Questions & Answers about Ist der Bus spät angekommen?
How do we get the word angekommen from the infinitive ankommen?
Because ankommen (to arrive) is a separable verb, the prefix an- splits from the main verb kommen. To make it a past participle, the marker -ge- is squeezed right between them: an + ge + kommen = angekommen.
Why does the sentence use ist instead of hat for the past tense?
In German, most verbs use haben (to have) to form the past tense. However, verbs that describe movement from one place to another (like arriving, going, or running) use sein (to be). Since the bus is arriving at a destination, we use ist. The sentence literally translates to "Is the bus arrived?".
Why is angekommen placed at the very end of the question?
In the German past tense, the helper verb (like ist) takes the active verb spot, and the past participle (the ge- word) is always kicked to the very end of the clause. In a yes/no question, ist moves to the front, but angekommen stays firmly at the end.
How do we know this sentence is asking about the past?
Two things work together to show the past tense here: the helper verb ist at the beginning, and the past participle angekommen at the end. Without them, the present tense version ("Is the bus arriving late?") would just be Kommt der Bus spät an?.
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