Breakdown of Wir haben bei der Besprechung keine Zeit.
haben
to have
kein
no, not any
die Zeit
the time
wir
we
bei
at, near, with
die Besprechung
the meeting
Questions & Answers about Wir haben bei der Besprechung keine Zeit.
Why do we use bei der here instead of bei die?
The preposition bei always forces the following noun into the dative case. Since Besprechung (meeting) is a feminine noun, its article changes from die to der in the dative.
I thought bei meant 'at' or 'with' a person or place. How does it mean 'during'?
You are right that bei is often used for locations, like being at a friend's house. But in this lesson, we are learning its temporal (time) meaning. When used with an event like a meeting, bei translates to 'during' or 'at the time of'.
Why is the word order Wir haben bei der Besprechung keine Zeit instead of putting the time at the end?
German usually prefers putting time information (when something happens) as early as possible after the conjugated verb. That is why the phrase bei der Besprechung comes before the object keine Zeit.
Why do we use keine Zeit instead of nicht Zeit to say 'no time'?
In German, you use forms of kein to negate a noun that has no article. Since we are saying we have 'no time' (a general concept without words like 'the' or 'a'), we use keine because Zeit is a feminine noun. You would use nicht to negate verbs or adjectives.
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