Breakdown of Niemand kann den Fehler des Besitzers beweisen.
können
can / to be able to
der Fehler
the mistake
niemand
no one
der Besitzer
the owner
beweisen
to prove
Questions & Answers about Niemand kann den Fehler des Besitzers beweisen.
Why is it des Besitzers instead of der Besitzer?
This is the genitive case, which shows possession (equivalent to 'the owner's' or 'of the owner'). Because Besitzer is a masculine noun, its definite article changes to des, and we add an -s to the end of the noun itself.
Why do we use den Fehler rather than der Fehler?
Fehler (mistake) is a masculine noun, and here it is the direct object of the sentence. It is the thing being proved. Therefore, it takes the accusative case, changing the article from der to den.
Why is the verb beweisen all the way at the end of the sentence?
This sentence uses the modal verb kann (can). In German, when you have a conjugated modal verb in the second position, the main action verb (beweisen) gets pushed to the very end of the sentence in its dictionary (infinitive) form.
Is Niemand treated as singular or plural here?
Niemand (nobody) is always treated as a singular subject. That is why we use the singular verb form kann, just like we would say 'he can' (er kann).
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