Answers
Jan 03, 2015 - 01:05 AM
In order to know if Sie at the beginning of a sentence is you, they or she, you have to look at the verb that follows. Sie haben... You/They have... Sie hat... She has. If sie in in the middle of a sentence, then it's she. If Sie is in the middle of a sentence, then it's either you or they, depending upon the context. I won't comment on Ihnen, it gives me problems as well.
Jan 03, 2015 - 01:29 PM
Thanks so much Jeff. I knew about sie if its before the verb but thank you for the confirmation about when its in the middle of the sentence with capitalization.
Jan 07, 2015 - 04:54 AM
Hi everyone,
Great to hear that you're enjoying our programme. Keep up the good work. We know that learning German can be frustrating because it's so different from English but with hard work you will get there!
So, Jeff was almost right. You definitely need to look at the verb to help you decide which "sie" it is. If the verb is in the 3rd person singular, there is only one option: she. But if it's in the 3rd person plural it can be "you (formal)" or "they". So how can we tell the difference? Well, if it's capitalised "Sie" it means "you (formal) and if it starts with a small letter "sie" it's "they". Unfortunately, this trick only helps if "sie/Sie" is in the middle of the sentence. At the beginning only context can tell you which one it is. So, in summary:"Sie/sie" can mean three things:
sie = she + verb in 3rd person singular
Sie = you (formal) + verb in 3rd person plural
sie = they + verb in 3rd person plural
As for "Ihnen" or "ihnen" that would be the object pronoun of "Sie" or "sie". For a helpful overview, check out the table in this link:
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content...
Great to hear that you're enjoying our programme. Keep up the good work. We know that learning German can be frustrating because it's so different from English but with hard work you will get there!
So, Jeff was almost right. You definitely need to look at the verb to help you decide which "sie" it is. If the verb is in the 3rd person singular, there is only one option: she. But if it's in the 3rd person plural it can be "you (formal)" or "they". So how can we tell the difference? Well, if it's capitalised "Sie" it means "you (formal) and if it starts with a small letter "sie" it's "they". Unfortunately, this trick only helps if "sie/Sie" is in the middle of the sentence. At the beginning only context can tell you which one it is. So, in summary:"Sie/sie" can mean three things:
sie = she + verb in 3rd person singular
Sie = you (formal) + verb in 3rd person plural
sie = they + verb in 3rd person plural
As for "Ihnen" or "ihnen" that would be the object pronoun of "Sie" or "sie". For a helpful overview, check out the table in this link:
http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content...