Breakdown of Er schläft lange, weil die Arbeit anstrengend ist.
sein
to be
er
he
schlafen
to sleep
die Arbeit
the work
lange
for a long time, long
weil
because (subordinating)
anstrengend
exhausting
Questions & Answers about Er schläft lange, weil die Arbeit anstrengend ist.
Why is the verb ist at the very end of the sentence?
The word weil (because) is a subordinating conjunction. In German, these types of connecting words push the conjugated verb to the very end of their clause. So instead of saying weil die Arbeit ist anstrengend, the verb ist is forced to the end.
Doesn't lange literally mean 'long'? Why does the translation say 'late'?
You are exactly right, lange literally means 'for a long time'. In German, saying someone sleeps for a long time (er schläft lange) is the most natural way to express that they are sleeping in or sleeping late into the morning.
Why does the verb schläft have an umlaut (ä)?
The base form of the verb is schlafen. It is a strong verb, which means its main vowel changes when used with du (you) or er/sie/es (he/she/it). The a changes to an ä, making it er schläft.
Do I always need to put a comma before weil?
Yes! Unlike in English, where a comma before 'because' is usually left out, German punctuation rules require a comma to separate the main sentence (Er schläft lange) from the dependent clause starting with weil.
The word anstrengend looks a bit like an English '-ing' word. Is it built the same way?
Yes, it is! It comes from the verb anstrengen (to strain or make an effort). By adding a -d to the end of a German verb, you create an adjective describing an ongoing state, exactly like adding '-ing' in English to make words like 'exhausting'.
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