Making a Short Phone Call Before a Meeting | Learn German in English

About This Lesson

Use Making a Short Phone Call Before a Meeting to practice German conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Ich muss kurz telefonieren.

ikh moos koorts tay-leh-foh-NEER-en. I need to make a short phone call.

Du kannst in den Flur gehen, wenn du Privatsphäre brauchst.

doo kahntst in den FLOOR gay-en, venn doo pree-VAHT-sfair-eh browkhst. You can use the hallway if you need privacy.

Ich möchte nicht alle stören.

ikh MEHKH-teh nikht AH-leh SHTEHR-en. I don't want to disturb everyone.

Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.

DROW-sen ZOLL-teh ess geh-RAH-deh ROO-ikh zite. It should be quiet out there right now.

Ich komme zurück, bevor das Meeting beginnt.

ikh KOM-meh tsoo-RIHK, beh-FOHR dahss MEE-ting beh-GINNT. I'll return before the meeting starts.

Das passt. Wir haben noch genug Zeit.

dahss pahst. veer HAH-ben nokh geh-NOOKH tsite. That works. We still have enough time.

Bitte halte mir meinen Platz frei, während ich telefoniere.

BIH-teh HAHL-teh meer MY-nen plahts fry, VAIR-ent ikh tay-leh-foh-NEER-en. Please save my seat while I call.

Ich lasse deine Notizen hier.

ikh LAH-seh DYE-neh noh-TEE-tsen heer. I'll keep your notes here.

Word by Word

Ich “Ich” means “I” in the speaker’s statements, such as “Ich muss kurz telefonieren.” It is capitalized at the beginning of a sentence; the same pronoun appears as lowercase “ich” later in “während ich telefoniere.” Use it to identify yourself as the person doing the action.

muss “muss” means “must” or “need to” in “Ich muss kurz telefonieren.” It expresses the speaker’s necessity and is followed here by the infinitive “telefonieren.” The citation form is müssen, and “muss” is the form used with “Ich.”

kurz “kurz” means “briefly” here, describing the short duration of the phone call in “kurz telefonieren.” With an activity, it commonly indicates that the activity will not take long. It helps reassure the other person that the speaker will be away only briefly.

telefonieren “telefonieren” means “to make a phone call” in “Ich muss kurz telefonieren.” It is the infinitive used after “muss.” Use it for the activity of speaking on the phone rather than naming a particular phone call.

Du “Du” means informal singular “you” in “Du kannst in den Flur gehen.” It addresses the other adult directly. It is capitalized here because it begins the sentence; the same pronoun appears as lowercase “du” in “wenn du Privatsphäre brauchst.”

kannst “kannst” means “can” or “are able to” in “Du kannst in den Flur gehen.” It presents going to the hallway as an available option. The citation form is können, and “kannst” is the form used with “Du.”

in “in” indicates movement into a place in “in den Flur gehen.” With movement toward an interior location, it is used with the phrase naming the destination. The same preposition can introduce a place where someone is located, but this dialogue uses it for going into the hallway.

den “den” means “the” in the destination phrase “in den Flur.” Here it belongs to the masculine noun “Flur” and appears with the movement expressed by “in den Flur gehen.” Learn it together with the destination phrase rather than treating it as a standalone translation.

Flur “Flur” means “hallway” in “in den Flur gehen.” It names the place the person can go to make the private call. Use it after “in den” when referring to this hallway destination.

gehen “gehen” means “to go” in “Du kannst in den Flur gehen.” It is the infinitive after “kannst” and describes movement to the hallway. A reusable pattern is “kannst ... gehen,” with the destination placed before “gehen” here.

wenn “wenn” means “if” in “wenn du Privatsphäre brauchst.” It introduces the condition under which the suggestion applies. In this subordinate clause, the verb “brauchst” comes at the end.

