Breakdown of Mischen Sie diese Chemikalie niemals mit Wasser!
Sie
you (formal)
das Wasser
the water
dieser
this / that (fem.: diese, neut.: dieses)
mit
with
mischen
to shuffle / to mix
niemals
never (emphatic)
die Chemikalie
the chemical
Questions & Answers about Mischen Sie diese Chemikalie niemals mit Wasser!
How could I use a hier- compound in this sentence if water was already mentioned and I wanted to say 'Never mix this chemical with this'?
You would replace mit Wasser with the proximate pronominal adverb hiermit. The sentence would become: Mischen Sie diese Chemikalie niemals hiermit! Because water is an inanimate concept, German prefers combining hier- (this) + mit (with) rather than saying something like mit diesem.
Is there a difference between using niemals and just nie in this warning?
Yes, niemals is a stronger, more emphatic version of nie. While nie simply means 'never,' niemals carries the weight of 'never ever' or 'under no circumstances.' It is very common to see niemals in strict safety instructions or strong commands like this one.
Why does niemals come after diese Chemikalie rather than right after the verb?
In standard German word order, definite direct objects (like diese Chemikalie) generally come before adverbs of time or frequency (like niemals). If you put niemals right after the verb (Mischen Sie niemals diese Chemikalie...), it heavily stresses the chemical itself, as if you are saying 'never mix this chemical (but others are fine).'
How do I know the gender of Chemikalie to know it needs the feminine diese ending?
Chemikalie is a feminine noun (die Chemikalie), so in the accusative case as a direct object, dies- takes the feminine -e ending. A very reliable rule of thumb at this level: the vast majority of German nouns ending in -ie (like die Familie, die Energie, die Industrie) are feminine.
Learn Mischen Sie diese Chemikalie niemals mit Wasser and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free