Learn Hardcore German: Im Hostel schlafen wir im gleichen Zimmer, damit niemand sich allein fühlt. - In the hostel we sleep in the same room so that no one feels alone.

You normally use the contraction in speech and writing unless you want special emphasis. Both are grammatically correct, but im is by far more natural here.

Why is Hostel capitalized?

All nouns in German are capitalized, regardless of where they appear in the sentence.

das Hostel is a noun → must be written Hostel, not hostel.
This is true for all nouns: Zimmer, Niemand (when used as a noun), Tag, Freund, etc.

So Im Hostel starts with a capital H not because it’s at the beginning, but because Hostel is a noun.

Why does the sentence start with Im Hostel schlafen wir instead of Wir schlafen im Hostel? Are both correct?

Both are correct; the difference is in emphasis and word order rules.

German main clauses require the finite verb in second position (the “V2 rule”):

Wir schlafen im Hostel.
– Subject (wir) in first position, verb (schlafen) in second.

If you want to highlight the location, you can move the place phrase to the first position:

Im Hostel schlafen wir im gleichen Zimmer …
– First position: Im Hostel
– Second position (still!): schlafen
– Subject (wir) moves after the verb.

So starting with Im Hostel puts more focus on where this happens: “In the hostel is where we sleep in the same room …”

Why is it im gleichen Zimmer and not im gleiche Zimmer?

Because of German adjective endings in the dative case.

Break it down:

im = in dem → dem is dative singular (neuter here: das Zimmer → dem Zimmer).
After a definite article in the dative, the adjective takes -en.

Pattern (dative singular, with definite article):

dem
- adjective-en
  - noun (masc/neuter)
der
- adjective-en
  - noun (fem)

So:

in dem gleichen Zimmer → contracted: im gleichen Zimmer
im gleiche Zimmer is wrong because gleiche is missing the correct dative ending -n → it must be gleichen.

What’s the difference between im gleichen Zimmer and im selben Zimmer?

Both are often translated as “in the same room”, but there is a nuance:

gleich = same / identical / of the same kind
- im gleichen Zimmer can mean: in the same room (as opposed to different rooms). In many contexts it implies the same actual room, but can also sometimes be more about type/sort.
derselbe / dieselbe / dasselbe = the exact same one (not just similar)
- im selben Zimmer focuses more on “that one exact room”, not another.

In everyday speech, Germans often use im gleichen Zimmer where English says “in the same room”, and the distinction is not always important. If you really want to stress “exactly that one room”, im selben Zimmer is slightly stronger.

What does damit do here, and how is it different from um … zu or so dass?

Damit is a subordinating conjunction that introduces a purpose clause: “so that / in order that”.

In the sentence:

…, damit niemand sich allein fühlt.
→ “… so that nobody feels alone.”

Comparison:

damit
- full clause with subject + conjugated verb at the end
  - …, damit niemand sich allein fühlt.
um … zu
- infinitive, same subject in both parts
  - Wir schlafen im gleichen Zimmer, um uns nicht allein zu fühlen.
    (same subject: wir / uns)
so dass usually expresses result/consequence, not intention
- Wir reden laut, so dass niemand schlafen kann.
  (“We talk loudly, so that nobody can sleep” – more “as a result”, not as a goal.)

Here, the idea is a purpose (we choose to sleep this way in order that nobody feels alone), so damit fits very well.

Why does the verb fühlt go to the end of the clause?

Because damit introduces a subordinate clause, and in subordinate clauses in German, the finite verb goes to the end.

Pattern:

Main clause: verb in 2nd position
- Wir schlafen im gleichen Zimmer.
Subordinate clause (after words like weil, dass, damit, obwohl): verb at the end
- …, damit niemand sich allein fühlt.

So:

niemand (subject)
sich (reflexive pronoun)
allein (predicate adjective/adverb)
fühlt (finite verb) → goes to the end because of damit.

Why do we say niemand fühlt sich and not just niemand fühlt?

Because fühlen has a special reflexive use when talking about how someone experiences a state, like feelings or condition.

fühlen (without reflexive pronoun) = to feel (touch) something
- Ich fühle den Stoff. – I feel the fabric.
sich fühlen = to feel + adjective/adverb (to feel in a certain way)
- Ich fühle mich gut. – I feel good.
- Niemand fühlt sich allein. – Nobody feels alone.

In your sentence, we are talking about how someone feels emotionally, so German uses sich fühlen, not plain fühlen.

Why is the reflexive pronoun sich used with niemand?

Niemand (“nobody”) is grammatically 3rd person singular in German.

The reflexive pronoun must match person and number of the subject:

ich → mich
du → dich
er/sie/es → sich
wir → uns
ihr → euch
sie (pl.) → sich
niemand → treated like er/sie/es → sich

So:

Niemand fühlt sich allein. – Nobody feels alone.
(3rd person singular → sich)

Using uns or euch here would be wrong, because the subject is not “we” or “you”, it’s niemand.

What’s the difference between allein and einsam in this context?

Both relate to being by yourself, but they have different nuances:

allein = alone (physically or in fact), not necessarily sad about it.
- Ich bin heute allein zu Hause. – I’m home alone today. (neutral)
- Niemand fühlt sich allein. – Nobody feels alone (no one is left on their own).
einsam = lonely (emotional), usually with a negative feeling.
- Er fühlt sich einsam. – He feels lonely. (emotionally isolated)

In your sentence, allein focuses on not being left by oneself / not being on one’s own. You could say damit niemand sich einsam fühlt to stress emotional loneliness even more, but allein already works well to express the idea that nobody is left by themselves.