German Phrase
Sorry, mir ist was dazwischengekommen.
Meaning
Literally: ‘Sorry, something came in between.’ It is the German way of saying ‘Sorry, something came up.’ The speaker apologises for an unexpected interruption or a change of plans.
When to use
Use this phrase when you have to cancel, postpone, or explain a sudden interruption in a casual or semi‑formal setting – for example, when you’re late to a meeting, need to leave a conversation, or can’t keep a previously made appointment.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Sorry,miristwasdazwischengekommen.
mir (Dativ)
‘mir’ is the dative form of the personal pronoun ‘ich’; it is used here because the verb ‘dazwischenkommen’ takes a dative experiencer.
ist (sein, 3rd pers. sg.)
The auxiliary verb ‘sein’ is used with the past participle ‘gekommen’ to form the perfect tense of ‘dazwischenkommen’.
was (indefinite pronoun)
‘was’ means ‘something’ and functions as the subject of the clause.
dazwischenkommen (separable verb)
In the perfect tense the prefix ‘da‑’ separates and moves to the end: ‘ist … dazwischengekommen’.
Sorry (loanword)
‘Sorry’ is an English loanword used informally in German to apologize; it is not capitalised in spoken language.
🗨In Conversation
Sorry, mir ist was dazwischengekommen.
Sorry, something came up.
Kein Problem, wir können das später nachholen.
No problem, we can pick it up later.
✕Common Mistakes
Sorry, mich ist was dazwischengekommen.
‘dazwischenkommen’ takes a dative experiencer, so ‘mir’ is correct; ‘mich’ would be accusative and ungrammatical here.
Sorry, mir sind was dazwischengekommen.
The verb ‘sein’ must agree with the singular subject ‘was’; use ‘ist’, not ‘sind’.
Sorry, mir ist was dazwischen gekommen.
In the perfect tense the prefix separates and moves to the end; ‘ist dazwischengekommen’ is correct, not ‘ist dazwischengekommen’ without the prefix at the end.
↔Alternatives
Entschuldigung, ich hatte dazwischen etwas.
Excuse me, I had something in the way.
Tut mir leid, da ist etwas dazwischengekommen.
I’m sorry, something got in the way.
Leider ist mir etwas dazwischengekommen.
Unfortunately, something came up for me.
Cultural Tip
‘Sorry’ is widely understood in Germany, especially among younger speakers, but in formal contexts ‘Entschuldigung’ or ‘Entschuldige bitte’ is preferred. The separable verb ‘dazwischenkommen’ is common in everyday speech to describe unexpected events, and the dative ‘mir’ signals that the speaker is the one affected, not the cause of the interruption.