Breakdown of Mittags trinke ich Kaffee.
ich
I
trinken
to drink
der Kaffee
the coffee
mittags
at midday, at lunchtime
Questions & Answers about Mittags trinke ich Kaffee.
Why is the order trinke ich instead of ich trinke?
In German, the main verb must almost always be the second idea in a statement. Because this sentence starts with the time word Mittags (at lunchtime), the verb trinke (drink) has to come immediately after it to stay in the second position. This pushes the subject ich (I) into the third position.
Why does Mittags have an 's' at the end?
Adding an 's' to a time of day turns it into an adverb that describes a regular routine. While der Mittag is the noun for 'noon', mittags means 'at noon' or 'every day at lunchtime'. It is capitalized here only because it is the first word of the sentence.
Does the verb trinken change its vowel like the other verbs in this lesson?
No, trinken does not change its vowel in the present tense. Even though this lesson focuses on strong verbs that change their vowel for 'you' and 'he/she/it' (like essen becoming du isst), trinken is perfectly regular in the present tense: ich trinke, du trinkst, er/sie/es trinkt.
Why isn't there an article like 'den' before Kaffee?
Just like in English, when you talk about a general, uncountable substance like coffee, you drop the article. You can just say Kaffee, without needing words like den (the) or einen (a).