Adjusting a chair | Learn German in English

About This Lesson

Use Adjusting a chair to practice German conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Dieser Stuhl ist zu niedrig.

DEE-zər shtool ist tsoo NEE-drikh. This chair is too low.

Du kannst die Höhe ändern.

doo kahnst dee HUR-uh EHN-durn. You can change the height.

Wie mache ich das?

VEE MAKH-uh ikh DAHS? How do I do that?

Drück den Knopf unter dem Sitz.

DRYUK dayn KNOHPF OON-ter daym ZITS. Press the button under the seat.

Das ist besser. Danke.

dahs ist BEH-sər. DAHNG-kuh. That is better. Thank you.

Sag mir, wenn es immer noch nicht passt.

zahk meer, ven es IM-er nokh nikht pahst. Tell me if it is still not right.

Word by Word

Dieser “Dieser” means “this” here and points to the chair being discussed. It is used before “Stuhl”; the exact phrase “Dieser Stuhl” is a useful pattern for identifying a nearby object.

Stuhl “Stuhl” means “chair” here. It is the object whose height is being discussed, as shown in “Dieser Stuhl”; use it when talking about a chair in a room or classroom.

ist “Ist” means “is” here and links the chair to its description in “Stuhl ist zu niedrig.” It is the form used with “Dieser Stuhl” and “Das” in this dialogue.

zu “Zu” means “too” in “zu niedrig,” showing that the chair is excessively low for the speaker. This pattern places “zu” directly before an adjective to express an excessive degree.

niedrig “Niedrig” means “low” here and describes the chair’s height. In “zu niedrig,” it combines with “zu” to say that the height is lower than desired; use it for describing the height or level of something.

Du “Du” means “you” here when speaking informally to one person. It is the person addressed in “Du kannst die Höhe ändern”; use it when giving information or instructions to someone you address informally.

kannst “Kannst” means “can” here and says that the person addressed is able to change the height. It is the form used with “Du”; after it, “ändern” gives the action that is possible.

die “Die” means “the” in “die Höhe” and identifies the specific height of the chair. It comes directly before “Höhe”; learn the combination “die Höhe” when talking about an object’s height.

Höhe “Höhe” means “height” here, specifically the height that can be changed. The phrase “die Höhe ändern” is useful when explaining that an object’s height can be adjusted.

ändern “Ändern” means “change” here and names the action that can be done to the height. It follows “kannst” in “Du kannst die Höhe ändern”; after “können,” the action word appears in this form.

Wie “Wie” means “how” here and asks about the method for carrying out an action. In “Wie mache ich das?”, it comes at the beginning of the question; use it to ask how to do something.

mache “Mache” means “do” here in the question “Wie mache ich das?” It is used with “ich” to ask what action the speaker should perform; the reusable pattern is “Wie mache ich ...?” when asking how to do something.

ich “Ich” means “I” here and identifies the speaker as the person who will perform the action. In “Wie mache ich das?”, it appears directly with “mache” to ask what the speaker should do.

das The lowercase form “das” means “that” or “it” in “Wie mache ich das?” and refers to the action just mentioned. The capitalized form “Das” means “that” or “it” in “Das ist besser” and refers to the result after adjusting the chair.

Drück “Drück” means “press” here and gives an informal instruction to one person. It is used before “den Knopf” in “Drück den Knopf”; use this kind of direct instruction when telling someone how to operate a control.

den “Den” means “the” in “den Knopf” and identifies the particular button to press. It comes directly before “Knopf” in the instruction “Drück den Knopf.”

Knopf “Knopf” means “button” here, the control under the seat. In “Drück den Knopf,” it is the object of the instruction; use it when referring to a button that someone can press.

unter “Unter” means “under” here and describes the button’s location in relation to the seat. The phrase “unter dem Sitz” is a useful location pattern for something positioned below another object.

dem “Dem” means “the” in “unter dem Sitz” and marks the specific seat after the location word “unter.” Together with “Sitz,” it identifies what the button is under.

Sitz “Sitz” means “seat” here, the part of the chair below which the button is located. The exact phrase “unter dem Sitz” is useful for describing the position of an object beneath a seat.

besser “Besser” means “better” here and says that the chair’s condition has improved after the adjustment. In “Das ist besser,” it describes the new result; use it to respond when a change has made something more satisfactory.

Danke “Danke” means “thank you” here and expresses thanks for the help. It can stand alone, as in the dialogue, after someone gives an instruction or assistance.

Sag “Sag” means “tell” or “say” here and gives an informal instruction to communicate information. In “Sag mir,” it is followed by the person receiving the information; use this pattern when asking someone to tell you something.

mir “Mir” means “to me” here and identifies the person who should receive the information. It follows “Sag” in “Sag mir”; this pattern is used when asking someone to tell the speaker something.

wenn “Wenn” means “if” here and introduces the condition for telling the speaker something. In “wenn es immer noch nicht passt,” it begins the conditional part; use it to say what should happen under a particular condition.

es “Es” means “it” here and refers to the chair or its adjusted state. In “wenn es immer noch nicht passt,” it is the thing whose fit or suitability is being evaluated.

immer noch “Immer noch” means “still” here and shows that the problem continues after the adjustment. The expression is used before “nicht passt” in “es immer noch nicht passt”; use it when an expected improvement has not yet occurred.

nicht “Nicht” means “not” here and negates the idea that the chair is right or suitable. In “nicht passt,” it comes before “passt”; use this position to make the statement negative.

passt “Passt” means “fits” or “is right” here, referring to whether the adjusted chair is suitable. In “es immer noch nicht passt,” it follows “nicht”; use it when checking whether something fits, works, or feels right.

Grammar Points

wenn + Satz: Das konjugierte Verb steht am Ende.

Sag mir, wenn es passt.

zahk meer, ven es pahst.

Tell me when it fits.

In a clause with wenn, the conjugated verb moves to the end: wenn es passt.

German Vocabulary

ändern verb

EHN-durn to change

das pron

dahs that

dieser det

DEE-zər this Dieser

drücken verb

DRYUK-en to press Drück

du pron

doo you Du

Höhe noun

HUR-uh height

Knopf noun

KNOHPF button

machen verb

MAKH-en to do; to make mache

niedrig adj

NEE-drikh low

Stuhl noun

shtool chair

wie adv

vee how

zu adv

tsoo too

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

This chair is too low.

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Dieser Stuhl ist zu niedrig.

You can change the height.

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Du kannst die Höhe ändern.

How do I do that?

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Wie mache ich das?

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

this

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Dieser

chair

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Stuhl

low

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niedrig

to change

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ändern