Breakdown of Der Schrank ist fast leer, aber das Regal ist voll.
sein
to be
aber
but
fast
almost
der Schrank
the cupboard / the closet
das Regal
the shelf
leer
empty
voll
full
Questions & Answers about Der Schrank ist fast leer, aber das Regal ist voll.
If I want to put books on this empty shelf, which of our new placement verbs should I use?
You would use stellen (to place upright) if you are standing the books up, or legen (to lay flat) if you are stacking them on their sides. Because you are actively moving them onto the shelf, you would use the accusative case for the destination.
Why don't the adjectives leer and voll have any endings?
Adjectives only take endings when they come directly in front of a noun (like in ein leerer Schrank). When they come after a verb like ist to describe the subject, they are called predicate adjectives and always keep their basic, uninflected form.
Why doesn't the word aber push the verb to the end of the sentence?
Unlike subordinating words like weil or dass, aber is a coordinating conjunction. It simply connects two regular sentences together without messing with their word order. It acts like an invisible "position zero," allowing the subject das Regal to be in position one and the verb ist to take its normal second position.
Is a Schrank always a closet for clothes?
Not necessarily! der Schrank is a very versatile word for almost any large piece of storage furniture with doors, including a cabinet, cupboard, or wardrobe. If you want to be specific, a clothes closet is a Kleiderschrank and a refrigerator is a Kühlschrank.
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