Making a complaint (AQA GCSE German): Revision Notes
Making a complaint
When travelling in German-speaking countries, you might occasionally need to express dissatisfaction with services, food, or accommodation. This revision note will help you understand how to make complaints effectively in German, focusing on essential vocabulary and the important grammar structure of expressing duration.
Essential complaint vocabulary
Understanding key vocabulary is crucial when you need to describe what's wrong. These words form the foundation of most complaint situations you might encounter whilst travelling.
| German | English | German | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gericht (nt) | dish/meal | kaputt | broken |
| Glas (nt) | glass | langsam | slow |
| Manager (m) | manager | laut | loud |
| Managerin (f) | manager (female) | leider | unfortunately |
| Preis (m) | price | schmutzig | dirty |
| Rechnung (f) | bill | sofort | immediately |
| WLAN (nt) | Wi-Fi | zufrieden | content |
| frisch | fresh | bestellen | to order |
| hell | bright/light | funktionieren | to work |
| kalt | cold |
Learning Tip: Group these words by context - hotel complaints (schmutzig, kaputt, WLAN), restaurant complaints (Gericht, kalt, frisch), and general service complaints (Manager, Rechnung, sofort). This thematic approach will help you remember them more effectively in real situations.
Grammar focus: Expressing duration with "seit"
When making complaints, you often need to explain how long you've been waiting or experiencing a problem. German uses a specific structure for this that differs significantly from English.
The "seit + present tense" construction
To talk about how long you have been doing something, German uses "seit" (since/for) followed by the present tense. This is different from English, which typically uses the present perfect tense.
Key structure: seit + time expression + present tense verb
Critical Grammar Rule: Seit is always followed by the dative case, and dative plurals add -n to the end.
Example sentences with translations
The following examples demonstrate how German uses present tense whilst English uses "have been":
Worked Example: Duration Expressions
German: Ich warte seit einer halben Stunde.
English: I have been waiting for half an hour.
German: Seit einer Stunde.
English: For one hour.
German: Seit letzter Woche.
English: Since last week.
German: Seit zwei Tagen.
English: For two days.
Notice the crucial difference: German present tense = English present perfect when used with "seit".
Understanding complaint scenarios
Learning to make complaints effectively requires understanding the common situations where problems arise. Let's explore the typical contexts you'll encounter.
Hotel review context
When reading reviews or making complaints about hotels, you'll encounter descriptions of various problems. For example, guests might praise certain aspects like attractive surroundings and good restaurants, whilst criticising others such as small, dirty rooms or lack of storage space for luggage.
Common Hotel Complaint Themes:
- Room size and cleanliness
- Restaurant quality
- Facilities and amenities
- Staff service
Understanding these patterns helps you anticipate vocabulary needs and prepare appropriate responses.
Restaurant complaint situations
Restaurant complaints often involve several common issues. A typical complaint might mention problems with food temperature, cleanliness of utensils, long waiting times, or missing items from orders. Understanding these patterns helps you both make and understand complaints effectively.
Typical restaurant problems include:
- Cold food
- Dirty glasses or utensils
- Long waiting times
- Missing drinks or incorrect orders
- Noisy surroundings
- Wrong meals being served
Grammar and pronunciation tips
Mastering the pronunciation and grammar rules will make your complaints more effective and help you sound more confident when speaking German.
Pronunciation Guidance:
- seit - pronounced like "sight" in English
- Stunde - the 'u' sound is like the 'oo' in "book"
- schmutzig - the 'sch' sound is like 'sh' in "shop"
Essential Grammar Reminders:
- Always use the dative case after "seit"
- Dative plural nouns add -n (except those already ending in -n or -s)
- Present tense in German = present perfect in English when used with "seit"
Practice translation exercises
Test your understanding with these practical translation exercises that focus on common complaint scenarios.
Translation Practice: German to English
- Ich warte seit zwei Stunden auf den Manager.
- Das Glas ist schmutzig und das Essen ist kalt.
Translation Practice: English to German
- I have been waiting for the bill for ten minutes.
- The room is dirty and the Wi-Fi doesn't work.
Answers:
- I have been waiting for the manager for two hours.
- The glass is dirty and the food is cold.
- Ich warte seit zehn Minuten auf die Rechnung.
- Das Zimmer ist schmutzig und das WLAN funktioniert nicht.
Key Points to Remember:
- Use seit + present tense to express how long you've been doing something - this is different from English structure
- Dative plurals add -n - this is essential for correct grammar after "seit"
- Learn complaint vocabulary in themed groups (hotel, restaurant, transport) for better retention
- Present tense in German with "seit" equals present perfect in English
- Practice common complaint scenarios to build confidence in real situations