Breakdown of Wir untersuchten die Spuren, die der Inspektor nannte.
wir
we
nennen
to name
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
der Inspektor
the inspector
untersuchen
to investigate
die Spur
the clue
Questions & Answers about Wir untersuchten die Spuren, die der Inspektor nannte.
Why does the verb nennen change its vowel to become nannte in the simple past? I thought verbs with a -te ending were regular.
nennen is a mixed verb. Mixed verbs act like a blend of regular and irregular verbs: they take the regular -te endings in the simple past, but they also change their stem vowel (from e to a in this case). Another common example is kennen (to know), which becomes kannte.
Why is the verb nannte at the very end of the sentence?
The second part of the sentence (die der Inspektor nannte) is a relative clause providing more information about the clues. Relative clauses are subordinate clauses, which means the conjugated verb (nannte) must be pushed to the very end of the clause.
In the phrase die der Inspektor nannte, what case is the relative pronoun die?
It is in the accusative case. The pronoun die refers back to the plural noun die Spuren. Inside the relative clause, der Inspektor is the subject (the one doing the naming), making the clues the direct object (the things being named). For plural nouns, the nominative and accusative relative pronouns are both die.
Why doesn't the prefix separate in Wir untersuchten?
While the prefix unter- is separable in some verbs, it is inseparable in untersuchen (to investigate or examine). Because it is inseparable, the prefix stays firmly attached to the front of the verb, even when conjugated as the main verb in a main clause.
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