Breakdown of Wir fahren zum ersten Mal nach Italien.
wir
we
fahren
to drive, to travel
nach
to / towards
Italien
Italy
zum ersten Mal
for the first time
Questions & Answers about Wir fahren zum ersten Mal nach Italien.
Wait, I thought the lesson said nach means "after"? Why does it mean "to" here?
You are right that nach means "after" when talking about time. However, it is also the standard preposition for "to" when you are travelling to most countries, cities, or towns (like nach Italien or nach Berlin).
How does zum ersten Mal mean "for the first time"? Why isn't there a word for "for"?
German doesn't use a direct translation of "for" in this phrase. Instead, it uses zu. Das Mal means "the time" or "the occurrence." Because it is a neuter noun, zu dem shrinks into zum, giving us the fixed phrase zum ersten Mal.
Why is there an -n at the end of ersten?
This is because of the dative case. The word zum already contains the dative article dem. In German, when an adjective comes right after a dative article like dem, it always takes an -en ending.
Why use fahren here instead of a word like reisen (to travel)?
While reisen does mean "to travel," Germans commonly use fahren (to drive/ride) whenever they are taking a car, train, or bus to a destination. Unless they are specifically flying (fliegen), fahren is the most natural, everyday choice.
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