Breakdown of Wir freuen uns über das Geschenk.
wir
we
das Geschenk
the gift
über
about (a topic)
sich freuen
to be happy / to look forward to
Questions & Answers about Wir freuen uns über das Geschenk.
Why is uns used here? Can't I just say Wir freuen über das Geschenk?
In German, the verb for 'to be happy' or 'to be glad' is sich freuen. It is a reflexive verb, meaning it requires a reflexive pronoun. You literally have to say 'We gladden ourselves.' Because the subject is wir (we), the matching reflexive pronoun is uns.
Why do we use the preposition über for 'about' in this sentence?
The reflexive verb sich freuen uses specific prepositions depending on the situation. You use sich freuen über when you are happy about something in the present or the past, like receiving a gift. If you were looking forward to something in the future, you would use auf instead (for example, Wir freuen uns auf den Urlaub for 'We are looking forward to the vacation').
Which case is das Geschenk in?
Das Geschenk is in the accusative case. While über is a 'two-way' preposition that can sometimes take the dative case for locations, when it is used as a fixed preposition attached to a verb like sich freuen, it almost always requires the accusative case. Since Geschenk is a neuter noun, its accusative article remains das.
How would the word order change if I turned this into a question?