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- "I hear and see nothing."
"I hear and see nothing."
Translation:Ich höre und sehe nichts.
54 Comments
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
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
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?
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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"