Breakdown of Der Zug ist auf Gleis vier angekommen.
sein
to be
vier
four
der Zug
the train
ankommen
to arrive
Questions & Answers about Der Zug ist auf Gleis vier angekommen.
How is the past participle angekommen formed?
angekommen comes from the separable verb ankommen (to arrive). For separable verbs in the past tense (Perfekt), the -ge- is sandwiched right between the prefix (an-) and the rest of the verb (kommen), making an-ge-kommen.
Why do we use ist (is) here instead of hat (has) for the past tense?
In German, the past tense usually uses a form of haben (to have). However, verbs that describe a change of location or state, like ankommen (to arrive), use a form of sein (to be) as the helping verb instead. So literally, this sentence says the train is arrived.
Why does it say auf Gleis for "at track"? Shouldn't "at" be translated differently?
Prepositions often don't match up exactly between English and German. In German, you use auf (which usually means "on") when talking about train tracks (Gleis). So a train always arrives "on" track four (auf Gleis vier).
Why is angekommen at the very end of the sentence?
This follows the standard word order rule for the German past tense (Perfekt). The helping verb (here, ist) takes the second position in the sentence, and the past participle (angekommen) is pushed all the way to the very end of the clause.