Breakdown of Sollten Sie die Geheimzahl falsch eingeben, sperren wir die Bankkarte.
Sie
you (formal)
falsch
wrong
wir
we
sollen
should / ought to
sperren
to close off
die Bankkarte
the bank card
die Geheimzahl
the PIN
eingeben
to enter (data)
Questions & Answers about Sollten Sie die Geheimzahl falsch eingeben, sperren wir die Bankkarte.
Why does this sentence start with Sollten instead of Wenn?
Starting a clause with sollte or sollten is a slightly formal way to express a condition, perfectly matching the English "Should you...". When you move the conjugated verb to position 1 like this, you drop the word wenn (if).
How would this sentence look if I used Wenn instead?
You would say: Wenn Sie die Geheimzahl falsch eingeben sollten, sperren wir die Bankkarte. Notice that because wenn introduces a subordinate clause, the conjugated verb sollten gets pushed to the very end of that clause.
Why is it sperren wir and not wir sperren after the comma?
The entire conditional clause (Sollten Sie die Geheimzahl falsch eingeben) acts as the first "block" of information in the sentence. Because German requires the verb in position 2, the main clause verb sperren must come immediately after the comma, which pushes the subject wir behind it.
Is Geheimzahl the only way to say PIN in German?
Die Geheimzahl (literally "secret number") is the standard German term and is very common in official banking communication. However, in everyday spoken German, it is also completely normal to use the English loanword and just say die PIN.
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