Breakdown of Im Büro lassen wir uns die neue Software vom Techniker installieren.
in
in
dem
the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
neu
new
wir
we
Questions & Answers about Im Büro lassen wir uns die neue Software vom Techniker installieren.
What exactly is the role of lassen in this sentence?
In Im Büro lassen wir uns die neue Software vom Techniker installieren, lassen is used in its causative meaning:
- lassen + object + infinitive = to have something done / to get something done.
So:
- wir lassen … installieren = we have (something) installed / we get (something) installed.
The full structure is:
- wir – the people who cause/arrange the action
- lassen – “have” / “get (done)”
- uns – for us (beneficiary)
- die neue Software – the thing that is installed
- vom Techniker – by the technician
- installieren – the action carried out
Natural English equivalents:
- At the office, we have the new software installed by the technician.
- More idiomatic: At the office, we get the technician to install the new software (for us).
Why do we need both wir and uns? Aren’t they the same pronoun?