German Phrase
Welche Ausstellungen laufen gerade?
Meaning
The sentence asks which exhibitions are currently being shown. It is commonly used in museums, galleries, cultural centers, or when planning a visit to find out what is on display at the moment.
When to use
Use this question when you are at a cultural venue and want to know the current lineup of exhibitions, or when you are planning a trip and need up‑to‑date information about what you can see.
✦Grammar Breakdown
WelcheAusstellungenlaufengerade?
Welche (interrogative determiner)
Used for plural nouns in the nominative or accusative case; it asks 'which' and agrees in gender and number with the noun.
Ausstellungen (noun, plural)
Feminine noun meaning 'exhibitions'; in plural it takes the ending -en and is used here in the nominative case as the subject.
laufen (verb)
Literally 'to run', but idiomatically used for events to mean 'to be on/ongoing' (e.g., 'Die Ausstellung läuft').
gerade (adverb)
Means 'right now' or 'currently' and is placed after the verb in most German sentences.
🗨In Conversation
Welche Ausstellungen laufen gerade?
Which exhibitions are currently running?
Im Moment haben wir die Impressionisten‑Ausstellung und eine Fotografie‑Show.
At the moment we have the Impressionist exhibition and a photography show.
✕Common Mistakes
Was Ausstellungen laufen gerade?
‘Was’ is used for singular or uncountable nouns; with a plural noun you need ‘Welche’.
Welche Ausstellungen ist gerade?
The verb must agree with the plural subject; ‘ist’ is singular. Use ‘laufen’ or ‘sind’.
Welche Ausstellungen gerade laufen?
Placing ‘gerade’ before the verb is less natural; the usual order is verb + ‘gerade’.
↔Alternatives
Was wird gerade ausgestellt?
What is being exhibited right now?
Welche Ausstellungen gibt es momentan?
Which exhibitions are there at the moment?
Welche Ausstellungen sind aktuell zu sehen?
Which exhibitions can be seen currently?
Cultural Tip
In German, the verb 'laufen' is often used for events, movies, or exhibitions to indicate they are ongoing (e.g., 'Der Film läuft'). In Austria you might also hear 'stehen' or 'sind zu sehen' for the same idea. Remember that 'Ausstellungen' is feminine plural, so the determiner 'Welche' must match that gender and number. When speaking formally, you can add 'Entschuldigung' before the question to sound more polite.