Breakdown of Die Sendungsnummer aktualisiert sich manchmal sehr spät.
sehr
very
manchmal
sometimes
spät
late
sich
oneself / himself / herself / themselves (reflexive pronoun)
Questions & Answers about Die Sendungsnummer aktualisiert sich manchmal sehr spät.
Why is it aktualisiert sich (updates itself) instead of just aktualisiert?
In English, you can just say "the number updates" without an object. In German, aktualisieren is a transitive verb, meaning it always needs a direct object. If a person or system isn't actively mentioned as updating the number, the number has to "update itself." That is why we use the reflexive pronoun sich.
How is the word Sendungsnummer put together?
It is a compound noun made from die Sendung (the shipment or delivery) and die Nummer (the number). The -s- in the middle is a connecting letter (often called a Fugen-s) used to smoothly glue certain German words together.
If I wanted to add this lesson's conjunction sobald to say "As soon as the tracking number updates...", what happens to the word order?
Sobald is a subordinating conjunction, which means it kicks the conjugated verb to the very end of its clause. You would say: Sobald die Sendungsnummer sich aktualisiert... Notice that the verb aktualisiert moves to the end, while the reflexive pronoun sich stays near the subject.