Prepositions of time or temporal prepositions show the relationship of these things to time. German Prepositions That Take the Accusative Case Types of Accusative Prepositions. In the following tables, you will find some rules for commonly used prepositions in German. The train stops between Frankfurt and Darmstadt. Die Französischstudenten rennen schreiend weg, Wenn Sie am Fenster sitzen und essen, ist die Loreley direkt, Usage Notes: How to say where you are going (an, auf, in, nach, zu), Usage Notes: How to say where you are (an, auf, bei, in, zu etc. Sie bleibt bis Sonntag bei ihrer Oma und fährt am Nachmittag wieder zurück, damit sie vor 18 Uhr zum Abendessen wieder zu Hause ist. When it precedes a time expression, vor means ago: 7. German Department. It’s worth 1. Zu can also replace the use of auf for formal events and public buildings, and it can replace the use of an generally. The tram stop is directly in front of the museum. Bei schlechtem Wetter fährt sie mit dem Bus. Use in for location in continents, countries with or without article, and cities. This basic meaning can be extended to describe where one comes from (as in one’s home or birthplace), what something is made of, and occasionally a motive for doing something… To say where one has just been, von is used. Gegenüber can also be used to mean in relation to as in the following examples: Warum bist du mir gegenüber immer so aggressiv? 9a. Summary Chart. The first table listed here shows the prepositions which will only ever take the accusative case, i.e. All Rights Reserved. Under the surface of the water, lots of fish are swimming. wider – against, contrary to something. Note: As in English, the meanings of the prepositions in German are quite flexible, … Präpositionen und Fälle – Präposition + Artikel, Präpositionen und Fälle – Dativ/Akkusativ (1), Präpositionen und Fälle – Dativ/Akkusativ (ähnliche Wörter). this can be summarized by the nonsense mnemonic: When two-way prepositions are used in combination with. Das macht sie schon seit vielen Jahren an den Wochenenden so. Index of Video Lectures, Deutsch 101 & 102, hinter (hinter + das = hinters; hinter + dem = hinterm), unter (unter + das = unters; unter + dem = unterm), Using the accusative would imply that we are eating our way, Der Terminator kommt mit einem Maschinengewehr a, Der Terminator steht mit einem Maschinengewehr, Using the dative in this case would imply that Google is, Horizontal or vertical boundary: Sie geht, Replacing an for horizontal boundaries: Sie geht, Wir waren drei Wochen/einen Tag/zwei Jahre/eine Stunde (lang). described above, are the only uses of nach [to mean to]. You also need to use zu if you’re going to a particular company’s locale that you’re specifying with a proper name (e.g. ), Additional Useful Prepositions (These will not be explicitly tested in 101-231, but are very good to know, especially for listening and reading! Wegen = because of. I will be on holiday from/as of tomorrow. Unlike weil, da, and denn, wegen is a preposition, not a conjunction. Bei is used to indicate location in or at a particular person’s or company’s house/locale; it is also used to indicate one’s place of work. Remember you need a score of at least 80% in order to get a “check” for this assignment. Pronunciation Links Ich werde das Buch bis morgen gelesen haben. The compromise used below is to give their primary meanings, and to write “etc.” where other meanings occur particularly often. I took a lot of photos during my holiday. ), “An die Freude” [“Ode to Joy”] chorus from Beethoven’s 9th symphony, Preposition jamboree (acc. Wir werden für drei Wochen/einen Tag/zwei Jahre/eine Stunde nach Berlin reisen. e. If in doubt, use zu! The most important remnant is zu Hause, and there are others, such as “zu Tisch” [=at table]. driving to a building, visiting a person. The use of one preposition determines the case used for nouns, articles, adjectives and pronouns. often in informal spoken German, but are less common in writing. Become a Lingolia Plus member to access these additional exercises. Wir haben uns vor 2 Jahren kennengelernt. Note: As in English, the meanings of the prepositions in German are quite flexible, and very important to know, since these little words come up all the time. You should be familiar with the various common meanings of these prepositions. Add lang, if you wish. immer so aggressiv? © University of Michigan. Das Kino befindet sich auf der linken Seite. Our online exercises for German help you to learn and practice grammar rules in an interactive manner. We drove through the tunnel.They swam across the river. it: prepositions come up all the time, and are crucial in determining meaning! Der Junge geht zur Schule/zur Post/zum Bäcker. ), Strong Verb/Weak Verb Pairs (stehen/stellen etc. Although some aspects of these meanings are reviewed here, you may want to look back at your textbooks/notes from previous German courses to refresh your memory. only, AC-DC), Refer to the page on prepositional verbs for more information. Other contractions (e.g. 2c. only, dat. Use in, auf and an in the same ways as described under Wohin gehen wir? von-zu.” For the two-way prepositions, sing “An, auf, hin-ter, ne-ben, un-ter/?