Breakdown of Das Projekt fängt im April oder Mai an.
anfangen
to start
oder
or
das Projekt
the project
im
in the (used with months) / in the (contraction of in + dem)
der Mai
May
der April
April
Questions & Answers about Das Projekt fängt im April oder Mai an.
Why do we use im before the months instead of just in?
In German, months always take the preposition in plus the definite article (the word for "the"). Since all months are masculine (like der April), and in requires the dative case for points in time, in and dem combine into the short word im. You will always use im to say something happens "in" a certain month.
Do I need to repeat im and say im April oder im Mai?
You can, but you do not have to! Just like in English ("in April or May"), German allows you to drop the second im when you connect two months with oder (or) or und (and). Saying im April oder Mai is standard and sounds very natural.
Why is the word an all the way at the end of the sentence?
That is because the verb here is anfangen (to begin or start), which is a separable verb. In a normal main clause, the prefix (an) splits off from the main verb (fängt) and jumps to the very end of the sentence.
Why is it fängt with an umlaut (ä) instead of fangt?
The verb anfangen is an irregular verb that requires a vowel change. When using the "he, she, or it" forms (like das Projekt, which acts as "it"), the vowel a in the stem changes to ä. So you say "ich fange an" but "es fängt an".
Could I use beginnt instead of fängt ... an?
Yes! Das Projekt beginnt im April oder Mai means exactly the same thing. The verb beginnen is slightly more formal than anfangen, but they are mostly interchangeable. Since beginnen is not a separable verb, you would not put anything at the end of the sentence.
Learn Das Projekt fängt im April oder Mai an and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free