Breakdown of Danach zieht er das Hemd und die Hose an.
er
he
und
and
das Hemd
the shirt
die Hose
the pants / the trousers
Questions & Answers about Danach zieht er das Hemd und die Hose an.
Why does er come after zieht instead of before it?
Because the sentence starts with the time adverb Danach (after that). In German, the main verb must always be in the second position. Since Danach takes position one, the verb zieht takes position two, pushing the subject er to position three.
How does the verb anziehen work in this sentence?
anziehen (to put on) is a separable verb. The core of the verb (zieht) stays in position two and matches the subject er, while the prefix an detaches and goes to the very end of the sentence.
Could I use Dann instead of Danach here?
Yes, you could say Dann zieht er das Hemd und die Hose an. Dann means "then", while danach specifically means "after that". Both are great for describing a sequence of events, but danach strongly connects the action to whatever just happened immediately before.
Are das Hemd and die Hose in the accusative case here?