The five accusative prepositions — durch, für, gegen, ohne, um — are among the first you learn, because the case never changes: whatever they mean, the noun after them stands in the accusative. With the mechanical case question settled, the real work is meaning. Each of these prepositions covers a spread of spatial, temporal, and abstract senses that map only loosely onto their nearest English word, and two of them — um and gegen — divide clock time so precisely that getting it wrong instantly marks you as a learner. This page is about using them like a native, not just declining them correctly.
All five force the accusative in every use:
| Preposition | Core meaning | Accusative example |
|---|---|---|
| durch | through; by means of | durch den Park |
| für | for | für dich |
| gegen | against; around (time) | gegen die Wand |
| ohne | without | ohne dich |
| um | around; at (clock time) | um den Tisch |
durch — through, and by means of
Spatially, durch means through: passing from one side of something to the other. Abstractly, it expresses by means of — the agent or channel by which something happens (where English often uses through or by).
Wir sind zu Fuß durch den ganzen Park gegangen.
We walked on foot through the entire park. (spatial: durch den Park)
Durch einen Zufall haben wir uns wiedergetroffen.
Through a coincidence we met again. (abstract 'by means of': durch einen Zufall)
The neuter contraction durchs (durch + das) is common in speech: durchs Fenster, durchs ganze Haus.
Die Katze ist durchs offene Fenster gesprungen.
The cat jumped through the open window. (informal; durchs = durch das)
für — for
Für marks a beneficiary, a purpose, or an exchange — the for of "for you," "for what?" and "for ten euros." Remember the umlaut: it is für, never fur.
Ich habe eine kleine Überraschung für dich.
I've got a little surprise for you. (beneficiary: für dich)
Wofür brauchst du das eigentlich?
What do you actually need that for? (für in the wo-compound wofür)
The neuter contraction is fürs (für + das): fürs Erste ("for now"), fürs Protokoll ("for the record").
Fürs Erste reicht das, danke.
That's enough for now, thanks. (fürs Erste — set phrase)
gegen — against, and approximately (time)
Gegen has a physical sense of against / into (contact, collision, opposition) and an abstract sense of opposition or contrast. Crucially, it also expresses approximate clock time — "around" a given hour.
Das Auto ist frontal gegen einen Baum geprallt.
The car crashed head-on into a tree. (physical contact: gegen einen Baum)
Ich bin grundsätzlich gegen diese Idee.
I'm fundamentally against this idea. (abstract opposition: gegen diese Idee)
Komm doch gegen acht vorbei, dann ist das Essen fertig.
Come by around eight, the food will be ready then. (approximate time: gegen acht)
ohne — without, and the bare-noun rule
Ohne means without. Its most distinctive feature for English speakers is that it very often takes a bare noun with no article where English keeps "a" or "the." German treats "without [a] car" as a general statement about lacking the category, so the article drops.
Ohne Auto ist es hier auf dem Land ziemlich schwierig.
Without a car it's pretty difficult out here in the countryside. (bare noun: ohne Auto, no article)
Sie ist ohne ein Wort gegangen.
She left without a word. (here ein is kept for emphasis: 'not even one word')
The article reappears only when it carries real meaning — emphasising "even one" (ohne ein Wort) or pointing to a specific item (ohne den Schlüssel kommst du nicht rein). With pronouns, of course, ohne behaves normally: ohne dich, ohne mich.
Ohne dich fahre ich nirgendwohin.
Without you I'm not going anywhere. (pronoun in the accusative: ohne dich)
um — around, and exact clock time
Um is spatial around (encircling) and, most importantly for daily life, the preposition of exact clock time — "at" a precise hour.
Wir saßen alle um den großen Tisch herum.
We were all sitting around the big table. (spatial 'around'; often reinforced by herum)
Der Zug fährt um acht Uhr siebzehn ab.
The train leaves at eight seventeen. (exact clock time: um 8:17)
The neuter contraction ums (um + das) appears in fixed and spatial phrases: ums Haus, ums Leben kommen ("to lose one's life").
Bei dem Unfall ist zum Glück niemand ums Leben gekommen.
Fortunately nobody lost their life in the accident. (idiom: ums Leben kommen)
The um / gegen split for clock time — the distinction learners miss
English uses at for a precise time and around / about for an approximate one. German makes the same cut, but with two different prepositions, and learners routinely forget to switch:
| Preposition | Precision | Example | Means |
|---|---|---|---|
| um | exact | um acht Uhr | at eight (o'clock) exactly |
| gegen | approximate | gegen acht | around eight (give or take) |
If your meeting starts precisely at 8:00, it is um acht Uhr. If you are vaguely planning to show up sometime near eight, it is gegen acht. Mixing them is not a case error — the accusative is identical — but a meaning error that sounds odd to a native ear.
Die Besprechung beginnt pünktlich um neun, also gegen halb neun bin ich da.
The meeting starts at nine sharp, so I'll be there around half past eight. (um = exact, gegen = approximate, in one breath)
Common Mistakes
❌ Das Geschenk ist für der Mann.
No case change — für is accusative, so the article is 'den', not 'der'.
✅ Das Geschenk ist für den Mann.
The present is for the man.
❌ Der Bus kommt in acht Uhr.
Wrong preposition for clock time — exact times take um, not in.
✅ Der Bus kommt um acht Uhr.
The bus comes at eight o'clock.
❌ Ich fahre heute ohne ein Auto zur Arbeit.
Unnatural article — German drops it for a general 'without a car'; say 'ohne Auto'.
✅ Ich fahre heute ohne Auto zur Arbeit.
I'm going to work without a car today.
❌ Wir treffen uns um circa acht Uhr.
Redundant/wrong — um already means 'exactly at', so it clashes with 'approximately'; use gegen for an estimate.
✅ Wir treffen uns gegen acht.
We'll meet around eight.
❌ Ich mache das fur dich.
Missing umlaut — the preposition is 'für', always with the umlaut.
✅ Ich mache das für dich.
I'm doing this for you.
Key Takeaways
- durch, für, gegen, ohne, um are always accusative — the work is in the meaning, not the case.
- durch = through / by means of; für = for (mind the umlaut); gegen = against and approximate time; ohne = without (usually a bare noun); um = around and exact clock time.
- Clock time splits precisely: um acht (exactly at eight) vs. gegen acht (around eight); never in acht Uhr.
- After ohne, drop the article unless it adds real meaning: ohne Auto, but ohne ein Wort for emphasis.
- Know the contractions durchs, fürs, ums — they keep the accusative.
Now practice German
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Start learning German→Related Topics
- Prepositions and Their Cases: OverviewA2 — The organizing principle of German prepositions — every preposition governs a fixed case, sorted into four memorizable groups (accusative, dative, two-way, genitive) plus the everyday contractions.
- The Accusative CaseA1 — The accusative marks the direct object — and because only masculine articles visibly change, masculine 'den/einen' is the system's single biggest stumbling block.
- Prepositions of TimeA2 — The German time prepositions — am, im, um, vor, nach, seit, bis, in, für, während — organized by clock, day, month, and duration.
- Preposition + Article ContractionsA2 — How German fuses prepositions with definite articles into single words like im, ins, zum, and zur — when the contraction is obligatory and when keeping them apart signals a demonstrative.
- Telling TimeA2 — How to tell time in German, including the trap that makes English speakers miss appointments: halb drei means 2:30, not 3:30.
- Prepositions That Take the AccusativeA2 — The closed set durch, für, gegen, ohne, um (plus bis, entlang, wider) always governs the accusative — no motion test, no alternation, just a memorized list.