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- "I hear and see nothing."
"I hear and see nothing."
Translation:Ich höre und sehe nichts.
54 Comments
niemals means never here it requires the meaning "nothing" = nichts
Sargent Schultz! Or as he was so affectionately called by the prisoners, Schultzee. Loved that show. Thanks for for bringing up the reference, and bringing back the memories.
Ja, ich auch. Of course, it loses a bit of the effect in re-translation as nichts is only one syllable... ;-).
That’s a lot to explain in one comment. You might want to review the tips and notes for the “Negatives” lesson, to start with. That might help. https://www.duolingo.com/skill/de/Negatives/tips-and-notes
Previously I've seen word order as the second verb goes to the end of the sentence unconjugated. In this case it didn't. Is this because they are separated with und and therefore both become conjugated?
In this case, it's because both verbs are conjugated to go with the subject "I", meaning "I hear and (I) see nothing." The structure that sends the 2nd verb to the end of the sentence is the "Satzklammer" or Sentence-bracket. Bypassing more complicated structures for the moment (because I'm not fluent), you'll see this often with modal or 'helping' verbs. Example: You can speak German. = Du kannst Deutsch sprechen. I have to eat an apple. = Ich muss einen Apfel essen.
You might find this video helpful, especially starting at 2:23. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RI4lOt4riXs
I do not see = Ich sehe nicht. You negate the action itself.
I see nothing = Ich sehe nichts. What you see is 'nothing', so the action itself is done and the result of the seeing is that you see nothing.
(It's a clip from the old TV series 'Hogan's Heroes', set during the second world war, in which a German officer is told of a plan by some prisoners to steal a tank. He doesn't want to deal with the trouble that would cause, so he leaves, telling himself "I see nothing!".)
etwas / alles—nichts (something/everything—nothing)
jemand—niemand (somebody/anybody—nobody)
irgendwo—nirgendwo / nirgends (somewhere—nowhere)
immer / oft / manchmal—nie/niemals (always / often / sometimes—never)
mit—ohne (with—without)
Am I the only person who finds this sentence extremely awkward and unnatural in English? (When encountering awkward sentences it tends to make the learning process equally awkward and slightly...convoluted?...if that makes sense. Anyone else find it to be the same?)
You are not; I feel it should be "I see and hear nothing" rather than "I hear and see nothing".
It makes me curious as to whether a native German speaker would prefer "Ich höre und sehe nichts" or "Ich sehe und höre nichts". Which sounds should come first? We have a clear preference in English, do Germans also have such a preference?
That’s because kein is only used before nouns: kein Wasser, kein Geld, keine Milch... It can’t stand alone. That would be like saying in English, “I hear and see no.”
“Nothing” is nichts.
Ironically we sometimes do in English -- when listing the names of the three monkeys. The other one is "speak no".
Does anyone have a suggestion on how to say “höre?” It sounds like a rolling r made in the back of the throat somehow. But, when I try, I just sounds like gurgling.
I'm also struggling with this and would like any suggestions as well. Kind of frustrating trying to get it right.
If it helps (I can't promise!) try saying "furry", but try to pull your tongue slightly backwards in your mouth and "roll" the "rr" against the insides of your, er, "side teeth" instead of the palate above your front teeth.
If that makes any sense, which it probably won't :')
And then something like "hurrer" said the same way might be a rough imitation of "höre".
I put "Ich hoere und sehen nichts," and was wrong. In one lesson we were taught, "sie geht schwimmen." Where the second verb is in that form instead of "schwimmt." But for some reason it is not in this one, I'm going to guess it's because of the "und" but if someone would please clarify.
Indeed.
The "und" (and) means that both verbs are in the same tense, person etc. In the other one, the second verb is swimming rather than just swim.
It would be like "I hear and seeing nothing" or "I hear and to see nothing" in English :)
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I think nie is more like never So it's "I never hear or see anything" instead of "I don't hear or see anything"
Just what is so important about this sentence - it occurs & re-occurs ad nauseum.
Would it be possible to say "Ich höre nichts und sehe nichts" or "Ich höre nichts und ich sehe nichts" ? I just wasn't sure if it would be grammatically incorrect or simply unnatural in German to repeat "nichts". Danke fur die Hilfe.
Because nix is a slang form (LEO-Wörterbuch classifies it as “coll., vulgar”). It’s the equivalent of saying “zilch, nada, bupkis, diddly-squat” in English, according to LEO.
Useful phrase for when you witness a murder committed by the German mafia
