Breakdown of Obwohl es regnet, trainiert die Mannschaft.
es
it
regnen
to rain
die Mannschaft
the team
obwohl
although
trainieren
to train
Questions & Answers about Obwohl es regnet, trainiert die Mannschaft.
Why is the verb regnet at the very end of the first part?
The word obwohl (although) is a subordinating conjunction. This means it introduces a dependent clause and pushes the conjugated verb to the very end of that clause. Here, regnet is forced to the spot right before the comma.
Why does the second half start with the verb trainiert instead of die Mannschaft?
In German, the main verb must take the second position in a sentence. Because the entire obwohl clause acts as the giant first block of information, the main clause verb (trainiert) must come immediately after the comma to take the second position. This creates a handy verb-comma-verb pattern.
The translation says 'it is raining' and 'is training'. Why are there no words for 'is' in the German sentence?
German does not have a continuous tense like English does. The simple present tense es regnet translates to both 'it rains' and 'it is raining'. Similarly, trainiert covers both 'trains' and 'is training'.
Is there a trick to help remember that Mannschaft uses die?
Yes! Mannschaft is a feminine noun. A highly useful rule to remember is that any German noun ending in the suffix -schaft is always feminine.
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