Breakdown of Wir sind den unnötigen Streit endgültig leid.
sein
to be
wir
we
der Streit
the argument, fight
endgültig
definitive
leid
sick of
unnötig
unnecessary
Questions & Answers about Wir sind den unnötigen Streit endgültig leid.
Why is it den unnötigen Streit (accusative) instead of der unnötige Streit (nominative) when the verb is sind?
Normally, the verb sein (to be) connects two nominative phrases. However, the adjective leid strictly governs the accusative case. The fixed expression is etwas (accusative) leid sein (to be sick of something), which is why the masculine noun der Streit becomes den unnötigen Streit.
Is leid related to the noun das Leid (sorrow)? Why is it lowercase here?
Yes, it originates from the noun das Leid. However, in the fixed expression etwas leid sein, the word leid functions grammatically as a predicative adjective rather than a noun. That is why it is written in lowercase.
Why does leid appear at the very end of the sentence?
In expressions like etwas leid sein, the adjective leid acts like the second part of a verb bracket. Just like a separable prefix or a past participle in a main clause, it gets pushed to the very end, wrapping around the objects and adverbs.
Both endlich and endgültig can translate to "finally" in English. Why is endgültig used here instead of endlich?
endlich means "finally" in the sense of "at last" (usually expressing relief after a long wait). endgültig means "finally" in the sense of "once and for all," "definitively," or "permanently." The speakers are saying they are definitively done with the arguing, not that they were waiting a long time to become sick of it!
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