Bitte halten Sie Abstand.

please

Breakdown of Bitte halten Sie Abstand.

• Sie: you
• der Abstand: the distance
• halten: to keep

Questions & Answers about Bitte halten Sie Abstand.

What does the Sie mean here, and why is it capitalized?

Sie is the formal form of you in German. It can refer to one person or to several people. It’s always capitalized when it means formal “you,” which distinguishes it from sie = “she/they.”

How is the imperative formed with Sie?

For the formal imperative, put the verb first, then Sie, then the rest:

• Halten Sie Abstand. (Keep your distance.)
• Warten Sie hier. (Wait here.)
• Gehen Sie bitte zurück. (Please step back.)

With the familiar forms:

• du: Halt Abstand! (also acceptable: Halte Abstand!, but Halt is more common)
• ihr: Haltet Abstand!

Why is Abstand capitalized?

All German nouns are capitalized. Abstand is a noun meaning “distance” or “gap,” and its gender is masculine (der Abstand).

Do I need an article (e.g., “den/einen”) before Abstand?