Full sentences sound written
An ellipsis leaves out words that listener and speaker can both fill in. In conversation, a learner who answers every question with a complete sentence sounds like a textbook. German speakers cut, but they cut along fixed lines. Four patterns cover most of everyday speech.
Same answer, two registers
Ja, ich komme gern mit.
Yes, I'd like to come along.
complete, correct, a little stiff as a reply
Klar, gern!
Sure, I'd love to!
what you actually hear
Answer fragments keep their case
A short answer repeats only the new part. In English the fragment has no case to worry about: To my brother. In German the fragment keeps exactly the case and preposition the full sentence would need, because it is still a piece of that sentence.
A
Wem hast du den Schlüssel gegeben?
Who did you give the key to?
B
Meinem Bruder.
My brother.
Dativ, as in: Ich habe ihn meinem Bruder gegeben.
A
Worauf wartest du noch?
What are you still waiting for?
B
Auf den Rückruf vom Vermieter.
For the landlord to call back.
the preposition stays
Dropping the first position
The most German ellipsis removes the word in position one, the Vorfeld, when it is a pronoun everybody can supply: das, es, ich. The verb stays where it was, so the sentence now begins with the verb. It is not a question, and the falling melody makes that clear.
Kenn ich schon.
I know that one already.
(Das) kenn ich schon.
Geht leider nicht.
Sorry, that won't work.
(Das) geht leider nicht.
Hab ich doch gestern erledigt.
I did that yesterday, didn't I tell you?
(Das) hab ich doch gestern erledigt.
Hab heute keine Zeit, sorry.
Haven't got time today, sorry.
(Ich) hab heute keine Zeit. Common in chat and among friends.
The gap is in position one. A pronoun after the verb normally stays: in Weiß ich nicht only das is missing.
Short clauses and stock phrases
Conditional and comparative clauses can lose their subject and verb when the meaning is obvious. These shortened clauses also appear in emails and are fine in neutral writing.
Wenn möglich, morgen.
Tomorrow, if possible.
Wenn es möglich ist, morgen.
Falls nötig, rufe ich Sie noch mal an.
I'll call you again if necessary.
Wie besprochen schicke ich Ihnen den Entwurf.
As discussed, I'm sending you the draft.
Ich nehme den Fisch, sie das Risotto.
I'll have the fish, she'll have the risotto.
the repeated verb is dropped in the second clause
Questions without a verb
Noch einen Kaffee?
Another coffee?
Lust auf Kino heute Abend?
Fancy the cinema tonight?