Privatsphäre “Privatsphäre” means “privacy” in “wenn du Privatsphäre brauchst.” It is what the person may need when making a private phone call. The reusable pattern here is “Privatsphäre brauchen,” meaning to need privacy.

brauchst “brauchst” means “need” in “wenn du Privatsphäre brauchst.” It states the condition for using the hallway. The citation form is brauchen, and “brauchst” is the form used with “du”; in the subordinate clause it appears at the end.

möchte “möchte” expresses “would like” or a polite “want” in “Ich möchte nicht alle stören.” It presents the speaker’s wish not to disturb the others. The form is used with “Ich” and is followed here by “nicht” plus the action “alle stören.”

nicht “nicht” means “not” in “Ich möchte nicht alle stören.” It negates the speaker’s wish to disturb everyone. It appears before the action phrase “alle stören,” so the whole phrase means that the speaker does not want to do that.

alle “alle” means “everyone” in “alle stören,” referring to all the people present. It is the group affected by the action, not the person doing it. Use it before the verb phrase when referring broadly to all people in the situation.

stören “stören” means “to disturb” in “Ich möchte nicht alle stören.” It is the infinitive after “möchte” and names the action the speaker wants to avoid. The phrase “alle stören” means disturbing everyone in this dialogue.

Draußen “Draußen” means “outside” or “out there” in “Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.” It points to the area outside the current room, such as the hallway. It is capitalized here because it begins the sentence.

sollte “sollte” means “should” in “Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.” It gives a cautious expectation that the area outside is quiet. The citation form is sollen, and “sollte” is followed here by the infinitive “sein.”

es “es” is the “it” used in the statement “Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.” It fills the subject position in the description of the outside area being quiet. Its meaning is best understood as part of the whole pattern “es ... ruhig sein,” rather than as a separate object.

gerade “gerade” means “right now” or “currently” in “Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.” It limits the expectation of quietness to the present moment. Use it to indicate that a situation is happening at this time.

ruhig “ruhig” means “quiet” in “Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.” It describes the expected sound level outside. It is used with “sein” in the pattern “es ... ruhig sein” to describe a place or situation.

sein “sein” means “to be” in “Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.” It is the infinitive after “sollte” and connects the subject “es” with the description “ruhig.” Use it here to describe the expected condition of the area outside.

komme “komme” means “come” or, in this dialogue, “return” in “Ich komme zurück.” It describes the speaker’s planned movement back before the meeting begins. The citation form is kommen, and “komme” is the form used with “Ich.”

zurück “zurück” means “back” in “Ich komme zurück.” Together with “komme,” it shows that the speaker will return to the current place. It completes the reusable expression “zurückkommen” when describing a return.

bevor “bevor” means “before” in “bevor das Meeting beginnt.” It introduces the event that will happen after the speaker returns. In the subordinate clause it places the finite verb “beginnt” at the end.

das “das” means “the” in “das Meeting.” It is the article attached to the meeting named in the subordinate clause. The same worklist form also appears as capitalized “Das” in “Das passt,” where it means “that” or “it”; capitalization there comes from the start of the sentence.

Meeting “Meeting” means “meeting” in “bevor das Meeting beginnt.” It names the event that has not started yet when the speaker says they will return. It is used after the article “das” in this dialogue.

beginnt “beginnt” means “begins” or “starts” in “das Meeting beginnt.” It describes the meeting starting after the speaker returns. The citation form is beginnen, and “beginnt” is the form used with “das Meeting.”

passt “passt” means “works” in “Das passt.” B replies that the proposed plan is acceptable and fits the available time. The citation form is passen, and this short expression is commonly used to confirm that an arrangement is suitable.

Wir “Wir” means “we” in “Wir haben noch genug Zeit.” It refers to both people together. It is capitalized because it begins the sentence; use it as the subject for something the speaker and another person have or do together.

haben “haben” means “have” in “Wir haben noch genug Zeit.” It states that the two people possess or have available enough time. The citation form is haben, and “haben” is the form used with “Wir.”

noch “noch” means “still” in “Wir haben noch genug Zeit.” It shows that enough time remains at this point. It is placed before “genug Zeit” to describe the time that is still available.

genug “genug” means “enough” in “genug Zeit.” It indicates that the remaining amount of time is sufficient for the short call. A reusable pattern is “genug” followed by the thing that is sufficient, as in “genug Zeit.”

Zeit “Zeit” means “time” in “Wir haben noch genug Zeit.” It is the resource that remains available before the meeting. The phrase “genug Zeit haben” is used to say that there is enough time.

