Breakdown of Der Journalist sagt, die Besetzung ist gut, aber die Handlung bleibt vorhersehbar.
sein
to be
gut
good / well
aber
but
sagen
to say
bleiben
to stay
der Journalist
the journalist (male)
die Handlung
the plot
die Besetzung
the cast
vorhersehbar
predictable
Questions & Answers about Der Journalist sagt, die Besetzung ist gut, aber die Handlung bleibt vorhersehbar.
Why aren't the verbs ist and bleibt at the very end of their clauses?
Normally, a subordinate clause sends the conjugated verb to the end. However, after verbs of saying and thinking (like sagen), you can drop the word dass (that). When you leave out dass, the following clause acts like a standard main clause, so the verbs (ist, bleibt) stay in the normal second position.
Since this is reported speech, shouldn't it use the subjunctive mood (Konjunktiv I) like sei and bleibe?
You absolutely can! In formal writing or official news reports, you would likely see die Besetzung sei gut, aber die Handlung bleibe vorhersehbar. However, in everyday spoken German, it is very common to just use the regular indicative mood (ist, bleibt) when informally reporting what someone said, especially when dropping dass.
Does the word aber affect the word order in the final part of the sentence?
No, aber is a coordinating conjunction (along with und, denn, sondern, and oder). These are often called "Position 0" words because they don't count towards the verb position. Therefore, the subject (die Handlung) takes Position 1, and the verb (bleibt) safely stays in Position 2.
How is the adjective vorhersehbar constructed?
It is built from three parts: vorher (beforehand) + the verb sehen (to see) + the suffix -bar (which works exactly like the English suffix "-able"). Literally, it translates to "able to be seen beforehand," which perfectly captures the meaning of "predictable."
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