Breakdown of Die Revolution endet im einundzwanzigsten Jahrhundert.
im
in the (used with months) / in the (contraction of in + dem)
einundzwanzigste
twenty-first
das Jahrhundert
the century
enden
to end
die Revolution
the revolution
Questions & Answers about Die Revolution endet im einundzwanzigsten Jahrhundert.
Why does einundzwanzigsten end in -sten instead of just -ste?
For numbers 20 and up, you build ordinal numbers by adding -ste to the base number (like der einundzwanzigste). However, the word here follows im, which puts the phrase in the dative case. In the dative case, adjectives and ordinal numbers take an extra -n or -en ending, making it einundzwanzigsten.
Wait, is the German word for twenty-first literally one-and-twentieth?
Yes! Just like regular numbers, German keeps the one-and-twenty structure for ordinal numbers too. You just take the full regular number einundzwanzig and add the ordinal ending. Notice that it builds on ein- (one) rather than erste- (first).
Why is it im Jahrhundert and not just in Jahrhundert?
im is a contraction of in dem. When answering 'when?' something happens at a fixed point in time (like a century or a month), German uses the preposition in plus the dative case. Because Jahrhundert is a neuter noun, the article is dem, and in dem shrinks to im.
How do we know the gender of a compound word like Jahrhundert?
It is a combination of Jahr (year) and Hundert (hundred). In German, a compound noun always takes the gender of its very last part. Since das Hundert is neuter, das Jahrhundert (the century) is neuter too.
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