Breakdown of Der Chef war vor der Besprechung wütend.
sein
to be
der Chef
the boss (male)
vor
before (in time)
wütend
angry
die Besprechung
the meeting
Questions & Answers about Der Chef war vor der Besprechung wütend.
Why is it der Besprechung if the German word for "meeting" is feminine (die Besprechung)?
The preposition vor is being used here to talk about time. When used as a time word (a temporal preposition), vor always requires the dative case. In the dative case, the feminine article die changes to der.
Does vor mean "before" or "in front of"?
It can mean both! When talking about time, as in this sentence, vor means "before" and takes the dative case. When talking about a physical location, it means "in front of".
Does Chef mean "boss" or a professional cook?
der Chef is a classic false friend. In German, it always means "the boss" or "manager." If you want to talk about a professional cook in a restaurant, you would use the word der Koch (or die Köchin for a woman).
Why is wütend at the very end of the sentence?
In German main clauses, the conjugated verb (war) takes the second position. The rest of the information often follows a specific order where time details come early. The time phrase (vor der Besprechung) comes right after the verb, pushing the descriptive adjective (wütend) to the end of the sentence.
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