Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen und hustet ein bisschen.

The patient only has a slight cold today and coughs a little.

Breakdown of Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen und hustet ein bisschen.

• und: and
• heute: today
• haben: to have
• nur: only
• der Patient: the patient
• der Schnupfen: the cold
• leicht: slight
• husten: to cough
• ein bisschen: a little

Questions & Answers about Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen und hustet ein bisschen.

Why is it leichten Schnupfen and not leichter Schnupfen?

Because Schnupfen is the direct object of the verb hat, it is in the accusative case.

• Schnupfen is masculine: der Schnupfen (nom.).
• With no article in the accusative, the adjective ending for masculine is -en.

So:

• Nominative (subject): leichter Schnupfen
  
  • e.g. Leichter Schnupfen ist nicht so schlimm.
• Accusative (object): leichten Schnupfen
  
  • e.g. Der Patient hat leichten Schnupfen.

That’s why you see leichten, not leichter, after hat.

Why is there no article before leichten Schnupfen? Could I say einen leichten Schnupfen?

Both are possible, but they feel a bit different:

• Der Patient hat leichten Schnupfen.
  Very natural and common. Many illnesses in German are used without an article:

  • Ich habe Fieber.
  • Er hat Schnupfen.
  • Sie hat Kopfschmerzen.

• Der Patient hat einen leichten Schnupfen.
  Also correct. This makes it sound a bit more like “a mild cold”, focusing on this specific episode of a cold. It can sound slightly more concrete or “countable”.

In practice, without the article is more common for Schnupfen in everyday speech, especially in short doctor’s notes or descriptions of symptoms.

What’s the difference between Schnupfen, Erkältung, and Grippe?

Roughly:

• Schnupfen
  Literally: a “runny nose” type cold. Focus on nose symptoms: runny/stuffy nose, sneezing. Often translated just as “a cold” in everyday English.

• Erkältung
  A common cold in general: maybe sore throat, mild cough, slight fever, plus possibly Schnupfen. It’s the mild viral infection most people get in winter.

• Grippe
  Influenza, the real flu. Usually stronger: higher fever, body aches, marked fatigue. Much more serious than a normal Erkältung.

So:
Schnupfen = nose symptoms,
Erkältung = overall cold,
Grippe = flu.

Why isn’t Der Patient repeated before hustet? Could I say … und der Patient hustet ein bisschen?

German often does not repeat the subject if it stays the same in coordinated clauses.

• Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen und hustet ein bisschen.
  = The patient has only a slight cold today and (he) is coughing a little.

The subject Der Patient is understood for both verbs (hat and hustet).

You can say:

• Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen, und der Patient hustet ein bisschen.

but it sounds unnecessarily repetitive unless you really want to emphasize the subject again (for contrast, clarity, or stylistic reasons). The shorter version is more natural.

What exactly does nur do in hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen? Where could nur go?

nur means “only / just” and limits what you’re talking about.

• Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen.
  = He doesn’t have anything more serious; only a slight cold.

Typical positions:

• Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen.
• Der Patient hat nur heute leichten Schnupfen. (Now nur limits heute = “only today”. Different meaning.)
• Der Patient hat heute leichten Schnupfen, nur hustet er nicht. (Here nur works more like “however / just that…”, different structure.)

In your sentence, nur clearly belongs to leichten Schnupfen, meaning the illness is limited, not the day. That’s why it’s placed directly before the phrase it limits.

Why is heute before nur leichten Schnupfen? Could I say Der Patient hat nur leichten Schnupfen heute?

Both are grammatically correct, but the default and most natural order is:

• Time – (other adverb / focus particle) – object

So:

• Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen.
  (Time: heute, then focus particle nur
  • object.)

You can say:

• Der Patient hat nur leichten Schnupfen heute.

This is still correct, but heute at the end can sound a bit more informal, or it can put slight emphasis on “today” (“at least today it’s only a mild cold”). The given sentence is the most neutral, standard order.

What’s the difference between hustet and Husten?

• hustet is the verb: husten = “to cough”

  • Der Patient hustet ein bisschen. = The patient coughs a little / is coughing a bit.
  • Er hustet seit gestern. = He has been coughing since yesterday.

• Husten is the noun: “cough / coughing”

  • Der Patient hat Husten. = The patient has a cough.
  • Der Husten ist trocken. = The cough is dry.

So:

• Use hustet when describing the action of coughing.
• Use Husten when treating it as a symptom / thing the patient “has”.

What does ein bisschen add to hustet? How is it different from ein wenig or etwas?

ein bisschen softens the verb hustet and means “a little (bit)”:

• Der Patient hustet ein bisschen.
  = He coughs a little, not very much.

Compared to other options:

• ein bisschen
  Very common, everyday, slightly informal, friendly tone.

  • Er hustet ein bisschen.

• ein wenig
  Slightly more neutral or formal; still common.

  • Er hustet ein wenig.

• etwas
  Literally “something”, but as an adverb it also means “somewhat / a bit”.

  • Er hustet etwas. (Sounds a bit more formal/written.)

All three can work here. The original ein bisschen sounds natural in spoken language and makes the symptom sound mild.

Why is Schnupfen capitalized, but words like heute and bisschen are not?

In German, all nouns are capitalized, regardless of position in the sentence.

• Schnupfen is a noun → capitalized.
• Patient is a noun → capitalized.
• Husten (if used) is a noun → capitalized.

Words like heute (today), nur (only), ein bisschen (a little bit) are not nouns (they’re adverbs, particles, etc.), so they are written in lowercase unless they start the sentence.

So the capitalization here simply follows the “all nouns capitalized” rule.

Could the sentence also be Der Patient hat heute nur ein bisschen Schnupfen und hustet leicht? Would that mean the same thing?

Yes, it’s correct, but there are small nuances:

• Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen und hustet ein bisschen.

  • Emphasis: the cold is mild (leichten Schnupfen).
  • The cough is also mild, but that’s expressed by ein bisschen.

• Der Patient hat heute nur ein bisschen Schnupfen und hustet leicht.

  • Emphasis: the amount / degree of cold is small (ein bisschen Schnupfen).
  • The cough is described with the adjective leicht (“light / mild”).

In everyday terms, they describe almost the same clinical situation, just with a slightly different phrasing focus. Both would be readily understood as “mild symptoms”.

Is the present tense hat … hustet here like English “has … is coughing”? Could I use the past tense?

German present tense (Präsens) covers both:

• English simple present: “has, coughs”
• English present progressive: “is having, is coughing”

So:

• Der Patient hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen und hustet ein bisschen.
  = “The patient only has a slight cold today and is coughing a little.”

You could use past forms if you’re talking about earlier in time:

• Der Patient hatte gestern nur leichten Schnupfen und hustete ein bisschen.
  = “The patient only had a slight cold yesterday and coughed a little.”

But for describing the current condition (as in a doctor’s note or during an examination), the present tense is exactly what you want.

Is this sentence formal, or could it also be used in casual conversation?

The sentence is neutral and works well in both contexts:

• In a medical or semi‑formal setting (doctor talking to a colleague, writing a simple note), it’s perfectly appropriate.
• In casual conversation, it also sounds natural:
  • Der Patient could be replaced by a name:
    Peter hat heute nur leichten Schnupfen und hustet ein bisschen.

Only the word Patient itself is somewhat medical; the structure and other vocabulary are everyday German.