German · Real conversations
How to say “I'm running ten minutes late.” in German
Tell someone that you expect to arrive ten minutes after the agreed time.
Ich komme zehn Minuten später.
I'm running ten minutes late.
The example describes the amount of delay, rather than how long you have been traveling.
Use it in three situations
A delayed arrival
Ich komme zehn Minuten später.
I'm running ten minutes late.
An appointment update
Ich komme fünf Minuten später.
I'm running five minutes late.
A message to a friend
Ich komme zehn Minuten später zu unserem Treffen.
I'm running ten minutes late for our meeting.
What to watch for
A literal translation of 'running' can wrongly imply that you are moving on foot.
Read the whole expression before replacing a detail. The natural wording may use a different order or construction from the English sentence.
Your turn
Imagine changing plans. Say this in German: I'm running five minutes late.
Reveal a sample reply
Ich komme fünf Minuten später.
I'm running five minutes late.
Build a useful exchange
Explain a change and offer a clear next step.
This expression in other languages
A note on speaking German
Use Sie for formal address and du with people you address informally. Könnten Sie …? is a useful polite request. Keep noun capitals and the verb position shown in each complete sentence.
The examples preserve German accents and ß. Read a full sentence before replacing a detail: a subordinate clause can move the verb to the end, and case can change an article or pronoun.
