Breakdown of Die kleinen Schafe laufen über das Feld.
klein
small
über
over, above
laufen
to walk / to run (steady pace, jog)
das Feld
the field
das Schaf
the sheep
Questions & Answers about Die kleinen Schafe laufen über das Feld.
Why does the adjective end in -en (kleinen) instead of -e?
This is a strict rule for plural adjectives! Whenever you have a plural noun (Schafe) that comes after a definite article (die), a possessive article (like meine), or the negative article (keine), the adjective describing it must take the -en ending. That is why it is die kleinen Schafe.
Is Schafe plural? How can I tell since the article "die" is also used for feminine singular?
Yes, Schafe is plural. The singular form is the neuter noun das Schaf (the sheep). You can tell this is plural for three reasons: the noun has the plural -e ending, the adjective has the plural -en ending, and the verb laufen is in the plural form.
Why is it über das Feld (accusative) and not über dem Feld (dative)?
über (across/over) is a "two-way preposition." It takes the accusative case when it describes movement from one place to another (answering "where to?"). Because the sheep are actively moving across the field, we use the accusative das Feld. If they were just standing around statically on top of the field, it would take the dative.
I thought laufen meant "to walk". Why is it translated as "run" here?
In German, laufen is a very flexible verb. It can mean "to walk" (as opposed to driving) or "to run / jog" depending on the context. If you need to specify running very fast or sprinting, you would use the verb rennen, but laufen works perfectly here for animals moving briskly.
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