-ber, in, vor, zwi-i-schen” to the tune of the “An die Freude” [“Ode to Joy”] chorus from Beethoven’s 9th symphony. in order to get a feel for how these prepositions can be used in various contexts. Canoo Wörterbücher und Grammatik, Usage Resources I like all of my classmates excpets for Martin. An exception to this latter rule is the huge department store chain “Kaufhof,” the reason being that the name contains the word “Hof” [=yard], a space that one can go into. Auf is also sometimes used for going to formal events or public places. Using the wrong preposition, or getting the case wrong, is a key indicator of a non-native speaker, so learning German prepositions is a major step towards native competency. You should put the accusative preposition entlang after the noun it refers to. Früh am Samstagmorgen fährt Paula mit dem Fahrrad über den Berg zum Haus ihrer Oma. Accusative/Dative prepositions: an, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor, zwischen. ohne – without. Prepositions of place correspond to the questions “Where/Where … to/Where … from?” Some typical prepositions in this group include: Prepositions of time correspond to the questions “When/how long?” Some important prepositions in this group are: There is no preposition directly before a year in German. Download German grammar cheat sheet for beginners (PDF) 6a. Use the following preposition charts to help you learn the usage of German prepositions. Click here for more information on strong verb/weak verb pairs like stehen/stellen, liegen/legen, sitzen/setzen etc., which are frequently used with two-way prepositions. (and of nach for directions), and the use of auf for Straße, Land, Toilette etc.! 2b. 4. Von is also used to say what planet someone is from, and to indicate the author of a book or the creator of a work of art: 5. Prepositions of Time and Place in German Grammar, in the sense of “in front of”, “next to”, “near”. Vor 18 Uhr werde ich nicht zu Hause sein. The boy is going to school/to the post office/to the bakery. Prepositions of place or locative prepositions show the position or location of nouns, prounouns or articles. With Lingolia Plus you can access 14 additional exercises about Types, as well as 840 online exercises to improve your German. Do NOT use für. German prepositions which only take the accusative case. gegen – against. DWDS Wortinformation 2c. It left two minutes, Eminem thinks that people are always talking, The Panorama-Restaurant Loreley am Rhein lies directly, Wenn Sie am Fenster sitzen und essen, ist die Loreley, If you sit at the window and eat, the Loreley is directly, The organizers of the Robo-Cup want to reduce the apprehensiveness [people feel]. Wir fuhren durch den Tunnel. 2d. Use für ONLY in this case. Dictionary Links Here are some examples, with explanations for the choice of case: b. For location in public buildings, in (and occasionally an) is increasingly used instead of auf, especially in speaking. These and other important prepositions listed in charts with English translations and real German examples. Prepositions in German Prepositions are used as a union between a noun, verb or adjective with another noun, verb, adjective or adverb. Wir sind für drei Wochen/einen Tag/zwei Jahre/eine Stunde in Berlin. b. The list of Dative, Accusative, and two-way prepositions: Accusative prepositions: bis, durch, für, gegen, ohne, um. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Incorrect guesses will reduce your score. d. Use nach for directions (without an article), and idiomatically in nach Hause. In speaking, it is often used with the dative instead of the genitive. However, you often encounter a preposition before the year when you’re listening to or reading German. Get 3 months membership for just €10.49 (≈ $12.48). Your Schnitzel originates, German counterpart of the English expression “Pride comes, “Wann fährt der Zug nach Hamburg?” — “Sie haben ihn, “When does the train to Hamburg leave?” — “You just missed it. in the direction of someplace, but not all the way there. they will take an object in the accusative case, and thus follow the grammatical rules of this case. nouns following the two-way prepositions (. The dative preposition gegenüber can precede or follow the noun it refers to. Index of Video Lectures, Deutsch 101 & 102 In addition, the language’s case system means that it is essential for German learners to memorise whether each preposition is accusative, dative or two-way. Like because of, it is followed by a noun or pronoun (in the genitive, since it’s a genitive preposition) that gives the reason, not by a whole clause (with a verb) that gives the reason. e. Zu does not usually indicate location, but it used to. Warum bist du gegenüber mir Use in if you will end up inside a place or location. Mnemonic advice: To remember the accusative prepositions, use the acronym “O Fudge” [ohne, für, um, durch, gegen], or ask your instructor about chanting “Durch-für-gegen-ohne-um, Deutsch zu lernen ist nicht dumm.”  For the dative prepositions, sing “Aus-au?er-bei-mit, nach-seit, von-zu” to the tune of the “Blue Danube” waltz, or think of the touching love poem “Roses are red, violets are blue, aus-au?er-bei-mit, nach-seit, There are also other important prepositions listed on this page with English translations, and examples in real German. PONS Online Dictionary c. Use an to describe motion to a precise spot, or to something that can be perceived as a horizontal or vertical boundary (something you would stand at or by in English). Nouns and pronouns following the most common genitive prepositions (an)statt, trotz, während and wegen will generally be in the Genitive in more formal speaking and writing, but are increasingly often in the Dative in more informal speaking and writing. 2. Our office is closed from 10/03 to 28/3 due to renovations. 1. Duden Wörterbuch, General Links 6b. Prepositions of time (temporal) show the relationship of things to time. 9b. Für = for generally, but to say for how long something happens, German distinguishes three cases: 2a. Sie schwammen durch den Fluss. [See “Wohin gehen wir?” above for other uses of nach.].