Breakdown of Ich glaube, dass wir den Kuchen teilen müssen.
ich
I
wir
we
müssen
to have to, must
glauben
to believe
der Kuchen
the cake (simple, baked)
dass
that
teilen
to share
Questions & Answers about Ich glaube, dass wir den Kuchen teilen müssen.
Why are there two verbs at the end of the sentence?
The word dass (that) introduces a subordinate clause, which forces the conjugated verb to the very end. In this clause, wir is the subject, müssen is the conjugated modal verb, and teilen is the infinitive verb. Because of dass, müssen gets pushed all the way to the end, landing right next to teilen.
Why is the order "teilen müssen" instead of "müssen teilen"?
In a normal main clause, the modal verb takes the second position (e.g., Wir müssen den Kuchen teilen). But in a dass clause, the conjugated verb is the one that gets kicked to the very end. Since müssen is the verb conjugated for wir, it has to go after the infinitive teilen.
Why is it "den Kuchen" instead of "der Kuchen"?
The cake is the direct object being acted upon by the verb teilen (to share), so it must be in the accusative case. Because Kuchen is a masculine noun, the article changes from der to den.
How would I change this to say "I believe that we must share mine" (referring to the cake)?
To replace den Kuchen with "mine", you need a standalone possessive pronoun. Since the replaced noun (Kuchen) is masculine and in the accusative case, the pronoun must take the -en ending. You would drop den Kuchen and say: Ich glaube, dass wir meinen teilen müssen.
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