Breakdown of Jetzt habe ich eine Glatze. Ich hätte auf den Friseur warten sollen.
ich
I
ein
a, an (eine)
jetzt
now
haben
to have
sollen
should / ought to
warten auf
to wait for
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
der Friseur
the hairdresser
die Glatze
the bald head
Questions & Answers about Jetzt habe ich eine Glatze. Ich hätte auf den Friseur warten sollen.
Why is it warten sollen at the end instead of a past participle like gewartet?
When we use a modal verb like sollen in the past to express a regret (like "should have"), German uses the double infinitive rule. Instead of using a past participle, you use the infinitive of the main verb (warten) followed immediately by the infinitive of the modal verb (sollen).
Why does hätte come right after Ich instead of at the end of the sentence?
In a normal main clause, the conjugated verb is always in the second position. Here, hätte is the conjugated helper verb, so it takes position two. The double infinitive (warten sollen) is pushed all the way to the end of the sentence.
Why is it auf den Friseur (accusative) instead of dative?
The verb warten (to wait) is commonly paired with the preposition auf to mean "to wait for." When auf is used with warten, it always requires the accusative case. That is why the masculine article der changes to den.
Is Glatze the normal way to say someone is bald?
Yes! Notice that in German, you use a noun phrase: "I have a bald head" (Ich habe eine Glatze). This is much more common than using an adjective to say "I am bald" like we do in English.
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