Breakdown of Der Zug hat Verspätung. Deswegen verpasse ich den Termin.
ich
I
haben
to have
der Zug
the train
der Termin
the appointment
die Verspätung
the delay
deswegen
therefore / because of that
verpassen
to miss
Questions & Answers about Der Zug hat Verspätung. Deswegen verpasse ich den Termin.
Why is it verpasse ich instead of ich verpasse after deswegen?
Deswegen (because of that / therefore) is an adverb that takes up the first position (Position 1) in the sentence. In German, the main verb must always come second (Position 2). Since deswegen is in the first spot, the verb verpasse has to come next, which pushes the subject ich to the third position.
Could I use deshalb or darum instead of deswegen here?
Yes, absolutely! Deswegen, deshalb, and darum all mean roughly the same thing: "therefore" or "because of that." They are interchangeable in this context, and they all trigger the exact same word order rule where the verb must come right after them.
Why does the German sentence use hat (has) for "is delayed"?
In English, we describe the train's state with "to be" (the train is delayed). In German, the standard way to express this is with the noun die Verspätung (the delay) and the verb haben (to have). Literally translated, German says "The train has a delay."
If I miss my friend, do I also use the verb verpassen?
No, you would use vermissen. You use verpassen when you are too late for an event (like den Termin), a flight, or a train. If you miss a person emotionally because they aren't around, you must use vermissen (for example: Ich vermisse meinen Freund).
Why is it den Termin and not der Termin?
Termin (appointment) is a masculine noun, so its basic "dictionary" form is der Termin. However, in this sentence, the appointment is the direct object—it is the thing being missed. Therefore, it changes to the accusative case, where masculine der becomes den.
Learn Der Zug hat Verspätung. Deswegen verpasse ich den Termin and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free