Breakdown of Gehört der Hund einem Freund?
ein
a, an (eine)
der Hund
the dog
der Freund
the friend
gehören
to belong to
Questions & Answers about Gehört der Hund einem Freund?
Why is it einem Freund instead of ein Freund?
The verb gehören (to belong to) is a special verb in German that always requires its object to be in the dative case. Because Freund is a masculine noun, its indefinite article ein takes the dative ending -em, becoming einem.
Why is there no German word for "to" in this sentence?
In English, we say something belongs to someone. In German, the verb gehören doesn't need an extra small word for "to". Instead, simply putting the owner (einem Freund) in the dative case automatically provides that "to" meaning.
Why is der Hund in the nominative case (the subject) if it's the thing being owned?
Think of gehören as meaning "to do the action of belonging." The dog is the one doing that action, so der Hund is the subject and stays in the nominative case. The friend is the receiver of the dog's "belonging," which is exactly why the friend goes into the dative case.
What if the dog belonged to a female friend? How would the article change?
If you used the feminine noun Freundin (female friend), the indefinite article would need the feminine dative ending -er. The sentence would become: Gehört der Hund einer Freundin?