Word
Die Medizin ist gut gegen die Erkältung.
Meaning
The medicine is good against the cold.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Die Medizin ist gut gegen die Erkältung.
sein
to be
gut
good / well
gegen
against
die Medizin
the medicine
Questions & Answers about Die Medizin ist gut gegen die Erkältung.
We usually say medicine is good "for" a cold in English. Why does German use gegen (against)?
German is a bit more literal here! You are taking the medicine to fight against the illness, so German uses gegen. Saying it is good "for" the cold in German might sound like you are trying to help the virus get stronger!
Why is the article die used after gegen?
The preposition gegen always forces the following noun into the accusative case (the case for direct objects). Because Erkältung is feminine, its accusative article is die, which happens to look exactly the same as its base dictionary form. If you were treating a masculine symptom like der Husten (the cough), the article would change: gegen den Husten.
How do I know the gender of Erkältung?
Any German noun ending in -ung is feminine, which means it uses the article die. This is a very handy rule to remember because there are many -ung words in German, and they are all feminine!
Does Medizin mean medication, or the university subject?
It can mean both! Just like in English, die Medizin can refer to the physical medication you take to get better, or to the broader scientific field of medicine studied by doctors.