Case

KA28

Prepositions determine the case of the accompanying nouns or pronouns. There are two main categories :

1.	One-case prepositions.

Most prepositions govern only one case.

Examples
ohne + accusative	ohne seine Hilfe
nach + dative	nach der Pause
infolge + genitive	infolge dichten Nebels

This category also includes prepositions that, in everyday language or dialects, can govern two (or even three cases), without any changes in their meaning

Examples
wegen + genitive / (dative)	wegen Umbaus / wegen Umbau
ab + dative / (accusative)	ab 18 Jahren / ab 18 Jahre
entlang + accusative / dative / genitive	den Fluss entlang / entlang dem Fluss / entlang des Flusses

2.	Two-case prepositions

This category includes prepositions that can govern two cases. The change of case changes the meaning of the preposition.

Examples			meaning
in +	accusative	Tu die Milch in den Kühlschrank!	direction
in +	dative	Die Milch ist im Kühlschrank.	state/absence of motion
an +	accusative	Paul hängt das Bild an die Wand.	direction
an +	dative	Das Bild hängt an der Wand.	state/absence of motion