Breakdown of Ich übergebe das Vermögen meines alten Großvaters.
ich
I
alt
old
mein
my
der Großvater
the grandfather (neutral register)
übergeben
to hand over
das Vermögen
the fortune
Questions & Answers about Ich übergebe das Vermögen meines alten Großvaters.
Why does alten end in -en in this sentence?
The phrase meines alten Großvaters (of my old grandfather) is in the Genitive case. Because the possessive article meines already shows the strong masculine Genitive ending (-es), the adjective alten only needs the weak ending, which is -en. When an adjective follows a possessive article in the Genitive, it will always end in -en.
Why is it meines instead of just mein?
The phrase expresses possession (of my grandfather), so it requires the Genitive case. Since Großvater is a masculine noun, the possessive article mein takes the masculine Genitive ending -es, becoming meines.
Why is there an -s at the end of Großvaters?
In the Genitive case, masculine and neuter nouns get an extra -s or -es added to the end of the noun itself. Because Großvater is masculine, it becomes Großvaters.
Is übergeben a separable verb? Why isn't it "Ich gebe das Vermögen über"?
In this context (meaning to hand over or to transfer), übergeben is an inseparable verb. The prefix über- stays firmly attached to the verb base and doesn't get kicked to the end of the sentence.
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