Breakdown of Anna schwimmt gern, aber sie tanzt lieber.
sie
she
gern
gladly, like to
aber
but
Anna
Anna
schwimmen
to swim
tanzen
to dance
lieber
rather / preferably
Questions & Answers about Anna schwimmt gern, aber sie tanzt lieber.
Where is the verb for "likes" in Anna schwimmt gern?
In German, you usually don't use a verb for "to like" when talking about activities. Instead, you use the action verb (schwimmt - swims) and add the adverb gern (gladly). So Anna schwimmt gern literally translates to "Anna swims gladly," which means she likes doing it.
How does lieber mean "prefers", and is it related to gern?
Yes! lieber is the comparative form of gern. Just like "good" becomes "better" in English, gern (gladly) becomes lieber (more gladly) in German. You use it with a verb to show you prefer that action. So, sie tanzt lieber literally means "she dances more gladly."
Could I say Anna gern schwimmt like we say "Anna likes swimming" in English?
No, because German is very strict about keeping the verb in the second position of a statement. The subject (Anna) is first, so the verb (schwimmt) must come next. The adverb gern simply follows the verb.
Does the word aber change the word order for the second part of the sentence?
No, aber (but) is a connecting word that does not affect word order. After aber, you just start a normal sentence: subject in position one (sie), verb in position two (tanzt), followed by the rest (lieber).
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