Breakdown of Er fährt am siebten März nach Frankreich.
er
he
fahren
to drive, to travel
nach
to / towards
Frankreich
France
der März
March
am
on the / at the
siebte
seventh
Questions & Answers about Er fährt am siebten März nach Frankreich.
Why does the word for seventh end in -n (siebten instead of siebte)?
When we say 'on the [date]', we use the word am, which is short for an dem (in the dative case). When an ordinal number like siebte comes after a dative word like am, it needs the dative adjective ending -n. That is why it becomes am siebten.
Does the month März change its ending because of the dative case?
No, month names do not change endings when stating a date like this. You just use the normal name of the month right after the ordinal number: am siebten März.
Why do we use nach to say 'to France' instead of zu?
When traveling to a city, country, or continent that does not use a 'the' word (a definite article), you always use the preposition nach. Since France is just Frankreich in German, we say nach Frankreich.
Why does the verb fährt have an umlaut (the two dots over the a)?
The dictionary form of the verb is fahren (to drive or travel). It is a strong verb, meaning it has a vowel change in the present tense for the du (you) and er/sie/es (he/she/it) forms. The a changes to an ä, which is why 'he drives' is er fährt.
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