Breakdown of Am Stand verkaufen sie reife Tomaten.
sie
they
die Tomate
the tomato
verkaufen
to sell
am
on the / at the
der Stand
the stall
reif
ripe
Questions & Answers about Am Stand verkaufen sie reife Tomaten.
Why is the ending on reife just -e?
Tomaten is a plural noun and the direct object (accusative case). Because there is no article like die or meine in front of it, the adjective reif has to show the case and plural status. It takes the strong ending -e to become reife.
Why is the verb verkaufen before the subject sie?
In German, the main verb must always be in the second position of the sentence. Since this sentence starts with the location phrase Am Stand (position one), the verb verkaufen takes position two, pushing the subject sie (they) into position three.
Where does the word Am come from?
Am is a contraction of the preposition an (at) and the article dem (the). Stand is a masculine noun (der Stand). Because the action happens at a fixed location rather than showing movement towards it, an triggers the dative case, changing der to dem.
How do we know sie means "they" and not "she"?
You can tell by looking at the verb ending. If sie meant "she", the verb would be conjugated as verkauft. Because the verb is in its plural form verkaufen, the lowercase sie must mean "they".
Learn Am Stand verkaufen sie reife Tomaten and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free