Bitte “Bitte” means “please” at the beginning of “Bitte halte mir meinen Platz frei.” It makes the following request polite. Use it at the start of a request when asking another person to do something.

halte “halte” means “keep” or “hold” in the request “Bitte halte mir meinen Platz frei.” It asks the other person to ensure that the seat remains available. The citation form is halten, and this form is used in the informal request addressed to “du.”

mir “mir” means “for me” in “halte mir meinen Platz frei.” It identifies the person who benefits from the seat being kept available. The full request uses “mir” together with “meinen Platz frei,” so the meaning is to keep my seat free for me.

meinen “meinen” means “my” in “meinen Platz.” It marks the seat as belonging to or being reserved for the speaker. Its form agrees with the noun phrase “meinen Platz,” so learn it together with that object phrase.

Platz “Platz” means “seat” in “meinen Platz frei,” referring to the speaker’s place in the meeting. It can also mean a place more generally, but this dialogue specifically concerns a seat. The phrase “einen Platz frei halten” is used for keeping a seat available.

frei “frei” means “free” or “available” in “meinen Platz frei.” It describes the seat as remaining unoccupied for the speaker. Together with “frei halten,” it forms the request to keep the seat available.

während “während” means “while” in “während ich telefoniere.” It introduces an action happening at the same time as the seat is being kept free. In this subordinate clause, the verb “telefoniere” comes at the end.

telefoniere “telefoniere” means “make a phone call” in “während ich telefoniere.” It describes the action taking place while the other person keeps the seat free. The citation form is telefonieren, and “telefoniere” is the form used with “ich.”

lasse “lasse” means “leave” in “Ich lasse deine Notizen hier.” It says that the speaker will leave the other person’s notes in this place. The citation form is lassen, and “lasse” is the form used with “Ich”; the exact meaning comes from the whole sentence with “hier.”

deine “deine” means “your” in “deine Notizen.” It identifies the notes as belonging to the person being addressed. It appears directly before “Notizen” as part of the object phrase.

Notizen “Notizen” means “notes” in “Ich lasse deine Notizen hier.” It refers to the written material that will remain in the current place. The phrase “deine Notizen” identifies whose notes they are.

hier “hier” means “here” in “Ich lasse deine Notizen hier.” It indicates the place where the notes will remain. Use it to point to the current location understood by the speakers.

Grammar Points

Modalverb + Infinitiv am Satzende

Alle müssen kurz telefonieren.

AH-leh IH-sen koorts tay-leh-foh-NEER-en.

Everyone needs to make a brief phone call.

With a modal verb, the second verb stays in the infinitive and moves to the end of the sentence.

Nebensatz mit „bevor“: Verb am Ende

Bevor das Meeting beginnt, komme ich zurück.

beh-FOHR dahss MEE-ting beh-GINNT, KOM-meh ikh tsoo-RIHK.

Before the meeting begins, I’ll come back.

A clause introduced by „bevor“ places its conjugated verb at the end.

German Vocabulary

alle pron

AH-leh everyone; everybody

brauchen verb

BROW-khen to need brauchst

Flur noun

FLOOR hallway den Flur

in den Flur gehen phrase

in den FLOOR gay-en to go into the hallway

können verb

KEH-nen can; to be able to kannst

kurz adv

koorts briefly; short

möchten verb

MEHKH-ten would like to; want to möchte

müssen verb

IH-sen to need to; must muss

Privatsphäre noun

pree-VAHT-sfair-eh privacy

stören verb

SHTEHR-en to disturb

telefonieren verb

tay-leh-foh-NEER-en to make a phone call

wenn conj

venn if; when

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

I need to make a short phone call.

Show Answer

Ich muss kurz telefonieren.

I don't want to disturb everyone.

Show Answer

Ich möchte nicht alle stören.

It should be quiet out there right now.

Show Answer

Draußen sollte es gerade ruhig sein.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

to make a phone call

Show Answer

telefonieren

briefly; short

Show Answer

kurz

if; when

Show Answer

wenn

can; to be able to

Show Answer

kannst