Day 157: Why the Chocolate Bar Shrank
In a supermarket in Saarbrücken, a boy (A) holds up his favourite chocolate bar to show his father Marcel (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
Papa, guck mal: Meine Lieblingsschokolade hat nur noch 90 Gramm statt 100, kostet aber immer noch 1,99 Euro! Das ist doch Betrug!
Dad, look: my favourite chocolate's only got 90 grams in it now instead of 100, but it still costs 1.99 euros! That's cheating!
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B
Betrug ist das leider nicht, solange das Gewicht auf der Packung stimmt. Verbraucherschützer nennen so etwas Mogelpackung, die Hersteller sprechen lieber von einer Anpassung.
Sadly it isn't cheating, as long as the weight on the packet is right. Consumer groups call it sneaky packaging, and the makers prefer to call it an adjustment.
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A
Das ist doch dreist! Warum erhöhen sie nicht einfach ehrlich den Preis, statt uns für dumm zu verkaufen?
That's a cheek! Why don't they just be honest and put the price up, instead of taking us for fools?
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B
Weil fast jeder einen höheren Preis sofort bemerkt, zehn Gramm weniger kaum. Den Ärger der wenigen, die genau hinschauen, nehmen die Hersteller gern in Kauf.
Because almost everyone notices a higher price straight away, but hardly anyone notices ten grams less. And the makers are happy to put up with the few who look closely getting annoyed.
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A
Ich schaue ab jetzt genau hin! Kann man sich da nicht irgendwo beschweren, oder muss man sich nur ärgern?
Well, I'm going to look closely from now on! Isn't there somewhere you can complain, or do you just have to get cross?
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B
Doch, die Verbraucherzentrale Hamburg sammelt solche Fälle und kürt sogar eine Mogelpackung des Jahres. Du kannst aber auch direkt dem Hersteller schreiben.
There is: the consumer advice centre in Hamburg collects cases like this and even names a Sneaky Pack of the Year. But you can also write straight to the maker.
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A
Mach ich, heute noch! Ich schreibe denen alles, was mich daran stört, und dass sie mir zehn Gramm schulden.
I will, today! I'm going to tell them everything that bothers me about it, and that they owe me ten grams.
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B
Aber bleib sachlich, auch wenn du Kritik übst: Wer höflich schreibt, wird eher ernst genommen. Und die Tafel hier bleibt dann wohl im Regal?
But keep it factual, even when you're criticising: people who write politely get taken more seriously. And I suppose this bar's staying on the shelf, then?
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A
Auf keinen Fall, die brauche ich doch als Beweisstück! Die esse ich erst, wenn eine Antwort kommt.
No way, I need it as evidence! I'm not eating it until they've answered.
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