Taking a coffee break at work | Learn German in English

German lesson set in a contemporary Berlin everyday setting: At work, two adults decide to save a file and take a short coffee break before returning to a report..

EN → DE / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use Taking a coffee break at work to practice German conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Ich kann mich nicht mehr gut konzentrieren.

ikh kahn mikh nikht mayr goot kon-tsen-TREE-ren. I am losing focus.
B

Lass uns weggehen und Kaffee holen.

lahs oons VEK-gay-en oont KAH-fay HOH-len. Let's step away and get coffee.
A

Eine kurze Pause klingt hilfreich.

EYE-nuh KOORTS-uh POW-zuh klinkt HILF-rykh. A short break sounds helpful.
B

Wir können uns strecken, bevor wir uns wieder hinsetzen.

veer KURN-en oons SHTREK-en, beh-FOHR veer oons VEE-der HIN-zet-sen. We can stretch before we sit down again.
A

Sollen wir nach dem Kaffee mit dem Bericht weitermachen?

ZOL-en veer nahkh daym KAH-fay mit daym beh-RIKHT VY-ter-MAHKH-en? Should we return to the report after coffee?
B

Dann können wir den nächsten Teil fertig machen.

dahn KURN-en veer dayn NAYKH-sten TYLE FER-tikh MAKH-en. We can finish the next part then.
A

Ich speichere die Datei, bevor wir gehen.

ikh SHPY-khuh-ruh dee dah-TAI, beh-FOHR veer GAY-en. I will save the file before we leave.
B

Speichere sie jetzt, damit wir nichts verlieren.

SHPY-khuh-ruh zee yetst, dah-MIT veer nikhts fer-LEE-ren. Save it now, so we do not lose anything.

