Lesson 17-1 - Lektion 17-1
Impersonal passive. Substantivized adjectives and participles. Months
Lesson 17: Extension and revision of the fourth chapter of the course. Activity 1
From this activity you will know how to:
- ask what the department produces
- ask to show how the installation works
- find out how many workers in the department are
- find out what a worker’s wage is
Learn the words and expressions for the dialogue
factory, plant; work(s)
This is a very big factory.
development, production, creation
This is the creation of our bureau.
licence, license
We would like to get a licence.
to build, to construct
What does the factory build?
installation, plant
Can I have a look at this installation?
notification; decision
I’ll let you know. (not lit.)
number
What is the number of the students?
product
Here are products of our firm.
to carry out, to export
What does your country export?
wage
Wages have gone up.
average; on average
They get 1500 euros on average.
to earn; to make
How much do you earn in a month?
employee; office worker
His father is an employee.
holiday(s), vacation
When do you have a vacation?
light, easy
The question is not easy.
heavy(ly); hard, difficult; seriously
He is seriously ill.
Pay attention to the form and the usage of the words
1. Remember the names of the months in German der Monat «month»:
2. The noun der Bescheid is usually not translated literally, it is usually used with the words sagen «to say», wissen «to know» etc, where it is often translated as «let somebody know»:
Bitte sagen Sie mir Bescheid, wann ich aussteigen muß.
Please let me know when I need to get off.
Ich weiß Bescheid! I (already) know! (lit.: being in the know)
3. The word die Abteilung «department» also has a meaning of «department of a plant» which is also called a «workshop»:
Er arbeitet in dieser Abteilung.
He works in that workshop.
4. The word der Mann «man» with number indications is usually used in singular:
Hier arbeiten 30 Mann.
30 people work here.
Remember the following ways of word-formation (1 and 2)
die Abteilung + s + der Leiter = der Abteilungsleiter head of department
erzeug(en) производить + -nis = das Erzeugnis product
Practise in reading the words
In einem Werk
Grammar points
Impersonal passive
You already know that the passive voice is formed out of transitive verbs and is used when the subject does not do the action:
Die Erzeugnisse der Firma werden in viele Länder ausgeführt.
The products of the firm are exported in many countries.The passive can also be formed out of a number of intransitive verbs. It is impersonal passive. It is used to emphasize the action itself, that is why such sentences do not have the subject and the object:
Gestern wurde viel diskutiert.
There was a lot of discussion yesterday.
Hier wird Deutsch gesprochen.
German is spoken here.
Impersonal passive is similar to sentences where impersonal pronoun ‘man’ is used. Compare:
Wieviel Stunden pro Woche wird gearbeitet?
How many hours per week do people work here? (lit.: are worked)
Wieviel Stunden pro Wochen arbeitet man?
How many hours per week do people (lit.: one) work here?A number of adjectives and participles can be substantivized: der Kranke «sick person», «patient», der Angestellte «employee» etc. In this case, they are written with a capital letter and are declined as the articles relating to them or the word that replaces the article:
Der Kranke fühlt sich besser.
The patient feels better.
Der Arzt sagt, dass zu ihm ein Kranker gekommen ist.
The doctor says that a patient came to him.
Declension of substantivized adjectives and participles
| Singular | Plural | |||
| N | der Kranke | ein Kranke | die Kranken | Kranke |
| A | den Kranken | einen Kranken | die Kranken | Kranke |
| D | dem Kranken | einem Kranken | den Kranken | Kranken |
| G | des Kranken | eines Kranken | der Kranken | Kranker |
1. You want to know if a certain activity is popular here. Ask a question. How would you answer if you were the interlocutor?
B. Ja, das stimmt. Hier wird gern gebadet.
Continue:
tanzen, singen, schwimmen, fragen, spielen, helfen, spazierengehen, laufen, joggen, fernsehen, lesen.
2. You want to know if there is a demand for a certain product of the company. Ask a question. What answer would you give if you were the interlocutor?
B. Ja. Sie werden in viele Länder ausgeführt.
Continue:
das Erzeugnis, der Apparat, die Filmkamera, der Fernseher, der Motor, der Wagen, der Computer, die Anlage.
3. You do not know when Mr. Becker has a vacation. Ask a question. What answer would you give if you were Mr. Becker?
B. In diesem Jahr habe ich Urlaub im April.
Continue:
der September, der Mai, der März, der Januar, der Oktober, der Februar, der Juli, der November, der Juni, der August.
4. You want to know how much a doctor (engineer etc.) earns per month. Ask a question. How would you answer if you were the interlocutor?
B. Durchschnittlich 3000 bis 4000 Euro.
Continue:
der Ingenieur, der Techniker, der Chemiker, der Lehrer, der Journalist, der Dolmetscher, der Abteilungsleiter.
5. Fill in the gaps with the appropriate words from the dialogue.
1. Wir bauen in . 2. Welchen bekommt ein Arbeiter? 3. In wieviel Länder führen Sie Ihre man aus? 4. Ich sage dem Techniker . 5. Kann sehen, wie diese funktioniert?
6. Reconstruct the dialogue by filling in the gaps with the appropriate words.
7. Try to reproduce the dialogue “In einem Werk” by memory.
Check yourself!
What expressions will you use if you want to:
ask what the department produces
ask to show how the installation works
find out how many workers in the department are
find out what a worker’s wage is
