Breakdown of Der Bauer arbeitet, obwohl er nicht gesund ist.
sein
to be
er
he
arbeiten
to work
nicht
not
gesund
healthy
der Bauer
the farmer
obwohl
although
Questions & Answers about Der Bauer arbeitet, obwohl er nicht gesund ist.
Why is ist at the very end of the sentence instead of after er?
The word obwohl (although) is a subordinating conjunction. Words in this category introduce a dependent clause and always push the conjugated verb (in this case, ist) to the very end of that clause.
Is the comma before obwohl mandatory?
Yes. In German, you must always use a comma to separate a main clause (Der Bauer arbeitet) from a subordinate clause (obwohl er nicht gesund ist).
If I wanted to start the sentence with the obwohl part, how would the word order change?
It would be: Obwohl er nicht gesund ist, arbeitet der Bauer. When a sentence starts with a subordinate clause, that whole clause counts as the first position. To keep the main verb in the second position overall, the main clause must start immediately with its verb (arbeitet).
Why does nicht come right before gesund?
When you negate a specific adjective (like being healthy), nicht goes directly in front of the word it negates. Additionally, because obwohl pushed the verb ist to the end of the sentence, the usual end position for nicht is already taken!
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