Questions & Answers about Wir bleiben ein paar Tage.
Why is paar written with a lowercase letter? I thought nouns were always capitalized.
In German, ein paar with a lowercase p is an indefinite pronoun phrase meaning "a few" or "some". If you capitalize it (ein Paar), it becomes the noun for "a pair" or "a couple" (meaning exactly two). Here, they are just staying an undefined few days, not exactly two days.
Since we are learning about pronouns like einer and keiner, does ein paar need to change its ending here?
No, which is great news! Unlike einer, keins, or keine, the phrase ein paar is a fixed expression and never changes its endings. It stays exactly the same no matter the gender or case of the noun that follows it.
Could I use einige instead of ein paar?
Yes, Wir bleiben einige Tage means the exact same thing. The difference is mostly in tone: ein paar is a bit more conversational and common in everyday speech. Just remember that if you use einige, it does change its endings depending on the case, whereas ein paar is completely unchangeable.
Why doesn't the sentence say für ein paar Tage (for a few days)?
While you can use the preposition für, it's very common in German to just leave it out. To state how long an action lasts, you simply put the time phrase into the accusative case without any preposition. Because ein paar never changes and Tage is the standard plural, it's very easy to form!
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