Breakdown of Ich komme vom Bahnhof.
ich
I
kommen
to come
der Bahnhof
the train station
vom
from the (von + dem) / of the (belonging to) / by the (agent in a passive clause)
Questions & Answers about Ich komme vom Bahnhof.
What exactly is vom short for?
vom is a contraction of the preposition von (from) and the dative article dem (the). Just like English speakers say "don't" instead of "do not", German speakers combine von and dem into the single word vom to make it flow better.
Why does it use dem? Isn't "train station" a masculine word (der Bahnhof)?
Yes, Bahnhof is masculine. However, the preposition von is a strict dative preposition. This means any noun following it must be in the dative case. In the dative case, the masculine article der changes to dem.
Both von and aus mean "from". Could I say Ich komme aus dem Bahnhof instead?
You could, but it slightly changes the meaning! aus usually means "out of" (leaving the inside of an enclosed space). If you use aus, it emphasizes that you are physically walking out of the station building. von is broader and just means you are coming from that general location.
Why is "am coming" translated as just komme?
German does not have an "-ing" form to show that something is happening right now. The single present tense verb komme covers both "I come" and "I am coming". You never need to use a translation of "am" with another verb in German.
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