In previous lessons, we've examined adjectives ending with -bar and adjectives with un- and -los. This week, we'l look at the ending -sam. The nice thing about adjectives, as you may remember, is that the related adverb is often the exact same word rather than having a different suffix.
The word sparsam is a positive adjective related to trying to save money, and could also be translated as "frugal" or "thrifty." The word geizig is less flattering, and essentially means "stingy."
Das ist sehr sparsam!
This is very economical!
Caption 38, Der Trabi: Das Kultauto aus dem Osten
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While interviewing individuals who are against vaccination, comedian Lutz van der Horst heard the following statement:
Es gibt keine einzige wissenschaftliche Studie, die das wirklich klar belegt, dass Impfen wirksam und vernünftig ist.
There is not a single scientific study that really clearly proves that vaccination is effective and sensible.
Captions 19-20, heute-show: Lutz van der Horst trifft auf Impfverweigerer
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Here are a few more common adjectives ending with -sam. The first two may be known to you through the related verbs raten ("to advise”) and unterhalten ("to entertain").
... ist es auf jeden Fall ratsam, sich so gut wie möglich zu benehmen.
... it is definitely advisable to behave as well as possible.
Captions 55-56, Deutsch mit Eylin: Tischsitten
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So unterhaltsam kann Lernen sein!
Learning can be so entertaining!
Caption 5, Theaterstück über gesunde Ernährung: Henrietta in Fructonia
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„Aber ich war so grausam und gemein zu dir“, weinte die Prinzessin.
"But I was so dreadful and mean to you," cried the Princess.
Caption 84, Märchen - Sagenhaft: König Drosselbart
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Und nun wurde auch ein Schwein auf sie aufmerksam.
And then a pig became aware of them.
Caption 58, Märchenstunde: Der Lebkuchenmann
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Immer wenn du weg bist, bin ich so einsam.
Whenever you're away, I am so lonely.
Caption 7, Janoschs Traumstunde: Post für den Tiger
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Warum die Atmosphäre zwischen uns beiden so seltsam in letzter Zeit ist, kann ich mir auch nicht erklären.
I can't figure out either why the atmosphere between us has been so strange lately.
Caption 48, Die Wohngemeinschaft: Probleme
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Many of these words become nouns with the addition of -keit. Have a look:
Danke für die Aufmerksamkeit.
Thanks for your attention.
Caption 28, Bundesländer und ihre Rezepte: Brandenburg
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Langfristige Studien zur Wirksamkeit des Superabsorbers gibt es bisher keine.
There haven't been any long-term studies of the super absorber's effectiveness yet.
Caption 37, Wunderkräfte aus der Windel: Wasserspeicher für Blumenerde
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Aber Flora und Fauna können sich in dieser Einsamkeit noch ungestört entfalten.
But in this solitude, flora and fauna can develop without being disturbed.
Caption 7, Die letzten Paradiese: Die Schönheit der Alpen 2
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Further Learning
Make flashcards in order to memorize the adjectives above. You will find other adjectives with -sam on Yabla German, of course.
There are many German verbs that consist of a rather common or basic verb combined with a prefix. Their meaning may then be somewhat or completely different from the verb they contain. You may have read our lessons about verbs related to gehen and verbs with holen. We also have overviews for sprechen and kaufen. Today, let's have a look at some verbs that stem from the verb laufen.
By itself, the verb laufen is sometimes synonymous with the translation of gehen as "to walk." However, it also means "to run," and can be used to describe a human or animal running, but also a machine that is "running." It is often used to describe something that is in progress, happening, in operation, or proceeding. Take a look at how the following sentences are translated:
Wir laufen durch die Straßen.
We walk through the streets.
Caption 39, Christina Stürmer: Wir leben den Moment
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Ja, und wie läuft's bei dir so in der Wache? Nein, sag bloß!
Yes, and how is it going with you at the station? No way!
Caption 46, Großstadtrevier: Von Monstern und Mördern
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Und das sind die drei Kriterien, wenn die gut laufen, dann läuft auch der Blindenfußball gut.
And these are the three criteria, if they go well, then blind football also goes well.
