische Währung Yuan

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This may seem odd, but the reason that the word is translated the same regardless of whether it is singular or plural in German is that the word "news" is a mass noun in English. The Oxford dictionary defines a mass noun as "A noun denoting something that cannot be counted (e.g., a substance or quality), in English usually a noun that lacks a plural in ordinary usage and is not used with the indefinite article e.g. luggage, china, happiness."

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Further Learning
Do a search for the word Nachricht on Yabla German and see how the different contexts of its usage can help you understand whether it's best to translate this word as "message" or "news," as well as decide when you should choose die Nachricht or its plural die Nachrichten when using it to mean "news."

Summer is soon approaching, and with the arrival of June, the wedding season (die Hochzeitsaison) will be in full swing. So whether it's a friend's wedding or maybe even your own, beware: you're going to need to expand your vocabulary if there is any German involved!

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No one is going to get married if a marriage proposal doesn't happen first:

Der Fluch ist gebrochen! Ich möchte dich heiraten.

The curse is broken! I want to marry you.

Die Prinzessin nahm seinen Heiratsantrag sofort an.

The Princess accepted his marriage proposal immediately.

Captions 86-88, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Der Froschkönig

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Nor would a groom (der Bräutigam) be complete without a bride, at least in a traditional wedding!

So sieht eine Massai-Braut aus.

That is what a Masai bride looks like.

Caption 50, Rat für nachhaltige Entwicklung - Mode gegen Armut

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And after the wedding comes the feast:

Es war gleichzeitig auch das Hochzeitsmahl für das junge Paar.

It was at the same time the wedding feast for the young couple.

Caption 91, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Dornröschen

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Further Learning
Look up the meaning of any marriage-related words on this list that you may not be familiar with, and see if you can find some of them used in context on Yabla:

das Bankett, das Hochzeitskleid, die Brautjungfer, der Brautschleier, das Ehepaar, der Ehering, das Eheversprechen, der Festsaal, die Feier, der Fotograf, der Gast, das Geschenk, die Heirat, die Heiratsurkunde, die Hochzeit, der Hochzeitsempfang, der Hochzeitskuchen, der Hochzeitsmarsch, die Hochzeitsreise, die Kirche, die Kirchglocken, das Konfetti, die Liebe, der Priester, die Rede, das Ringkissen, der Schmuck, die Trauung, der Trauzeuge, die Verbindung, der Zeuge

The English preposition "for" and the German accusative preposition für are not only similarly spelled, but are often interchangeable too — the problem arises in cases where they are not. Let's first take a look at some examples where "for" can be directly translated as für. If something is intended for someone:

Was kann ich für dich tun?

What can I do for you?

Caption 2, Berlin - Judith und die „Brezel Bar“

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When indicating quantity or money:

Für Geld machen Sie alles?

For money you'll do anything?

Caption 62, Klebt, schmeckt, macht dick - Die Süßigkeitenmesse

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For stating a length or period of time:

Stattdessen wird sie in einen tiefen Schlaf fallen für viele Jahre.

Instead, she will fall into a deep sleep for many years.

Caption 30, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Dornröschen

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Some English expressions with "for" also use für when translated to German: für nichts or für umsonst (for nothing); für immer (for always or forever); für nächstes Mal (for next time).

On the other hand, the English "for" may also be translated as aus, seit, or zu, with expressions like "for some reason" (aus irgendeinem Grund), "for a long time" (seit langem), and "for sale" (zum Verkauf):

Aber aus irgendeinem Grund wollte Pandora im Haus bleiben.

But for some reason Pandora wanted to stay in the house.

Captions 33-34, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die Büchse der Pandora

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Er ist Ungar und spielt schon seit langem mit uns zusammen.

He is Hungarian and plays with us for a long time already.

Captions 24-25, Deutsche Bands - Cabanossi

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Fast jedes Ei, das zum Verkauf in Supermärkten gedacht ist...

Almost every egg that is intended for sale in supermarkets...

Caption 9, Bioeier - Wie funktioniert der Erzeugercode?

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It's important to remember that prepositions are not always directly translatable; just because "for" is translated as zu in one case does not mean that zu is always translated into English as "for."

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Further Learning:

Imagine a typical use of the word "for" in an English sentence, then translate it into German and search Yabla German for a similar expression to see how it is translated there. Did you get it right?