Breakdown of Doch, ich hatte den Würfel schon in der Hand, um zu würfeln!
ich
I
in
in
haben
to have
schon
already
doch
yes (contradicting a negative question)
die Hand
the hand
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
um ... zu
in order to
der Würfel
the die / the dice
würfeln
to roll the dice
Questions & Answers about Doch, ich hatte den Würfel schon in der Hand, um zu würfeln!
Why does the sentence start with Doch instead of Ja?
Doch is used to say yes or to disagree when someone makes a negative statement or asks a negative question. Here, the speaker is likely reacting to someone who just said something like, You did not even have the die yet! If the other person had asked a regular, positive question, the speaker would have simply answered with Ja.
Why is it den Würfel but then in der Hand?
Würfel is a masculine noun (der Würfel) and is the direct object the person is holding, so it takes the accusative case (den Würfel). However, the preposition in describes a fixed location here. For fixed locations, two-way prepositions like in trigger the dative case, changing the feminine die Hand to der Hand.
What is the rule for using um zu würfeln at the end?
This is an um ... zu clause, which translates to in order to. It is used to explain the purpose of an action. The structure always places um at the start of the clause and zu right before an infinitive verb at the very end. Here, it simply means in order to roll the dice.
Are Würfel and würfeln the same word?
They belong to the same word family! der Würfel (capitalized) is a noun meaning the die or the cube. würfeln (lowercase) is the verb meaning to roll the dice. German frequently turns nouns into verbs this way.
Learn Doch, ich hatte den Würfel schon in der Hand, um zu würfeln 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