Caption 22, Blindenfußball Treffen nach Ton
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Die meisten kennen mich wahrscheinlich aus der Sendung „Der Bachelor“, die sehr erfolgreich auf RTL läuft.
Most of you probably know me from the series "Der Bachelor," which is having a very successful run on RTL.
Captions 11-12, Anja Polzer: Interview
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Sorry, das läuft auf meinem alten Laptop nicht. Da müssen wir zu dir.
Sorry, this won't run on my old laptop. We'll have to go to your place.
Caption 35, Die Pfefferkörner: Gerüchteküche
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And now for some related verbs. Let's begin with ablaufen, which can mean "to go," "to proceed," "to lapse," or "to expire."
Bei manchen Leuten läuft's sogar komplett ohne Symptome ab.
For some people, it even runs its course completely without symptoms.
Caption 23, Coronavirus: Schutzmasken zum Selbermachen
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Jetzt werde ich euch erzählen, wie ein Tag in meinem Leben abläuft.
Now I will tell you how a day in my life goes.
Caption 16, Jenny erklärt: Zeitintervalle
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Deine Zeit ist gleich abgelaufen.
Your time will be up soon.
Caption 21, Küss mich, Frosch: Für immer Frosch?
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Among its many meanings, verb auslaufen can mean "to spill" or "to leak," but also "to run out" or "to peter out."
Die Ostalgie-Welle ist auch langsam ausgelaufen.
The wave of "Ostalgie" has also slowly petered out.
Caption 2, Der Trabi: Das Kultauto aus dem Osten
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Then there are the verbs verlaufen and sich verlaufen. As you can see, these have very different meanings!
Bis jetzt ist alles wirklich gut verlaufen.
Up until now, everything has really gone well.
Caption 7, Berufsleben: Probleme mit Mitarbeitern
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Du sagst, wir haben uns nie verlaufen.
You say we've never gotten lost.
Caption 21, Philipp Dittberner: Das ist dein Leben
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Further Learning
You can find many other verbs in this list, some of which are more common than others. You will find many of these on Yabla German as well. Try to make your own examples with the following verbs: davonlaufen, fortlaufen, entlaufen, and herumlaufen.
There is no single standard form for making German nouns plural, but most nouns follow one of ten general patterns. You will instinctively recognize many of them, but others just have to be learned. One thing, at least, is easier: the definite article for German plurals is always die, regardless of the noun's gender.
(1) Add -e:
„Ich fahre nach Stuttgart, weil ich meine Freunde treffen will".
"I drive to Stuttgart because I want to meet my friends".
Caption 61, Deutschkurs in Tübingen - Warum, weil - Erklärungen
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Der Freund, plural die Freunde.
(2) Add -n or -en:
Und all diese Fragen…
And all these questions…
Wir sind ja schon immer als Studenten nach Frankfurt gepilgert.
We have indeed always, as students, gone to Frankfurt.
Caption 14, Museum - für Moderne Kunst
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Die Frage, plural die Fragen; der Student, plural die Studenten.
(3) Add -e and umlaut:
Wer würde ihren Haferbrei essen und ihre Stühle zerbrechen?
Who would eat their oat porridge and break their chairs?
Caption 55, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Goldlöckchen und die drei Bären
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Der Stuhl, plural die Stühle.
(4) Add -er, or umlaut and -er:
Allein unter seiner Herrschaft waren es weit über hundert...
Alone under his rule, it was far above a hundred...
Männer, Frauen, Kinder...
men, women, children...
Caption 22, Geschichte - Hexenverbrennung im Odenwald
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Das Kind, plural die Kinder; der Mann, plural die Männer.
(5) Change the main vowel to its umlaut equivalent, but make no change to the noun's ending:
Die drei Brüder waren entsetzt.
The three brothers were horrified.
Caption 32, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die drei Brüder
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Der Bruder, plural die Brüder. This rule applies especially to family members such as der Vater, plural die Väter; die Mutter, plural die Mütter; die Tochter, plural die Töchter.
(6) Add -s:
Das sind wirklich die schlimmsten Autos, die jemals hergestellt wurden.
These are really the worst cars that were ever made.
Caption 36, Der Trabi - Das Kultauto aus dem Osten
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Das Auto, plural die Autos.
