Breakdown of Geben Sie dem Kundenservice das Passwort von Ihrem alten Konto!
Sie
you (formal)
alt
old
geben
to give
Ihr
your (formal)
von
from, of / by (agent in passive clauses)
das Passwort
the password
das Konto
the account
der Kundenservice
the customer service
Questions & Answers about Geben Sie dem Kundenservice das Passwort von Ihrem alten Konto!
Why does the adjective alt get the -en ending (alten) here?
Because it is in the dative case! The preposition von always forces the dative. A key rule for adjective endings is that whenever an adjective comes after an article (like Ihrem, dem, or einem) in the dative case, it always takes the -en ending, no matter the gender of the noun.
Why is it Ihrem and not Ihr or Ihren?
The word for account is neuter (das Konto). Because the preposition von requires the dative case, the formal possessive article Ihr (your) must take the dative neuter ending -em, making it Ihrem.
Why is dem Kundenservice placed before das Passwort?
In German, when a sentence has two noun objects, the dative object (the receiver, dem Kundenservice) usually comes before the accusative object (the direct item being acted upon, das Passwort).
Why is the pronoun Sie included in the command Geben Sie?
When giving a formal command (using the polite Sie), German requires you to keep the pronoun and place it right after the verb. In English we just say "Give", but German requires Geben Sie. If you were speaking informally to a friend, you would drop the pronoun and just say Gib.
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