German Phrase
Der Bibliothekar sortiert die Bücher.
Meaning
The librarian is arranging the books, typically by putting them in order on the shelves. It describes a current action rather than a habitual routine.
When to use
Use this sentence when you want to talk about what a librarian is doing in a library, describe a scene in a story, or practice the present‑tense verb ‘sortieren’ with a direct‑object in the accusative.
✦Grammar Breakdown
DerBibliothekarsortiertdieBücher.
Definite Article (Der)
‘Der’ is the masculine nominative singular definite article, used here because ‘Bibliothekar’ is masculine and the subject of the sentence.
Noun Gender (Bibliothekar)
‘Bibliothekar’ is a masculine noun meaning ‘librarian’. Its plural is ‘Bibliothekare’.
Verb Conjugation (sortieren)
‘sortiert’ is the 3rd‑person singular present tense of ‘sortieren’ (to sort). The stem is ‘sortier‑’ and the ending ‘‑t’ marks he/she/it.
Accusative Article (die)
‘die’ is the plural accusative definite article, used because ‘Bücher’ is plural and the direct object.
Plural Noun (Bücher)
‘Bücher’ is the plural of ‘das Buch’ (book). In the accusative case the form stays the same as the nominative plural.
🗨In Conversation
Was macht der Bibliothekar gerade?
What is the librarian doing right now?
Er sortiert die Bücher.
He is sorting the books.
✕Common Mistakes
Der Bibliothekar sortieren die Bücher.
The verb must be conjugated to match the third‑person singular subject.
Das Bibliothekar sortiert die Bücher.
‘Bibliothekar’ is masculine, so the correct article is ‘der’.
Der Bibliothekar sortiert die Buch.
‘Buch’ is singular; the plural is ‘Bücher’ and requires the plural article ‘die’.
Der Bibliothekar sortiert das Bücher.
‘Bücher’ is plural, so the article must be ‘die’, not ‘das’.
↔Alternatives
Der Bibliothekar ordnet die Bücher.
The librarian arranges the books.
Der Bibliothekar räumt die Bücher ein.
The librarian shelves the books.
Der Bibliothekar stellt die Bücher zurück.
The librarian puts the books back.
Cultural Tip
In German libraries books are often sorted by the Dewey Decimal System or by author’s last name. Note that ‘Bibliothekar’ is masculine; the feminine form is ‘Bibliothekarin’. When speaking to a librarian, it’s polite to use the formal ‘Sie’ (e.g., ‘Entschuldigung, können Sie mir helfen?’).