German course

Lesson 110 of 240

New here? This is lesson 110 of a free 240-lesson German course.

Start hereHow this works

At the clinic in German

Priya has a doctor's appointment above the Apotheke on Fliederstraße. The receptionist at the Praxis wants her Versichertenkarte before anyone sees Dr. Albrecht.

Anton has brought a Pfannkuchen upstairs, a snack Dr. Albrecht will not want in the waiting room.

By the end, you'll sign in, hand over a card, sit down, and ask how long the wait is.

Staff get Sie here. Keep du for friends at the bakery.

By the end of this lesson

Sign in at the Praxis, show your insurance card, sit down, and ask how long you wait.

  • Ich habe einen Termin.I have an appointment
  • Ihre Versichertenkarte, bitte.Your insurance card, please
  • Nehmen Sie im Wartezimmer Platz.Please take a seat in the waiting room
  • Ich habe meine Versichertenkarte vergessen.I forgot my insurance card
  • Wie lange muss ich warten?How long do I have to wait?
  • Die Praxis ist im ersten Stock.The practice is on the first floor

Scene — above the Apotheke

Priya climbs the stairs above the Apotheke. A small Praxis waits on the first floor, pale walls and a high couch behind a door.

The receptionist looks up. Dr. Albrecht's door is still closed. Anton has a Pfannkuchen in a paper bag.

Priya has just entered the Praxis, Renate looks up from the reception desk, and Anton waits on two chairs with a paper bag.

Learn — sign in at the Praxis

Six lines cover signing in, the insurance card, sitting in the waiting room, and asking how long you wait.

You'll also say where the Praxis is: first floor.

  1. Priya stands at the reception counter and tells Renate she has an appointment.

    Ich habe einen Termin.

    I have an appointment

    When to use it: Say this at reception when you arrive for a booked visit.

    Use einen with a masculine noun like Termin after haben.

  2. Renate extends an open palm across the desk to request Priya’s insurance card.

    Ihre Versichertenkarte, bitte.

    Your insurance card, please

    When to use it: Staff say this when they need your health-insurance card.

    Clinic staff get Sie, so the form is Ihre, not deine.

  3. Renate gestures toward the waiting-room chairs as Priya turns in that direction.

    Nehmen Sie im Wartezimmer Platz.

    Please take a seat in the waiting room

    When to use it: Staff say this after check-in, to send you to sit and wait.

    Staff get Sie, and Platz stays at the end of the clause.

    Say it: Wartezimmer puts the stress on the first syllable.

  4. Priya looks down at her empty hands after realizing she forgot her insurance card.

    Ich habe meine Versichertenkarte vergessen.

    I forgot my insurance card

    When to use it: Say this if you left your insurance card at home.

    Meine matches Versichertenkarte, a feminine noun you learn together.

  5. From behind Renate, Priya leans forward to ask how long she must wait while Anton sits nearby with his paper bag.

    Wie lange muss ich warten?

    How long do I have to wait?

    When to use it: Ask this after you sit, if the wait is unclear.

    In this main-clause question the verb muss comes second.

  6. Priya and Anton climb the stairs from the open pharmacy toward the Praxis on the first floor.

    Die Praxis ist im ersten Stock.

    The practice is on the first floor

    When to use it: Say this when you tell someone where the doctor's office is.

    Learn die Praxis with the noun; the verb ist comes second.

    Say it: Stock starts with st, which sounds like sht.

Story — the waiting room

Watch Priya sign in above the Apotheke. The receptionist wants the card before anyone waits.

The highlighted words are the lines you just learned. Turn on Show English if you need it.

  1. The pharmacy door is open. Priya looks up the stairwell.
  2. AntonDie Praxis ist im ersten Stock.The practice is on the first floor.
  3. They climb. The receptionist looks up from a blank screen.
  4. PriyaGuten Tag.Good afternoon.
  5. ReceptionistGuten Tag.Good afternoon.
  6. PriyaIch habe einen Termin.I have an appointment.
  7. ReceptionistIhre Versichertenkarte, bitte.Your insurance card, please.
  8. PriyaIch habe meine Versichertenkarte vergessen.I forgot my insurance card.
  9. ReceptionistEinen Moment, bitte.One moment, please.
  10. She types, then nods toward the chairs.
  11. ReceptionistNehmen Sie im Wartezimmer Platz.Please take a seat in the waiting room.
  12. PriyaWie lange muss ich warten?How long do I have to wait?
  13. ReceptionistNicht lange.Not long.
  14. Two chairs scrape. Anton looks at the receptionist, a Pfannkuchen on a napkin.
  15. AntonIst es gleich fertig?Is it almost ready?
  16. ReceptionistGleich.Soon.
  17. Dr. Albrecht opens the inner door. She is exact.
  18. Dr. AlbrechtKommen Sie rein.Come in.

Practice — card and wait

Eleven quick exercises wait here. You'll listen, pick, fill a gap, swap a word, and build a line.

They stay short, so the round moves fast.

0 of 11 done

  1. What did you hear?

  2. Match the pairs

    German

    Ihre Versichertenkarte, bitte.Drop the English here
    Nehmen Sie im Wartezimmer Platz.Drop the English here
    Die Praxis ist im ersten Stock.Drop the English here

    English

    Drag an English line onto its German, or tap one and then the other.

  3. What do you say?

    It is afternoon. Greet the receptionist at the Praxis.

  4. Fill the gap

    I forgot my insurance card

    Ich habe meine Versichertenkarte ____.

  5. Pick the reply

    Receptionist says:

    Nehmen Sie im Wartezimmer Platz.

    Please take a seat in the waiting room.

    And you reply with:

  6. What does it mean?

    Ihre Versichertenkarte, bitte.

  7. Swap the word

    Someone asks where the Praxis is. It is on the first floor.

    Die Praxis ist im ____ Stock.

  8. Build the line

    How long do I have to wait?

    ?

    Tap the words in order.

  9. Find the mistake

  10. What do you say?

    You are Dr. Albrecht. Call the next patient in.

  11. True or false?

    This tells the patient to come into the treatment room.

Say it — say it at reception

Now you're Priya at the Praxis. When it's your turn, tap the microphone and speak the line.

Tap ▶ first if you want to hear the line. Your recording stays on your device.

  1. Priya (you)Anton looks at the stairs. Tell him which floor the doctor's office is on.

    Die Praxis ist im ersten Stock.

    The practice is on the first floor

0 of 4 said

Recap — what you can say now

GermanEnglish
Ich habe einen Termin.I have an appointment
Ihre Versichertenkarte, bitte.Your insurance card, please
Nehmen Sie im Wartezimmer Platz.Please take a seat in the waiting room
Ich habe meine Versichertenkarte vergessen.I forgot my insurance card
Wie lange muss ich warten?How long do I have to wait?
Die Praxis ist im ersten Stock.The practice is on the first floor
Next: lesson 111Telling the doctor

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Keep practicing with Yak Cards

Need these clinic lines on the go? Grab the Yak Cards for this lesson and review them anywhere.

A short Yak Cards round keeps the Praxis lines ready before you climb the stairs.

Open Yak Cards