Learn Hardcore German: Im Feedbackgespräch kann jede Frage offen gestellt und in Ruhe beantwortet werden. - In the feedback meeting any question can be asked openly and answered in peace.

German very often contracts in dem → im, an dem → am, etc. It’s completely standard and not informal. The case (dative) is required because in with a location (not movement) takes the dative.

What case is Feedbackgespräch in, and why?

Feedbackgespräch is in the dative singular.

Reason:

The preposition in can take either accusative (movement into) or dative (location).
Here it expresses a situation/setting: in the feedback talk / during the feedback conversation → a location in time/situation, not movement.

Therefore: in + dative → in dem Feedbackgespräch → im Feedbackgespräch.

What gender is Feedbackgespräch, and how is this word formed?

Feedbackgespräch is neuter (das Feedbackgespräch).

It’s a compound noun:

Feedback (borrowed from English, neuter in German in this usage)
Gespräch (neuter: das Gespräch = conversation)

In German, the last part of the compound determines the gender, so:

das Gespräch → das Feedbackgespräch

Like all German nouns, it is capitalized: Feedbackgespräch.

Why is it jede Frage (singular) and not something like alle Fragen (plural)?

Both are possible, but they have slightly different nuances:

jede Frage = every question (singular, but means “any question you might have”)
- Stresses that each individual question, whatever it is, can be asked.
alle Fragen = all questions (collective)
- Focuses more on the entire set of questions.

Using jede Frage here emphasizes that no single question is excluded – every individual question is allowed and can be dealt with calmly.

Why does German say eine Frage stellen instead of just using fragen like English “to ask a question”?

German has two related patterns:

jemanden fragen = to ask someone
- Example: Ich frage dich. – I ask you.
eine Frage stellen = literally “to put/pose a question”
- Example: Ich stelle eine Frage. – I ask a question.

In your sentence:

jede Frage … gestellt werden uses pattern (2), the collocation eine Frage stellen.
This is stylistically very common and sounds a bit more formal or neutral than just fragen.

You could rephrase the sentence with fragen, but you’d need to change the structure quite a bit (e.g. Im Feedbackgespräch kann man offen fragen…), so Fragen stellen is the natural choice in this nominal passive construction.

What exactly does offen gestellt mean? Is offen an adjective or an adverb here?

In offen gestellt, offen functions as an adverbial modifier of the verb phrase gestellt werden:

offen = openly, frankly
gestellt = past participle of stellen (to put/pose)

So offen gestellt werden means “to be asked openly/frankly”.

Even though offen looks like an adjective, in this context it describes how the question is asked (manner), so in English we would treat it as an adverb: openly.

What does in Ruhe mean here? Is it literal “in peace” or something idiomatic?

in Ruhe is a very common idiomatic phrase.

Literally:

Ruhe = quiet, calm, peace
in Ruhe = “in (a state of) calm/quiet”

Idiomatic meaning here:

in Ruhe beantworten ≈ “to answer calmly”, “to answer without haste / without pressure”
It often implies without being disturbed or with enough time and calm to do it properly.

So it’s more than just physical silence; it’s about a relaxed, unhurried, undisturbed atmosphere while answering.

Why is there no article in in Ruhe? Why not in der Ruhe?

The phrase in Ruhe is a fixed expression and normally takes no article.

Compare:

in Ruhe arbeiten – to work in peace / calmly
Lass mich in Ruhe! – Leave me alone!
Das zu entscheiden braucht Zeit und Ruhe. – That needs time and calm.

You can say in der Ruhe in other contexts (literally “in the calm”), but that would refer to some specific, concrete kind of “calm” (e.g. a physical, quiet environment). Here we want the idiomatic phrase meaning calmly, without stress, so no article: in Ruhe.

Why is the verb form kann … gestellt und … beantwortet werden? How does this passive with a modal work?

The structure combines:

Modal verb: kann (can)
Passive voice: werden
- past participle

In the present passive without modal, you’d have:

Jede Frage wird offen gestellt und in Ruhe beantwortet.
= Every question is asked openly and answered calmly.

With a modal verb, German syntax changes:

Finite verb (kann) goes in position 2.
werden becomes an infinitive at the end.
The past participles (gestellt, beantwortet) also go to the end, before werden.

So:

Im Feedbackgespräch kann jede Frage offen gestellt und in Ruhe beantwortet werden.

Literally:
“In the feedback conversation can every question openly asked and calmly answered be.”

Functionally:
“Every question can be asked openly and answered calmly.”

Why is werden only written once, even though there are two participles (gestellt and beantwortet)?

When you have two (or more) coordinated verb phrases sharing the same auxiliary (here: werden in passive), you usually don’t repeat the auxiliary:

… gestellt und beantwortet werden.

This is like English:

“can be asked and answered” (one be, two participles: asked and answered).

If you repeated werden:

… gestellt werden und in Ruhe beantwortet werden.

it would be grammatical, but more repetitive and heavier in style. The shorter version is more natural.

What tense and mood is this sentence in: kann … gestellt und … beantwortet werden?

Tense: Present
Mood: Indicative
Voice: Passive
Modal: with können (can)

So it’s a present-tense passive construction expressing possibility/ability:

“Every question can be asked openly and answered calmly (now / generally).”

Could we say ruhig beantwortet instead of in Ruhe beantwortet? What’s the difference?

You can say:

… ruhig beantwortet werden.

But there is a nuance difference:

ruhig beantworten can mean:
- (adverb of manner) to answer calmly, in a composed way
- or sometimes: “you may / can (by all means) answer that” (pragmatic “just go ahead and …”)
in Ruhe beantworten strongly suggests:
- unhurriedly, without stress, with enough time
- without disturbance

In this context, in Ruhe beantwortet werden is the more standard collocation to say there is time and a relaxed environment to answer the questions properly.

Could we say Während des Feedbackgesprächs instead of Im Feedbackgespräch? Would that change the meaning?

Yes, you could say:

Während des Feedbackgesprächs kann jede Frage … gestellt und … beantwortet werden.

Differences:

Im Feedbackgespräch:
- More like “in the context/setting of the feedback conversation”.
- Emphasizes the situation or framework.
Während des Feedbackgesprächs:
- Literally “during the feedback conversation”.
- Emphasizes the time period when this is possible.

In most real-life contexts, the meaning overlap is large, and both would be understood similarly, but im sounds a bit more like “within this conversation as a setting for open questions.”

Why is a passive used here instead of something like Man kann jede Frage offen stellen…?

Both are possible, but they focus on different things.

Passive (your sentence):
- Im Feedbackgespräch kann jede Frage offen gestellt und in Ruhe beantwortet werden.
- Focus is on what can happen to the questions.
- The doer (who asks/answers) is not important or is general/obvious.
Man-construction (active, impersonal):
- Im Feedbackgespräch kann man jede Frage offen stellen und in Ruhe beantworten.
- Literally: “one can ask every question openly and answer it calmly.”
- Focus is more on what people/you can do.

In formal or neutral written German, the passive is very common when you want to emphasize possibilities, rules, or options in a general way, without focusing on any specific subject.

Is Feedbackgespräch a common word in German, and in what context is it used?

Yes, Feedbackgespräch is a common term, especially in:

Work contexts (employee evaluations, performance reviews)
Education (teacher-student feedback meetings)
Coaching, training, mentoring

It literally means “feedback conversation / feedback meeting” and usually refers to a structured, often formal or semi-formal talk in which one person (or both) receives feedback about performance, behavior, progress, etc.

It’s standard and neutral in tone; not slang, not overly technical.