Prepositions in German

• Prepositions describe where and when something is in relation to something else.
• They show the relationship between a noun and another word in a sentence.
• Prepositions often indicate:
  • Place (e.g. in, at)
  • Time (e.g. since)
  • Direction (e.g. to, along, through)
• Prepositions determine which case the noun needs to take. They can be followed by the accusative case or the dative case. This impacts the meaning of the sentence.

Watch this video to learn more about prepositions.

A preposition shows the relationship between a noun and another word in a sentence. Prepositions often indicate place, time or direction.

Prepositions of place:

• Ich gehe in den Park. - I am going/I go to the park.

Prepositions of direction:

• Wir fahren zur Schule. - We are travelling/we travel to school.

Prepositions of time:

• am Montag, im Sommer, seit zwei Wochen.

The preposition also determines which case is the noun needs to take.

Identify the prepositions in the sentences.

The prepositions listed below are always followed by theaccusative case.

An easy way to remember them is by using the mnemonicFUDGEBOW:

• Ffürfor
• Uumaround, at
• Ddurchthrough
• Ggegenagainst
• Eentlangalong
• Bbisuntil
• Oohnewithout
• Wwideragainst, contrary to

When using entlang, the preposition tends to go at the end.
Wir wandern den Fluss entlang. - We are hiking along the river.

The accusative definite articles are:

This also applies to the articles diesen/diese/diesesthis, jenen/jene/jenesthat, jeden/jede/jedesevery and welchen/welche/welcheswhich.

The accusative indefinite articles are:

This also applies to the possessive adjectivesmeinmy, deinyour, seinhis, ihrher, unserour, eueryour, Ihryour, ihrtheir and the negative kein.

For example:

• Ich habe ein Geschenk für meinen Vater gekauft. - I bought a present for my dad.

• Mein Haus liegt um die Ecke. - My house is located around the corner.

• Wir sind durch die Stadtmitte gefahren. - We drove/travelled through the town.

• Wir spielen gegen eine tolle Mannschaft. - We are playing against a great team.

These prepositions are always followed by the dative case:

• ausfrom
• beiat, near
• mitwith
• nachafter, to
• seitsince
• vonfrom
• zuto

The dative definite articles are:

This also applies to the articles diesem/dieser/diesemthis, jenem/jener/jenemthat, jedem/jeder/jedemevery and welchem/welcher/welchemwhich.

The dative indefinite articles are:

This also applies to the possessive adjectives meinmy, deinyour, seinhis, ihrher, unserour, eueryour, Ihryour, ihrtheir and the negative kein.

For example:

• Ich fahre immer mit dem Bus. - I always travel by bus.

• Nach der Schule mache ich immer meine Hausaufgaben. - After school I always do my homework.

• Ich werde bei einer großen Firma arbeiten. - I will work for a big company.

• Ich gehe am Montag zur Schule. - I am going to school on Monday.

When using the preposition zu with the definite articles dem and der, it can be shortened to zum (zu + dem) or zur (zu + der).

Dual prepositions are also known as two-way prepositions.

These prepositions can be trickier to use because they are followed by either the accusative or dative case depending on whether they describe movement or a static position.

An easy way to remember which case to use is to think of the mnemonic MANMAD (Movement Accusative No Movement Add Dative).

The dual prepositions are:

• anon
• aufon top of
• hinterbehind
• inin, into
• nebennext to
• unterunder
• vorin front of
• zwischenbetween

The definite articles are:

This also applies to the articles dies-this, jen-that, jed-every and welch-which.

The indefinite articles are:

This also applies to the possessive adjectives meinmy, deinyour, seinhis, ihrher, unserour, eueryour, Ihryour, ihrtheir and the negative kein.

For example:

• Ich gehe in die Schule. - I go (in)to school.
  As there is movement in is followed by the accusative case.

• Ich bin in der Schule. - I am in school.
  There is no movement so in is followed by the dative case.

• Das Buch liegt auf dem Tisch. - The book is on (top of) the table.
  There is no movement so auf is followed by the dative case.

• Ich lege das Buch auf den Tisch. - I put the book on the table.
  There is movement so auf is followed by the accusative case. The book is moved from one place to another.

When using the preposition in with the definite articles dem and das, it can be shortened to ins (in + das dem) or im (in + dem).

Choose the correct article

Remember: Use MANMAD to work out which case to use.

Using laut + dative

laut + dative case be used to mean 'according to'.*

Laut meinem Lehrer haben wir nächste Woche eine Prüfung.
According to my teacher we have an exam next week.

Laut meiner Schwester ist ihre Schuluniform ziemlich bequem.
According to my sister, her school uniform is quite comfortable.

Using bei + dative

The shortened form beim (bei + dem) can be used to mean 'while doing something'.

Ich hatte einen Unfall beim Radfahren.
I had an accident while cycling.

Beim Frühstück sehe ich immer fern.
I always watch TV while eating breakfast.

Letzte Woche habe ich mir beim Fußballspielen den Fuß verletzt.
I injured my foot last week while playing football.

Translate the following sentences:

Complete this multiple-choice quiz to check your understanding of prepositions.