-
WORD GRAMMAR
-
Verb
- Conjugation in indicative
- Person and number
- Tenses
- Voice
- Mood
- Verb categories
- Valency
- Semantic categories of verbs
- Finite / non-finite verb forms
- Noun
- Adjective
- Adverb
- Article
- Pronoun
- Preposition
- Conjunction
- Particle
- Interjection
-
Verb
-
SENTENCE GRAMMAR
- Clause types
- Complex clauses
- Constituents of a sentence
- Sentence structure
- Word order in a sentence
- Negation
Prepositions with accusative/dative
KA32
The following are two-way prepositions, i.e. prepositions that govern both the accusative and the dative case :
an | auf | hinter | in | neben |
über | unter | vor | zwischen |
Accusative or dative?
When two-way prepositions form prepositional phrases that function as place modifiers, the choice of case depends on whether the meaning expressed denotes movement, (i.e. direction towards a point ) or not (i.e. a state).
If movement is expressed, the two-way preposition governs the accusative case; if state is expressed, the dative case is used.
movement (direction) |
=
|
accusative |
state |
=
|
dative |
The most important verb categories that denote movement or state are shown in the table below.
verbs of movement
|
|
verbs of state
|
|||
place
|
direction
|
direction
|
place
|
place
|
|
fahren, laufen, fliegen, gehen, springen etc.
|
stellen, legen, setzen, hängen, stecken, packen, schieben, treten etc.
|
stehen, liegen, sitzen, hängen, stecken, wohnen, herumgehen etc.
|
spielen, frühstücken, warten, sich sonnen etc.
|
||
A
|
B
|
C
|
D
|
Based on their meaning, verbs are divided into two categories; those that denote movement and those that denote state.
Group A consists of verbs that always denote movement (direction towards a point) or movement (in a place).
Examples | Difference in meaning | ||
Ich fahre auf die Autobahn | I enter the highway driving | movement (direction) | accusative |
Ich fahre auf der Autobahn | I am driving on the highway | movement in a place | dative |
Group B consists of verbs that always denote movement (direction towards a point). Many verbs in this category are transitive.
Examples | ||
Sie legt ihre Bücher auf den Tisch. | movement (direction) | accusative |
Wer tritt ins Zimmer? |
Group C consists of verbs that always denote state. A prepositional phrase that functions as a place modifier is obligatory.
Examples | ||
Ihre Bücher liegen auf dem Tisch. | state | dative |
Ich wohne in diesem Haus. |
Group D consists of verbs that always denote state. The difference to Group C is that for Group D verbs a prepositional phrase that functions as a place modifier is not obligatory.
Examples | ||
Die Kinder spielen im Garten. | state | dative |
Ich warte an der Haltestelle. |
an
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Ich hänge das bild an die Wand. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Das Bild hängt an der Wand. | state = (dative). |
In temporal modifiers with dative
Examples | |
Paul kommt am Montag zurück. | dative |
Am Ende ist alles gut gelaufen. |
In place and temporal modifiers with accusative, if preceded by the preposition bis.
Examples | |
bis an die Knie | accusative |
bis an sein Lebensende |
auf
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Ich setze mich auf den Boden. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Ich sitze auf dem Boden. | state = (dative) |
In temporal modifiers with dative
Example | |
Auf dem Rockkonzert wurde viel getanzt. | dative |
In modal or causal modifiers with accusative
Examples | |
Er arbeitet auf den Zentimeter genau. | accusative |
Auf wiederholte Aufforderung |
hinter
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Der Schlüssel ist hinter die Kommode gefallen. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Er steht hinter der Tür. | state = (dative) |
in
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Er steigt ins Bus ein. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Wir sitzen im Garten. | state = (dative) |
In temporal modifiers with dative, unless preceded by the preposition bis. In this case, accusative is used.
Examples | |
Ich besuche dich in einer Woche. | dative |
Hochzeitsfeier bis in den frühen Morgen. | accusative |
In modal modifiers with dative
Example | |
In vielen Farben | dative |
neben
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Er setzt sich neben mich. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Er sitzt neben mir. | state = (dative) |
In modifiers functioning as copulas (with the meaning of except) or modal modifiers (with the meaning of compared to) with dative
Examples | |
Neben ihrer Arbeit muss sie auch für den haushalt sorgen. | dative |
Neben ihm bist du groß |
über
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Ich hänge das Bild über das Sofa. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Das Flugzeug fliegt über der Stadt. | state = (dative) |
In place modifiers that indicate a driving or a flight route always with accusative.
Examples | |
Fährt die Straßenbahn über den Bahnhof? | accusative |
In temporal modifiers with accusative
Example | |
übers Wochenende werde ich im Ausland sein. | accusative |
unter
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Sie gingen unter die Brücke. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Die Katze schläft unter dem Tisch. | state = (dative) |
In modal and conditional modifiers with dative
Examples | |
Unter großen Beifall | dative |
Unter der Voraussetzung | |
Unter diesem Aspekt |
vor
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Er stellte sich vor mich. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Das Fahrrad steht vor dem Haus. | state = (dative) |
In temporal modifiers with dative
Example | |
Ich habe ihn vor einer Woche besucht. | dative |
In causal modifiers with dative
Example | |
Er war rot vor Wut. | dative |
zwischen
|
In place modifiers with accusative or dative
Examples | |
Er stellt sich zwischen sein Brüder. | movement (direction) = accusative |
Er steht zwischen seinen Brüdern. | state = (dative) |
In modal-temporal modifiers with dative
Examples | |
Zwischen zwei und drei Stunden | dative |