In my previous post - I mentioned about bitte as a respond to thank-yous in German. But the word bitte is a very versatile one as it has more than just one meaning and can be used in various contexts. Such a simple word yet so versatile. Not only that, bitte is a very important word in everyday life because it adds a notion of politeness; depending on the tone.
Let's get some magic going!
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You’re Welcome
This is one of the two translation of bitte that you'd first encounter as a beginner.
When someone thank you for something you've done, you'd respond with "Bitte!"
I'm not sure about other cultures but here, where I am, it is not considered rude to not respond to thank-yous in minor situations as it is something understood. For example a stranger might hold the lift for you until you get in, so you say "thank you" but the other person may not necessarily say "welcome" in return - and that's not considered impolite.
However, this is not the case in Germany or Switzerland from what I know. Not acknowledging thanks can be seen as impolite. Not following a danke with a bitte, to a German speaker, may make you appear to be refusing their thanks.
There are a few ways of using bitte in this context:
Danke für den Kuchen!
Thank you for the cake!
Bitte!
You're welcome!
Danke schön für den Kuchen!
Thank you for the cake!
Bitte schön!
You're welcome!
Danke sehr für den Kuchen!
Thank you very much for the cake!
Bitte sehr!
You're very welcome!
Please
This is another translation that a beginner would commonly know bitte for.
In this context, instead of you doing a favour or helping someone else,
you're requesting for a favour or help from someone.
It's the magic word we all know - please.
Bitte can take different positions in a sentence, just like in English.
But different position of bitte gives different emphasis.
Note that verb is always in the first position when it is a question,
and bitte can never be in the second position.
Beginning : Bitte, kannst du mir helfen?
Please, can you help me?
Middle: Kannst du bitte mir helfen?
Can you please help me?
After both pronouns (du & mir) : Kannst du mir bitte helfen?
Can you help me please?
End: Kannst du mir helfen, bitte?
Can you help me, please?
When you begin your sentence with bitte,
you're emphasizing it to get some kind of attention.
Bitte mach die Tür zu.
Please close the door.
or sometimes it's a fixed phrase like
Bitte lächeln!
Please smile! / Say cheese!
Bitte nicht!
Please don't!
Placing bitte in the middle of the sentence emphasizes the pronoun/noun after bitte, which in this case is mir. Can you please help ME, not anyone else.
Sieh dir bitte das an.
Please take a look at that.
Kann ich bitte einen Tisch reservieren?
Can I please reserve a table?
The most natural sounding one would be placing bitte after both pronouns (if there is):
Können Sie mir bitte sagen, wo die Kirche ist?
Can you please tell me where the church is?
You're emphasizing bitte when you please it at the end - that makes it sounds impolite as you're demanding that the other person does what you're expecting him/her to do. May not be the case all the time though, but best to avoid if you're trying to request for some help which you're asking in favour. It'll work in certain situations, for example, parents - child:
Mach deine Hausaufgaben, bitte!
Do your homework, please!
Or for short / fixed expressions like:
Wie spät ist es, bitte? - What time is it, please?
Entschuldigen Sie, bitte! - Excuse me, please!
Der Nächste, bitte! - Next, please.
Einen Kaffee, bitte. - One coffee, please.
... since there's simply no other better place to position bitte in the sentence.
Pardon? / Pardon me?
Just like English's "Pardon?" or the longer form "I beg your pardon?",
"Wie bitte?" is used just the same way. Instead of saying "Huh? What???" or
"Hä? Was???", you'd use this short expression to politely ask someone to repeat something they have said because you did not hear it.
Ich habe ein Kleid für dich gekauft.
I bought a dress for you.
Wie bitte?
Pardon?
Ich sagte, ich hätte ein Kleid für dich gekauft.
I said I bought a dress for you.
"Wie bitte?" is literally translated as "How please?" in German, but this phrase is used idiomatically and does not mean "How please?" literally.
Go Ahead
In English, we use "go ahead" when we express our approval of an action or responding to a request that one may proceed. Here, for this context, the usage of "bitte" is more limited, less broad than the use of "go ahead" in English.
Kann ich bitte mehr Cola haben?
Can I please have more cola?
Bitte.
Go ahead. (Help yourself)
Or another situation you may use this is when you're in an elevator with a stranger and
you'd like to let the other person to get out of the elevator first,
you'd say "Bitte" (Go ahead) with perhaps a hand gesture.
Or when someone asks if they can have a seat, you'd point to that seat and say “Bitte sehr.”
BUT
the translation of "Go ahead" does not work in situation like this:
Kann ich heute bei Anna übernachten?
Can I sleep over at Anna's today?
Bitte. (nope nope nope, WRONG)
Go ahead.
The German "bitte" in this context gives the idea that one is very pleased to help or give you something. It gives a sense of invitation rather than an approval.
Here You Go.
This is probably one of the most confusing translation for a beginner. Doesn't "bitte" means welcome? Why does someone says "you're welcome" before I even say "thank you"? That's because bitte can also mean "here you go". We say "here you go" when are giving someone something that they have asked for.
Kannst du mir bitte das Salz geben?
Can you please pass me the salt?
Hier, bitte.
Here you go.
Bitte in this context is also often used along with sehr or schön.
For example, as a waiter/waitress hands you your change of money or a host of a party hands you a plate of cake, they'll say:
"hier, bitte" or "bitte sehr " or "bitte schön"
You should then say "danke" or "danke sehr" or "danke schön" in response to that.
May I Help You?
Bitte is probably least used in this way because there's a more common way of saying it which is ,,Kann ich Ihnen helfen?"
Instead of stand-along bitte, in this context, bitte schön or bitte sehr is used.
This is more often used by people who are offering service
for example sales person, waiters, customer service ..
Bitte schön?
May I help you?
Ja, können Sie mir bitte sagen, wo die Kinderabteilung ist?
Yes, can you please tell me where the children department is?
As you can see - bitte can carry many different meanings.
One key way to differentiate them is by understanding context and tone.
I believe it's not too confusing after understanding the various ways that bitte is used.
What about the verb "bitten" ?
The verb bitten is used differently from the phrase bitte mentioned above.
Yup, totally sound and spelled like the English's past participle of "bite"
BUT totally unrelated.
Nothing to do with bites here, although I did wonder if this has any connection to the English saying like "Just ask her. She won’t bite."
bitten means to ask, to request, to appeal, or to beg.
Kann ich dich um einen Gefallen bitten?
Can I ask you a favor?
Darf ich Sie um Ihren Namen bitten?
May I ask your name?
Ich bitte dich, mir bei meinen Hausaufgaben zu helfen.
I ask you to help me with my homework.
Ich bitte euch um Hilfe.
I'm asking for your help.
Wir bitten Sie um Entschuldigung für die Unannehmlichkeiten.
Literally: We ask for your pardon for the inconvenience.
We apologize for the inconvenience.
Note that unlike bitte (please), bitten (to ask)
as a verb is always placed at the second position in a sentence.
With the presence of modal verb, bitten will be pushed to the end of the sentence.
...and the noun "die Bitte" (plural:die Bitten) ?
the requests, the plea, the petition
Ich habe eine Bitte.
I have a request.
Ich habe eine Bitte an dich.
I have a favor to ask of you.
Seine Bitte um Gerechtigkeit wurde nicht gehört.
His plea for justice was not heard.
In Swiss German, "bitte" is also spelled the same way.
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