Sometimes in the boss's speech you can hear such strange phrases as "Arbeiten Schnele!", "Arbeiten und disciplined!" or "Arbeiten, nicht shpatsiren!". What is "arbeiten" in translation into Russian? What does the boss want from you and how to properly answer it?
Arbeiten as a verb
Arbeiten ("arbeiten") in German means "to work". Note that the stress always falls on the first syllable! Also, "arbaiten" is to work, try, practice, act, make an effort, be active, be busy, craft, make, train and so on.
- Das Herz des Patienten arbeitet regelmäßig. – The patient's heart is constantly beating.
- Es ist notwendig, dieses Kostüm auf Taille arbeiten. – This suit needs to be sewn in at the waist.
- Der Mechanismus arbeitet einwandfrei. – The mechanism functions flawlessly.
- Der Ruderer musste schwer arbeiten, um gegen die Strömung anzukommen. – The rower had to work hard to swim upstream.
- Der Lehrer arbeitet jeden Tag mit Kindern. - The teacher works with the children every day.
Using arbeiten with prepositions and prefixes
The use of prepositions with a verb is the same as in Russian: each has its own meaning and possibilities of application. List of prepositions used with "arbeiten":
Am…arbeiten - work at… (time, place)
Ich arbeite am Sonntag. - I work on Sunday.
Während…arbeiten - to work on time, during
Ich habe während der Ferien gearbeitet. - I worked during the holidays.
Unter…arbeiten - work under
Er arbeitet unter der Aufsicht des Chefdesigners. - He works under the direction of the chief designer.
In…arbeiten - work in
Wir arbeiten in Berlin. - We work in Berlin.
Für…arbeiten - work for, for
Zwei Jahre lang arbeitete sie für die Volkswagen AG. - She worked for Volkswagen for two years.
Bei…arbeiten - work on, in
Arbeitest du bei einer Verpackungsfabrik? – Do you work in a packaging factory?
An…arbeiten - work on
Wir arbeiten alle lange an dem Projekt. - We've all been working on the project for a long time.
But "arbeiten" is not only "work". Thanks to prefixes, the meaning of a word can change beyond recognition. Consider specific examples:
- einarbeiten - introduce, introduce,retract;
- totarbeiten - to torment;
- emporarbeiten - to be promoted;
- mitarbeiten - take part, cooperate;
- nacharbeiten - catch up;
- abarbeiten - process, exhaust;
- erarbeiten - to do, move forward;
- hinarbeiten - to strive;
- bearbeiten - process, develop;
- aufarbeiten - finish;
- ausarbeiten - develop, compose;
- durcharbeiten - work through, work through;
- kurzarbeiten - work part-time;
- überarbeiten - recycle, earn money.
- Der neue Kollege muss sich erst einarbeiten. – A new colleague needs to get up to speed first.
- Wir haben an diesem Projekt auch mitgearbeitet. – We also worked together on this project.
- Sie arbeiteten die ganze Nacht durch. – They worked all night.
Verb conjugation
Arbeiten is a weak verb. So it changes according to the basic rules of German conjugation.
In the present tense (Präsens) the stem of the verb arbeit is added:
- letter "e" in the third person singular and in the second person plural, since the stem of the word ends in -t;
- weak verb ending, depending on the personal pronoun.
| Pronoun | End | Verb form | |
| me | ich | -e | arbeite(working) |
| you | du | -st | arbeitest (working) |
| he/she/it | er/sie/es | -t | arbeitet (working) |
| we | wir | -en | arbeiten (working) |
| you | ihr | -t | arbeitet (work) |
| they | sie | -en | arbeiten (work) |
| You | Sie | -en | arbeiten (work) |
As you can see from the table, the endings are the same for ihr and er/sie/es, as well as for sie and Sie.
- Ich arbeite diesen Monat sehr viel. - I've been working hard this month.
- Sie arbeiten diesen Monat sehr wenig. - They work very little this month.
- Sie arbeitet als Ingenieurin in einer Fabrik. - She works as an engineer in a factory.
- Er arbeitet für zwei. - He works for two.
In the simple past tense (Präteritum), the suffix -t- with the connecting letter "e" is added to the verb in the present tense:
- ich arbeite (I work) - present;
- ich arbeitete (I worked) - simple past tense.
It also happens when conjugating a verb with other pronouns:
- du arbeitest (you work) - du arbeitetest (you worked);
- er arbeitet (he works) - er arbeitetet (he worked);
- wir arbeiten (we work) - wir arbeiteten (we worked);
- ihr arbeitet (you work) - ihr arbeitetet (you worked);
- sie arbeiten (they work) - sie arbeiteten (they worked);
- Sie arbeiten (You work) - Sie arbeiteten (You worked).
- Gestern arbeitete ich bis in den späten Abend. - I worked late yesterday.
- Wir arbeiteten für ihn. - We worked for him.
When using a verb in the perfect and pluperfect, the prefix ge- and the ending -et are added to the stem of the word. Only the auxiliary verb haben is conjugated in these tenses. Arbeiten takes the following form:
ge + arbeit + et=gearbeitet
- Du hast diese Woche gut gearbeitet. – You did well this week.
- Haben Sie heute schon gearbeitet? - Did you work today?
- Gans hatte in der Verw altung in Hamburg gearbeitet. - Hans worked in the administration in Hamburg.
In the future tense, the verb has the infinitive form arbeiten. Only the verb werden, which acts as an auxiliary, is conjugated.
- Wirst du bis 22 Uhr arbeiten? – Will you work until 10 pm?
- Ihr werdet in Gruppen arbeiten. - You will work in groups.
In the imperative mood, the verb has only three forms.
- Arbeit! - Work!
- Arbeitet! - Work! - an appeal to several people, with each of whom communication is informal.
- Arbeiten Sie, bitte! - Work, please! (when formally requested).
Noun die Arbeit
In addition, arbeiten (arbeiten) is alsonoun. Die Arbeit - work, occupation, activity, etc. The stress always falls on the first syllable. The ending -en is added to a feminine plural noun. Thus, die Arbeiten means work, occupation.
- Die Arbeiten sind zu übersenden an: (die Adresse) - Works must be sent to: (address).
- Unter der Erde fortsetzen die Arbeiten – Work continues underground.
Now you know what "arbeiten" means in translation, which means you will no longer look at the boss with a blank look. Better tell him: Ja, Führer! ("Yes, chief!") and smile.
