German Phrase
Lass es einfach erst mal hier.
Meaning
The sentence tells someone to leave an object or a matter at the current spot, but only for the time being. It carries a relaxed, informal tone, as if you’re saying ‘just put it here for now.’
When to use
Use this phrase when you want to ask a friend, colleague, or a casual acquaintance to temporarily place something at a specific location, especially when you’ll deal with it later.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Lasseseinfacherstmalhier
Lass (imperative)
‘Lass’ is the informal singular imperative of ‘lassen’, used to give a direct command like ‘let’ or ‘leave’.
es (personal pronoun)
‘es’ is the neuter pronoun referring to an object or situation previously mentioned.
einfach (adverb)
‘einfach’ means ‘simply’ or ‘just’, softening the command and making it sound casual.
erst mal (colloquial phrase)
‘erst mal’ (often written ‘erstmal’) is a colloquial way to say ‘for now’ or ‘first of all’, indicating a temporary action.
hier (adverb of place)
‘hier’ means ‘here’, indicating the location where the object should be left.
🗨In Conversation
Lass es einfach erst mal hier.
Just leave it here for now.
Klar, ich bringe es später zurück.
Sure, I’ll bring it back later.
✕Common Mistakes
Lassen Sie es einfach erst mal hier.
The formal ‘Sie’ version is grammatically correct but sounds overly stiff for the casual tone of the original phrase.
Lass es einfach erst mal dort.
‘Dort’ means ‘there’; the original phrase specifically says ‘here’ (hier).
Lass es einfach erstmal hier.
‘Erstmal’ is often written as one word, but in the phrase ‘erst mal’ the two‑word version is preferred for clarity.
↔Alternatives
Lass es hier erstmal liegen.
Just leave it here for the time being.
Lass es vorerst hier.
Leave it here for now.
Stell es bitte hier hin.
Please put it here.
Cultural Tip
‘Erst mal’ is a very common spoken filler in German, especially among younger speakers. It sounds informal, so stick to it in casual settings. In a formal context you would replace the imperative ‘Lass’ with ‘Lassen Sie’ and probably drop ‘einfach’, e.g., ‘Lassen Sie es bitte hier zunächst.’