Day 117: The Crossed-Out Price Trick
In their flat in Bamberg, Mareike (A) finds something new in the wardrobe of her boyfriend Bastian (B).
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a German word to see what it means.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native German, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning
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A
Sag mal, was hängt da in deinem Schrank? Schon wieder eine Jacke, und das Etikett ist noch dran.
Hang on, what's that hanging in your wardrobe? Another jacket, and the tag's still on it.
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B
Die war um sechzig Prozent reduziert, von 180 auf 72 Euro! Die konnte ich doch nicht hängen lassen.
It was sixty percent off, down from 180 to 72 euros! I couldn't just leave it hanging there.
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A
Lass mich raten: Du wirst den durchgestrichenen Preis gesehen haben, und schon war's egal, ob du überhaupt eine brauchst.
Let me guess: you'll have seen the crossed-out price, and suddenly it didn't matter whether you even needed one.
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B
Brauchen ist relativ. Die grüne ist für Regen, die blaue für Wind, und die hier war ein Schnäppchen.
Need is relative. The green one's for rain, the blue one's for wind, and this one was a bargain.
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A
Ein Schnäppchen ist sie nur, weil daneben 180 steht. Die Zahl setzt sich im Kopf fest, und plötzlich wirken 72 Euro billig.
It's only a bargain because it says 180 next to it. That number sticks in your head, and suddenly 72 euros seems cheap.
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B
Schön erklärt. Aber woher weißt du eigentlich so genau, wie sich das anfühlt?
Nicely explained. But how come you know exactly what it feels like?
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A
Na ja, neben meinem Bett stapeln sich zwölf reduzierte Bücher vom Grabbeltisch, und aufgeschlagen habe ich davon bisher genau zwei.
Well, there's a pile of twelve reduced books from the bargain bin next to my bed, and so far I've opened exactly two of them.
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B
Zwölf? Die wirst du natürlich alle dringend gebraucht haben, Frau Professorin.
Twelve? And of course you'll have needed every one of them urgently, Professor.
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A
Deshalb weiß ich ja, wie es funktioniert. Ab jetzt gilt: Für jedes Schnäppchen fliegt etwas Altes raus, bei dir Jacken, bei mir Bücher.
That's why I know how it works. From now on, for every bargain something old goes out: jackets for you, books for me.
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