Word by Word

Ich “Ich” means “I” and is the speaker in “Ich kann mich nicht mehr gut konzentrieren.” It is used as the subject when talking about yourself, such as in “Ich speichere die Datei.”
kann In “Ich kann mich nicht mehr gut konzentrieren”, “kann” expresses the ability to concentrate. With “nicht mehr”, it says that this ability is no longer working well; a useful pattern is “Ich kann …” for saying what you can do.
mich In “mich … konzentrieren”, “mich” refers back to the speaker and is part of the expression for concentrating oneself. The same reflexive pattern appears with “uns strecken” and “uns wieder hinsetzen” when the subject is “wir”.
nicht “Nicht” negates the statement in “Ich kann mich nicht mehr gut konzentrieren.” Here it helps say that the speaker cannot concentrate well, and it commonly appears before the part being negated.
mehr In “nicht mehr”, “mehr” helps express “any longer” or “no longer.” It shows that the speaker could concentrate before but cannot do so now; the reusable pattern is “nicht mehr” for something that has stopped being true.
gut In “gut konzentrieren”, “gut” describes the quality of the concentration as well. It can be used before an action or description to say that something is done well, as in the dialogue’s “nicht mehr gut konzentrieren.”
konzentrieren “Konzentrieren” means “concentrate” in “Ich kann mich nicht mehr gut konzentrieren.” It appears as the infinitive after “kann”, and “sich konzentrieren” is used when someone focuses their attention.
Lass “Lass” begins the suggestion “Lass uns weggehen und Kaffee holen.” Addressed to one person, it helps propose an action for the speaker and listener together; this is a useful way to suggest doing something together.
uns In “Lass uns weggehen”, “uns” means “us” and includes the speaker and the person being addressed. It also appears in “uns strecken” and “uns wieder hinsetzen” for actions the group does to itself.
weggehen “Weggehen” means to go away or step away in “Lass uns weggehen und Kaffee holen.” It is used here to suggest leaving the work area temporarily before getting coffee.
und “Und” connects the two suggested actions in “Lass uns weggehen und Kaffee holen.” It joins actions or ideas that are both part of the same plan.
Kaffee “Kaffee” means “coffee” in “Kaffee holen”, the drink the speakers plan to get during their break. It also appears in “nach dem Kaffee”, referring to the time after drinking or having coffee.
holen “Holen” means “get” or “fetch” in “Kaffee holen.” It follows the suggested action “weggehen” and is used with the thing someone goes to get, here “Kaffee.”
Eine “Eine” introduces “Eine kurze Pause” as one unspecified break, meaning “a short break.” It is useful before a singular noun when introducing something not previously identified.
kurze “Kurze” describes the pause in “Eine kurze Pause” as brief in duration. It is used before the noun here to specify the kind of break being suggested.
Pause “Pause” means “break” in “Eine kurze Pause klingt hilfreich.” In this workplace situation, it refers to stopping work briefly before returning to the report.
klingt “Klingt” means “sounds” in “Eine kurze Pause klingt hilfreich.” The pattern “X klingt hilfreich” gives an assessment that an idea or plan seems useful.
hilfreich “Hilfreich” means “helpful” in “Eine kurze Pause klingt hilfreich.” It describes the proposed break as something that may improve the situation, such as the speaker’s loss of focus.
Wir “Wir” means “we” in “Wir können uns strecken.” It identifies the speaker and the other person together, and it is used as the subject when describing what both can do.
können “Können” expresses ability or possibility in “Wir können uns strecken” and “Dann können wir den nächsten Teil fertig machen.” It is followed by an infinitive, such as “strecken” or “fertig machen.”
strecken “Strecken” means “stretch” in “Wir können uns strecken.” With “uns”, it describes the two people stretching themselves during the break before sitting down again.
bevor “Bevor” means “before” and introduces the earlier action in “bevor wir uns wieder hinsetzen.” It connects two actions by showing that one happens first; the following clause ends with “hinsetzen.”
wieder “Wieder” means “again” in “uns wieder hinsetzen.” It shows that the speakers will sit down another time after stepping away, and it commonly marks a repeated action.
hinsetzen “Hinsetzen” means “sit down” in “bevor wir uns wieder hinsetzen.” With “uns”, it describes the speakers sitting themselves down again after the break.
Sollen “Sollen” begins the question “Sollen wir nach dem Kaffee mit dem Bericht weitermachen?” Here it asks whether the speakers should or shall continue the report, making a joint suggestion or plan.
nach “Nach” means “after” in “nach dem Kaffee.” It places the planned continuation after the coffee break, and the reusable time pattern is “nach dem …” for something that happens afterward.
dem “Dem” is the definite article in “nach dem Kaffee” and “mit dem Bericht.” In these phrases, the article form follows the prepositions “nach” and “mit”; the full patterns mean “after the coffee” and “with the report.”
mit “Mit” means “with” in “mit dem Bericht weitermachen.” It links the act of continuing to the report, and the reusable pattern is “mit etwas weitermachen” for continuing with something.
Bericht “Bericht” means “report” in “mit dem Bericht weitermachen.” It is the work the speakers plan to continue after coffee, and it can be used with “mit” when describing what they continue.
weitermachen “Weitermachen” means “continue” or “carry on” in “mit dem Bericht weitermachen.” It is used here with “mit dem Bericht” to say that work on the report will resume after the break.
Dann “Dann” means “then” in “Dann können wir den nächsten Teil fertig machen.” It refers to the next step after coffee and the break, and it commonly introduces an action that follows a plan or condition.
den “Den” is the definite article in “den nächsten Teil” and identifies the particular part to be completed. It appears before the noun phrase that receives the action in “den nächsten Teil fertig machen.”
nächsten “Nächsten” describes “Teil” as the next part in “den nächsten Teil.” It helps identify which section of the report the speakers plan to complete after the break.
Teil “Teil” means “part” in “den nächsten Teil fertig machen.” It refers to one section of the report, and the phrase shows that this section will be completed next.
fertig In “den nächsten Teil fertig machen”, “fertig” adds the idea of completion. Together with “machen”, it forms the expression “fertig machen” meaning to finish something.
machen In “den nächsten Teil fertig machen”, “machen” supplies the action that makes the part complete, so the whole phrase means “finish the next part.” It is used with “fertig” when describing completion.
speichere The dialogue uses “speichere” in “Ich speichere die Datei” to say “I save the file,” and “Speichere” in “Speichere sie jetzt” as a direct instruction to save it. The form is useful both for stating that you save something and, with the sentence-initial capital, telling one person to save something.
die “Die” identifies the specific file in “die Datei”, meaning “the file.” It is used before “Datei” when the file is the thing being saved.
Datei “Datei” means “file” in “Ich speichere die Datei.” In this workplace context, it is the digital work file that should be saved before the speakers leave.
gehen “Gehen” means “go” or “leave” in “bevor wir gehen.” It refers to leaving the workplace area before the coffee break, and the pattern “bevor wir gehen” places that action after the file is saved.
sie In “Speichere sie jetzt”, “sie” means “it” and refers back to “die Datei.” It is the thing receiving the instruction to be saved, allowing the speaker to avoid repeating the noun.
jetzt “Jetzt” means “now” in “Speichere sie jetzt.” It makes the instruction immediate, rather than something to do later.
damit “Damit” means “so that” in “damit wir nichts verlieren.” It introduces the purpose of saving the file: preventing anything from being lost.
nichts “Nichts” means “nothing” in “damit wir nichts verlieren.” As the object of “verlieren”, it states that the speakers do not want any information or work to be lost.
verlieren “Verlieren” means “lose” in “damit wir nichts verlieren.” It appears at the end of the purpose clause after “damit”, and the phrase “nichts verlieren” describes avoiding the loss of anything.

Grammar Points

Trennbare Verben: weggehen → Ich gehe ... weg.

Ich gehe jetzt weg.

ikh GAY-uh yetst VEK.

I am leaving now.

In a main clause, the prefix of a separable verb moves to the end.

Nebensatz mit „damit“: Verb am Ende

Ich speichere die Datei, damit ich nichts verliere.

ikh SHPY-khuh-ruh dee dah-TAI, dah-MIT ikh nikhts fer-LEE-ruh.

I save the file so that I do not lose anything.

After „damit“, the conjugated verb goes to the end of the subordinate clause.

German Vocabulary

Bericht noun
beh-RIKHT report
bevor conj
beh-FOHR before
hilfreich adj
HILF-rykh helpful
Kaffee noun
KAH-fay coffee
kurz adj
KOORTS short kurze
nach prep
nahkh after
Pause noun
POW-zuh break
sich hinsetzen verb
zikh HIN-zet-sen to sit down hinsetzen
sich konzentrieren verb
zikh kon-tsen-TREE-ren to concentrate konzentrieren
sich strecken verb
zikh SHTREK-en to stretch strecken
weggehen verb
VEK-gay-en to step away; to leave
wieder adv
VEE-der again

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Let's step away and get coffee.

Show AnswerLass uns weggehen und Kaffee holen.

A short break sounds helpful.

Show AnswerEine kurze Pause klingt hilfreich.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

break

Show AnswerPause

to stretch

Show Answerstrecken

short

Show Answerkurze

helpful

Show Answerhilfreich