Ich merke, dass die Stadt laut ist.

I realize that the city is loud.

Breakdown of Ich merke, dass die Stadt laut ist.

• sein: to be
• ich: I
• die Stadt: the city
• laut: loud
• dass: that

Questions & Answers about Ich merke, dass die Stadt laut ist.

Why do we need dass in this sentence?

In German, dass is a subordinating conjunction that introduces a dependent clause. It’s similar to the English word that in sentences like “I notice that the city is loud.” The comma before dass is required because it marks the start of a subordinate clause.

Why does the verb ist come at the end of the sentence in “..., dass die Stadt laut ist”?

In German subordinate clauses introduced by conjunctions like dass, the finite verb typically appears at the end. This is a standard rule of German grammar that helps distinguish main clauses from subordinate clauses.

What is the difference between merken and other similar verbs, such as bemerken or realisieren?

• merken often means “to notice” or “to become aware of” something in a more general sense.
• bemerken can also mean “to notice,” but it can sound slightly more formal or explicit in pointing out that something caught your attention.
• realisieren in German can mean “to become aware” or “to realize,” although in everyday speech merken is often more common in this context.

Why do we say die Stadt laut ist and not die Stadt ist laut in this part of the sentence?

You might see “die Stadt ist laut” as a standalone main clause. But because we’re using dass to create a subordinate clause, the phrase is split, and the verb ist must move to the end. So the correct subordinate clause order is “[...], dass die Stadt laut ist.”

Is laut an adjective or adverb here, and why is it used as it is?

Here, laut is an adjective describing die Stadt. In German, when you want to describe the nature or quality of a noun (like how loud the city is), you use the adjective form in combination with the verb sein (here: ist).