Breakdown of Ich mache das Praktikum, um meinen Lebenslauf zu verbessern.
ich
I
machen
to make, to do
meinen
my (accusative masculine)
zu
to (infinitive marker)
verbessern
to improve
um ... zu
in order to
das Praktikum
the internship
der Lebenslauf
the CV / the resume
Questions & Answers about Ich mache das Praktikum, um meinen Lebenslauf zu verbessern.
How does um ... zu work to mean "to improve" here?
In English, we usually just say "to improve" to show our purpose. In German, you use the structure um ... zu (meaning "in order to"). You put um at the start of the clause, and zu right before the infinitive verb at the very end: um ... zu verbessern.
Why does meinen Lebenslauf come between um and zu?
In an um ... zu clause, all the extra information is sandwiched in the middle. um acts as the opening bracket and zu plus the verb acts as the closing bracket. So, the object you are improving (meinen Lebenslauf) has to go inside.
Why is it meinen Lebenslauf with an "-en" ending?
Lebenslauf (resume or CV) is a masculine noun (der Lebenslauf). Because it is the direct object of the verb verbessern (it is the thing being improved), it takes the accusative case. For masculine words in the accusative, mein changes to meinen.
Is the comma before um mandatory?
Yes! Unlike in English, German requires a comma to separate the main sentence (Ich mache das Praktikum) from an infinitive clause like this one.
Learn Ich mache das Praktikum, um meinen Lebenslauf zu verbessern 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