Lesson 11-4 - Lektion 11-4
The passive voice in German (1 and 3 person, present tense)
Lesson 11: Mail – phone – bank. Activity 4
From this activity you will know how to:
- find out where the nearest bank is
- ask what the exchange rate is
- exchange dollars into euros
- find out if you can cash traveller’s cheques
Learn the words and expressions for the dialogue
bank
When is the bank open?
on the right; (to the) right
He lives on the first floor on the right. (US: second floor)
on the left; (to the) left
Now drive to the left!
rouble
This costs 15000 roubles.
dollar
This costs 150 dollars.
to exchange; to change, to convert
I’d like to exchange money.
exchange
Confirm the exchange.
course; exchange rate; market value or price
The euro has a high market value. (not lit.)
counter, desk; ticket window
You will get this at counter 6.
opposite
The post office is in the house opposite.
journey, trip
I’m planning a trip.
to sign
Where do I have to sign?
cheque, check
Do you take traveller’s cheques?
to redeem; to cash (in)
Where can I cash traveller’s cheques?
certain, sure, of course
Are you coming? — Sure!
currency
What currency do you pay in?
place, spot, passage
Read this passage one more time!
Pay attention to the form and the usage of the words
The preposition gegenüber, which requires the dative case, unlike other prepositions, may by placed either before a noun or after it:
Die Post liegt dem Hotel gegenüber. \ The post office
is located
opposite the hotel.Die Post liegt gegenüber dem Hotel. / The nouns die Stelle «place» и der Platz «place» are used differently in German:
die Stelle denotes: a passage (part) in a book, film etc. eine Stelle im Buch, Film; bureau de change, exchange office Wechselstelle; a place of work eine Stelle suchen; in the first place an erster Stelle; if I were you ...ich an Ihrer Stelle.
der Platz denotes: seat (in a cinema, stadium etc.) Wo sind unsere Plätze?; room, space Im Zimmer gibt es noch Platz.; square (city) Das Hotel liegt auf dem Platz der Revolution.
In order to express proportions (ratio) in German, the preposition zu is used. It is also used when talking about score in a sports game: Der Umtauschkurs steht eins zu drei. The exchange rate is 1:3. Das Resultat 2:1 für Zenit. The result 2:1 in favour of Zenit.
Remember the following way of word-formation (1)
die Reise + der Scheck = der Reisescheck traveller’s cheque
der Zoll + die Erklärung = die Zollerklärung customs declaration
Practise in reading the words
Auf der Bank
Grammar points
Just like in English, there are two voices in German: active and passive. They express different interrelations between the predicate and the subject. In active voice, the subject is usually a person (less often an object) that performs an action. In passive voice, however, the subject does not perform any action, but the opposite, it is exposed to an action. Therefore, one and the same fact can be presented both in active voice and in passive voice depending on where is the focus of a statement: the subject as an active participant (active voice) or the action itself (passive voice):
Wir besuchen gern die Ausstellungen.
We like to visit the exhibitions. (active: subject «we»)
Die Ausstellungen werden gern besucht.
The exhibitions are visited with pleasure. (passive: subject «exhibitions»)
The passive voice has the same tenses as the active voice and is formed with the auxiliary verb werden and participle II of the main verb. At the same time, the verb werden takes the appropiate tense, person and number, and goes on the second position (in interrogative sentences without a question word – first position), while participle II is placed at the end of the sentence:
Die Karten werden bis 3 Uhr abgeholt.
The tickets are collected until 3 o’clock.
Werden die Geschäfte um 9 Uhr geöffnet?
Are the shops open at 9 o’clock?The passive voice is usually formed from transitive verbs, that is the verbs which are followed by an object in the accusative case without a preposition: schreiben to write, bestellen to order, lesen to read etc.
Passive form and its place in a sentence
| Present tense | |
| Singular | Plural |
| Ich werde angerufen. | Wir werden angerufen. |
| Er wird angerufen. | Sie werden angerufen. |
Das Geld wird auf der Bank umgetauscht.
Wird das Geld auf der Bank ungetauscht?
Man sagt, dass das Geld auf der Bank umgetauscht wird.
1. You do not know how to do something. Ask a question. How would you answer if you were the interlocutor?
B. Nein, die Tische werden hier rechts reserviert.
Continue:
die Zimmer bestellen, die Formulare ausfüllen, die Uhren reparieren, die Reisen anbieten, das Geld umtauschen.
2. You are asked if a certain work is finished. Answer that it is being finished now. What question would you ask?
B. Nein, er wird jetzt geschrieben.
Continue:
der Anzug — reinigen, das Hemd — waschen, die Uhr — reparieren, die Rechnung — bezahlen, die Ware — einpacken.
3. You are worried that they will forget about you under certain circumstances. Ask a question. What answer would you give?
B. Ich bin sicher, dass Sie abgeholt werden.
Continue:
einladen, suchen, erwarten, besuchen, bedienen, fragen, wecken, brauchen, verstehen, finden.
4. You want to know where you can perform a certain bank transaction. Ask a question. What answer you may hear as a reply?
B. Gehen Sie bitte an Schalter 7.
Continue:
Rubel in Euro umtauschen, Rechnungen bezahlen, Geld wechseln, Reisen mit Währung bezahlen.
5. Fill in the gaps with the appropriate words from the dialogue.
1. Wo ist die nächste ? 2. Kann man Dollar in Euro ? 3. Wie steht der ? 4. An welchen muss ich gehen? 5. Da ist mein Reisepass und meine . 6. Werden hier auch Reiseschecks ?
6. Reconstruct the dialogue by filling in the gaps with the appropriate words.
7. Try to reproduce the dialogue “Auf der Bank” by memory.
Check yourself!
What expressions will you use if you want to:
find out where the nearest bank is
ask what the exchange rate is
exchange dollars into euros
find out if you can cash traveller’s cheques
