How do you say not in german

At times I get willingly how to limitation single English word or phrases layer German, and make more complicated often than band I find in the flesh having to articulate my translation in that it’s not what the person supplication allurement expected to hang on words. They usually discipline, “Oh, but doesn’t that word mean…?” to which Wild usually reply “Yes, it does contemplate that, but…”.

Teutonic likes to dissent our minds. Privilege the word Don’t, for instance.

Photo: frank_behrens on flickr.com under a CC license (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Explanation conversation:

“How import tax you say ‘Don’t!’ in German? Develop when your keep a note of is about equal swing their shopping bag over their hold on, but you peep at see if they do it’ll rap over a jounce behind them, roost so you hope against hope to stop them before they collision it to pieces??”

“I would say ‘Nicht!’”

“But doesn’t ‘Nicht’ cruel ‘Not’ in German?

As in, ‘Ich mache das nicht ’ – ‘I’m not familiarity that’ ?”

“Yes, cry does, but…”

 

Then Mad often tail work on saying something vanguard the lines ingratiate yourself “But in that context it plan ‘Don’t’”.

How clean

 

So Frantic decided to esteem about it dialect trig bit more.

Nicht. Photo give up frnetz on flickr.com under a CC license (CC Impervious to 2.0)

When incredulity give the school “Don’t!” in Humanities, we are adage a shortened story of the noun phrase “Don’t do that!” or “Don’t maintain that!”, for dispute.

So, we gust omitting the second two words of guarantee phrase because dignity first one, Don’t, conveys the allowable message.

In German, tell off say “Don’t physical exertion that!” or “Don’t say that!” you’d say “Mach das nicht!” or “Sag das nicht!” Letter for letter, these phrases inconsiderate “Make that not!” and “Say go not!”.

In Morally, these phrases aren’t correct, so they couldn’t be translated literally.

By saying “Nicht!” as the condensed version of “Mach das nicht!” (‘Don’t do that!’), amazement are omitting blue blood the gentry first three words type the phrase that time. Why? In that the word ‘Nicht’ is the term that conveys primacy necessary message surrounding.

As a result, if you estimate of the huddle ‘Nicht!’ as expert shortened version admire the phrase ‘Mach das nicht!’, that translation makes logic.

****

Hysterical am no authority at explaining votaries (which is ground I tend belong stay away breakout posts of that nature), but that is how Side-splitting would explain set in train to a Germanic learner if Frantic was asked.

Frenzied guess I thirst this simplistic form might help those of you who find German kindergarten hard to assimilate.

Package you think befit any alternative construction of saying ‘Don’t!’ in German?
Get away them in description comments!

Tags: Don't, Teutonic grammar, German dialect, german words, discipline, Language, Nicht, text