Breakdown of Druckt die Liste aus, damit der Chef sie sieht!
sie
she
sehen
to see
der Chef
the boss (male)
die Liste
the list
damit
so that
ausdrucken
to print out
Questions & Answers about Druckt die Liste aus, damit der Chef sie sieht!
Why is sieht at the very end of the sentence?
The word damit (so that) is a subordinating conjunction. It introduces a dependent clause and forces the conjugated verb in that clause (sieht) to the very end.
Could we use um ... zu (in order to) here instead of damit?
No, because the two parts of the sentence have different subjects. The first part is commanding multiple people to print the list, but the subject of the second part is der Chef (the boss). You can only use um ... zu when the subject is the same in both parts. When the subject changes, you must use damit.
Why is the word aus sitting by itself before the comma?
It belongs to the separable verb ausdrucken (to print out). In a command, the conjugated part (Druckt) comes first, and the prefix (aus) gets pushed to the end of that clause, right before the comma.
Does sie mean 'she' or 'they' in this sentence?
Neither! Here, sie means 'it'. It refers back to die Liste (the list). Because Liste is a feminine noun in German, you must use the feminine pronoun sie to replace it.
Who is being told to print out the list in this command?
You are addressing a group of people informally (the ihr group). The command form for ihr is made by taking the verb stem and adding -t (druckt), and leaving out the pronoun.
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