(7) Nouns ending in -in, which denote that the person in question is a woman, are always pluralized with -nen:
Emmi und Johanna sind Freundinnen.
Emmi and Johanna are friends.
Caption 3, Fußball und die Frauenwelt - Der Manndecker
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Die Freundin, plural die Freundinnen.
(8) Add -ien:
Man muss die Materialien kennen.
One must know the materials.
Caption 29, Trendberuf Restauratorin - Eine Lebensaufgabe
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Das Material, plural die Materialien.
(9) Nouns ending in -nis are pluralized by adding -se:
Die Ergebnisse des Tages sollen natürlich auch Früchte tragen.
The results of the day should, of course, also bear fruit.
Caption 26, Rheinmain im Blick - Nachhaltigkeit
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Das Ergebnis, plural die Erebnisse.
(10) No change at all: plurals are only distinguished by context or in the case of non-feminine nouns, the use of the definite article die:
Die Zimmer sind besondere Hinkucker [Hingucker, Umgangssprache].
The rooms are special eye-catchers [attractions].
Caption 5, Das Ostel - Über Nacht zurück in der DDR
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Das Zimmer, plural die Zimmer.
Last of all, there are the irregular plurals, which consist of nouns that each have their own unique rules for pluralization. These, of course, must be learned individually. A few examples are der Saal (plural die Säle), das Datum (plural die Daten), das Klima (plural die Klimate), der Bus (plural die Busse).
Further Learning
Read this article about German irregular plurals and look here for an in depth overview of German plurals. Find examples of plurals used in a real world scenario on Yabla German.
The Swiss have it easy: they completely eliminated the ß (eszett or "sharp s") some years ago, but since we are teaching Standard German at Yabla, we should learn a few general rules about which words use s, ss, and ß.
1. Single s
There are no words in German that begin with ss or ß, so that rule is easy. A single s will usually come after the letters l, m, n and r when a vowel follows the s, with words such as: der Balsam (the balm), die Bremse (the brake), and sparsam (economical):
Das ist sehr sparsam!
This is very economical!
Caption 38, Der Trabi - Das Kultauto aus dem Osten
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A single s will usually come before the letter p, with words such as raspeln (to grate), lispeln (to lisp), and die Knospe (the bud):
Knospen, Blätter oder, Früchte von Platanen zum Beispiel...
Buds, leaves or, fruit from the plane trees, for example...
Caption 26, Freilebende Papageien - Überwintern in Wiesbaden
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In most cases, only a single s will come before the letter t, with words such as die Liste (the list), pusten (slang: to blow), and prusten (to puff):
Dann will ich husten und will prusten
Then I'll huff and I'll puff
und euer Haus zusammenpusten!
and I'll blow your house down!
Caption 50, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die drei kleinen Schweinchen
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2. Double s
The double s is usually written only after a short vowel, with words such as das Schloss (the castle), ein bisschen (a little bit), and passend (fitting):
Eigentlich hätte es gar keine passendere Rolle für sie geben können.
Actually, there couldn't at all have been a more fitting role for her.
Caption 16, Christina Aguilera und Cher - in Deutschland
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3. Eszett: ß
The ß is usually used after a long vowel or double-vowel combination (dipthong), in words such as die Straße (the street), der Meißel (the chisel), and stoßen (to bump, to repel):
Gut, und die stoßen sich ab.
Good and they repel one another.
Caption 35, Das 1. Newtonsche Gesetz - erklärt am Beispiel des Dodomobils
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4. Verbs that vary between ss and ß
Just to make it more complicated, there are some verbs that are written with ß in the infinitive, but switch to ss when conjugated — and vice versa too! For instance the verb vergessen (to forget) uses the letter ss in the infinitive and present tenses (ich vergesse, I forget), but switches to the ß in the past (preterite) tense:
Belle gewann das Biest so lieb,
Belle became so fond of the Beast
dass sie seine äußere Erscheinung darüber völlig vergaß.
that she fully forgot about his outward appearance.
Captions 61-62, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Die Schöne und das Biest
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Further Learning:
Do a search on Yabla German and see if you can find some more examples of verbs that vary between ß and ss in their infinitives and their conjugations.
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