24 Comments
As for "the man" would it be: "Sie sieht den Mann" ? oder "Sie sieht der Mann"? Danke.
Sie sieht den Mann. This is the accusative case (the case of the direct object).
Is it just me, or does her pronunciation sound like "Sie seht die Tochter" and not "Sie sieht die Töchter"?
Nah, it sounds like "Töchter." The difference between "o" and "ö" is clear, but it may take some practice to be able to distinguish them.
1852
To me sounded like she said Toichter rather than terchter which I thought was the correct pronunciation of ö?
I guess because people rarely say "is seeing" in English. I am looking at the daughters, I see daughters. It is hardly "I am seeing".
I'm not a native speaker, though.
No, you're right. Also "is seeing" has a different connotation than "can see" or "sees"
Yes olimo is right - Saying "He is seeing the daughters" could implicate that he is "seeing" them as in he dates them or hangs out with them.
- 131
In English the progressive form (is ---ing) is mainly used for action verbs, where you actively do something. See http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1535_questionanswer/page4.shtml
First, "He sees the daughters" Has two meanings. One: He visually sees the daughters. .. which without context seems odd. Two: He is visiting the daughters. But apparently this isn't the meaning of the German sentence. German "sehen" must be literal. And yes. ..He is seeing the daughters could mean: 1) He's dating them,2) He's visiting them 3) He sees them visually. However without context it's a confusing sentence.
I'm having incredible difficulty pronouncing "Töchter" correctly. Any hints to make this one easier?
- 131
There are two difficulties in the word (I think). One is the 'ö' sound. It is like the 'i' in 'girl', but shorter. The second one is the 'ch' sound. There is no equivalent one in English or even anything that comes close. It is similar to the Scottish 'ch' in 'loch'. Like the 'g' it is a guttural sound, but the 'g' has the throat closed at the beginning of the sound and then suddenly opens it, which is called a plosive sound. For the 'ch' the air is flowing all the time, although it is a bit obstructed because the back of the tongue is close to the top of your mouth. It is not completely closed but the air needs to be forced through it. It might be easier to start with the beginning of a 'k' sound and then open the throat slightly so that the air starts flowing. Once you have that working, leave out the initial 'k' part.
Thank you for your thorough response! I was able to get the pronounciation correct (or correct enough for duolingo) with your help and some good old fashioned practice.
- 297
I find DL's pronunciation grading totally random. I sometimes get marked OK for speaking in the wrong language, or not saying anything at all. OTOH I get dinged when I believe I have it right. But if I raise my pitch I am usually accepted!
- 1852
I always thought of "ch" as the sound a cat makes when it's about to scratch your face!
So the only difference between the singular and plural is the little umlat. That will be hard to remember.
At least on my phone the prononciation on this isn't even close. The vowel is possibly an "eu" or "äu," but certainly not an "ö."
