German Phrase
Die Türen schließen gerade.
Meaning
The sentence means ‘The doors are closing right now.’ It describes an action that is happening at this very moment, often used to warn someone that they need to hurry.
When to use
Use this phrase when you see doors beginning to shut – in a hallway, at a train station, in a classroom, or any place where doors close automatically. It’s a quick way to alert others that the opportunity to pass through is disappearing.
✦Grammar Breakdown
DieTürenschließengerade
Definite article (Die)
‘Die’ is the nominative plural definite article used before feminine or plural nouns.
Plural noun (Türen)
‘Türen’ is the plural of ‘die Tür’ (door). In German plural nouns often add -en.
Verb (schließen)
‘schließen’ is a regular verb in the present tense, 3rd‑person plural form matching ‘die Türen’.
Adverb (gerade)
‘gerade’ means ‘right now’ or ‘just now’ and is placed after the verb to stress the immediacy of the action.
🗨In Conversation
Die Türen schließen gerade.
The doors are closing right now.
Oh, dann müssen wir schnell reingehen!
Oh, then we have to go in quickly!
✕Common Mistakes
Die Türen schließt gerade.
‘schließt’ is 3rd‑person singular; the subject ‘die Türen’ is plural, so you need ‘schließen’.
Die Türen schließen jetzt.
‘jetzt’ is acceptable but changes the nuance; ‘gerade’ stresses the immediacy of the action.
Die Tür schließen gerade.
Using the singular article changes the meaning to ‘the door’ instead of ‘the doors’.
↔Alternatives
Die Türen gehen gerade zu.
The doors are closing right now.
Die Türen schließen sich gerade.
The doors are closing right now.
Jetzt schließen die Türen.
Now the doors are closing.
Cultural Tip
In German, both ‘schließen’ (transitive) and ‘sich schließen’ (reflexive) are correct; the reflexive form sounds a bit more formal. ‘Gerade’ is preferred over ‘jetzt’ when you want to stress that the action is happening at this exact moment. In public transport stations, you’ll often hear announcements like ‘Die Türen schließen gleich.’ which is a synonym for ‘gerade.’