Breakdown of Die Situation ist ausweglos, egal, ob wir stehen oder laufen.
sein
to be
wir
we
stehen
to stand
oder
or
Questions & Answers about Die Situation ist ausweglos, egal, ob wir stehen oder laufen.
How does egal, ob affect the word order in the second part of the sentence?
The phrase egal, ob (no matter whether) introduces a subordinate clause. In German, this means the conjugated verbs must be pushed to the very end of that clause. Here, the verbs stehen and laufen are both placed at the end, joined by oder.
How is the word ausweglos built?
It is built from three parts: aus (out), Weg (way), and the suffix -los (-less or without). Literally meaning 'without a way out', it perfectly describes a 'hopeless' situation.
Why are there commas before both egal and ob?
The comma before egal separates the main clause from the 'no matter' phrase. The comma before ob is there because ob always introduces a subordinate clause. While you will often see native speakers write egal ob without a comma in the middle, using both commas is the strictly correct punctuation.
Does laufen mean 'walk' or 'run' in this context?
Depending on the region and context, laufen can mean either 'to walk' or 'to run' in German. When contrasted directly with stehen (to stand) like it is here, it broadly refers to moving on foot, so translating it as 'walk' works perfectly.