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- Topic: German >
- "Sie schreiben."
62 Comments
But there would be a capital S here as Sie is beginning the sentence. So how do we tell if Sie at the beginning of a sentence is She and not They.
94
You can't tell if "Sie" here means "they" or (formal) "you". But you can tell that it's not "she" because of the conjugation of the verb:
Sie schreiben: They write. or You write.
Sie schreibt: She writes.
So . . . when you speak formally do you use the plural form of the verb? Or is schreiben just "write" so it can be used with "You."
Schreibt means he/she/you, schreiben means we/they
correct? -en is we/they, not you?
Sie can also mean you (formal). It's easier to tell if it's in the middle of a sentence, as formal you Sie is always capitalized.
But isn't shreiben for plural, especially they while for "you" it'd be shreibt (or something like that)
The plural "you." Like "y'all."
"Ihr schreibt" would mean "Y'all write."
Like the others, the sentence is corrects as "You write" using the formal you "Sie". The twist here is that Duo is including this example in the strengthen/practice sessions before the user reaches the lesson titled "Formal You".
Think of it as a free preview of things to come? FWIW...I find myself learning these "gotcha!" examples almost directly because they are confusing at first and so require my attention to read and figure them out.
I understand that "sie" is she OR they OR formal you, depending on context. But "schreiben"? Isn't that the form used for "they"? When using the "formal YOU" word, does it follow that "formal you" is the same as "they"? Or am I just trying to figure out something I haven't been taught yet?
- 94
"Sie" = formal "you" uses the same conjugation as "sie" = "they".
Here: sie schreiben, Sie schreiben
But when it's at the beginning of a sentence, it's going to be capitalised anyway. So you really cant tell the difference.
Not to mention the fact that one cannot decipher capital letters from spoken language. I was enjoying learning German until this moment. It seemed so systematic and logical.. until... now.
- 108
That's a difficult question, but basically yes, to everyone you don't know who is not a kid.
Why on Earth would they not tell you Sie can mean you earlier on or at least say it when you hover over it. God sometimes Duolingo can really be a pain.
How are we supposed to know whether it is talking about "formal you" or "they" in a simple sentence like this? In the real world we would have context, is this just a mistake on Duo's part?
I agree. This has ruined my day immeasurably. My mood has been tainted with a sour tinge.
This can ALSO be translated as "They write". There is NO CONTEXT in this clip, so it is IMPOSSIBLE to differentiate between the two meanings. Therefore, "They write" needs to be accepted as correct.
How do you pronounce 'schreiben'? It sounds like the woman is pronouncing it as: shry-din
Non German here. But I have atleast mastered the pronunciations. You have to understand the parts of mouth that are involved in German language. It's pretty close to snoring sound (kh) but where the uvula vibrates instead of blocking the tonsil. Pronounce (sh)-->Pronounce (kh) using uvula --> Pronounce (ei) --> Pronounce(ben)
- 94
It rather sounds like "shry-Ben" ("Ben" like the name). Here you can listen to two examples: https://de.forvo.com/word/schreiben/#de (although IMO in Vortarulo's "schreiben" the "sch" sounds a bit weird, almost a bit like "f").
Only with one comment i agree. We need acceptance for both answers. Here we dont see the context. Both answers are right with "they" and formal "You". Thanks Duo.
it can be used in different ways. 3rd person when you are making a plural statement. And 2nd person in polite form
Also got confused with this but maybe the confusion was deliberate to help us remember?
- 94
"Sie" with uppercase "S" is the German formal you (used in singular and plural), while "du" is the informal singular "you" and "ihr" is the informal plural "you" (aka "you all").
So "Sie schreiben" can mean both "They write" and "You write".
But if the "Sie" means formal "You", which is referring to a single person, shouldn't it be "schreibt" instead?
- 94
Formal "you" "Sie" can refer to a single person or to several people. It always uses the 3rd person plural conjugation, i.e. the one used with "sie" ("they").
I said they write and was marked wrong. Why? Can Sie not be formal you or they?
Translation of sie is they somtimes she or maybe her too but dictanary does,t show us you at all what is this? Wtf/ some one please explain me!
- 94
Someone already explained. Please read the other comments before posting "wtf"-comments. "Sie" with uppercase "S" is the formal German "you", singular or plural.
Only with one comment i agree. We need acceptance for both answers. Here we dont see the context. Both answers are right with "they" and formal "You". Thanks Duo.
I guess 'Sie schreiben' means 'they write' bcz the verb ends with "-en form" but why does it mean 'you write'?
- 94
Please read the other comments, this has already been explained ("Sie" can be the formal "you" in German)
