Answer Question
Use of "bitte schön?"
My wife and I recently moved to Germany, and though we're still beginners (Disk 1, Lesson 9), we are loving Fluenz German and are already finding it useful when we are around Germans. We love it when we don't have to sheepishly ask "sprechen Sie English?"
I know this is a small issue, but I can't help but wonder about it. From Fluenz, we know that when we hear "bitte schön," it is generally equivalent to "you're welcome." However, we often hear Germans use it in other contexts. For example, when a sales clerk or waiter gives us change and our receipt after paying for something, it is simultaneously accompanied by a "bitte schön" - before someone would reasonably have a chance to say "danke." This suggests that the clerk is not meaning to say "you're welcome." Obviously, in English, a clerk would ordinarily say "thank you" after a customer has made a purchase, but if the German clerks mean this, then why not say "danke?"
I know I'm being nitpicky about something trivial, but I hear it almost every day and can't help but wonder about it.
Thanks!
I know this is a small issue, but I can't help but wonder about it. From Fluenz, we know that when we hear "bitte schön," it is generally equivalent to "you're welcome." However, we often hear Germans use it in other contexts. For example, when a sales clerk or waiter gives us change and our receipt after paying for something, it is simultaneously accompanied by a "bitte schön" - before someone would reasonably have a chance to say "danke." This suggests that the clerk is not meaning to say "you're welcome." Obviously, in English, a clerk would ordinarily say "thank you" after a customer has made a purchase, but if the German clerks mean this, then why not say "danke?"
I know I'm being nitpicky about something trivial, but I hear it almost every day and can't help but wonder about it.
Thanks!