Question 1

How do you form the imperative for “du” with a reflexive verb like sich beeilen?

Accepted Answer

To form the “du”-imperative of a reflexive verb in German:  
1. Start with the infinitive sich beeilen.  
2. Remove sich and the -en ending from the verb stem → beeil-.  
3. Drop the -st ending that you’d normally have in the present tense (“du beeilst”).  
4. Add the reflexive pronoun in the accusative (for “du” that’s dich).  
Result: Beeil dich!

Question 2

Why is sonst used here and what does it mean?

Accepted Answer

sonst is an adverb meaning “otherwise” or “if not”. It introduces a consequence that will happen if the first part of the sentence isn’t fulfilled. In English you’d often translate it as “otherwise” or “if you don’t hurry.”

Question 3

Why does the word order change to “sonst verpassen wir…” instead of “wir verpassen sonst…”?

Accepted Answer

German is a V2 (verb-second) language. When you put an adverb like sonst at the very beginning of a main clause, the finite verb must come immediately after it, and the subject follows the verb:  
• sonst (adverb) → verb (verpassen) → subject (wir) → object.  
 Hence “Sonst verpassen wir den Start des Films.”

Question 4

Why is the present tense verpassen used for an event in the near future?

Accepted Answer

In German, the simple present is often used to talk about imminent future events, especially when there’s a clear time reference (here: the start of the film). Using the present tense sounds more immediate and natural than a future tense form like “werden verpassen.”

Question 5

Why is den Start des Films in the accusative and why des Films in the genitive?

Accepted Answer

• den Start – “Start” is a masculine noun (der Start), and it’s the direct object of verpassen, so it takes the accusative: den.  
• des Films – “Film” is masculine (der Film), and you express “of the film” with the genitive case, so des Films.  
You could also say “den Start vom Film” (using von + dative), but des Films (genitive) is slightly more formal.

Question 6

Could you replace Start with another word here, like Beginn?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Beginn (m) is a perfectly fine synonym, so you could say “Beeil dich, sonst verpassen wir den Beginn des Films.”  
Nuance: Start can sound a bit more informal or anglicized, while Beginn is more traditional German.

Beeil dich, sonst verpassen wir den Start des Films.

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