Breakdown of Der Vulkan zerstört die Landschaft, was schrecklich ist.
sein
to be
was
what
schrecklich
terrible, awful
zerstören
to destroy
die Landschaft
the landscape
der Vulkan
the volcano
Questions & Answers about Der Vulkan zerstört die Landschaft, was schrecklich ist.
Why is was used here for 'which' instead of a regular relative pronoun like die or das?
In this sentence, was doesn't point back to a specific noun like die Landschaft. Instead, it refers to the entire situation described in the first half of the sentence (the fact that the volcano is destroying the landscape). Whenever 'which' refers to a whole previous clause or idea rather than a specific noun, German uses the indefinite relative pronoun was.
Why does the verb ist go at the very end of the sentence?
The word was introduces a relative clause. Relative clauses are a type of subordinate clause, which means they follow a special word order that pushes the conjugated verb (in this case, ist) to the very end of the clause.
Does the verb zerstört have a separable prefix?
No, the prefix zer- is always inseparable. In German, verbs starting with zer- often carry a meaning of destruction, crushing, or breaking things apart, which fits perfectly with zerstören (to destroy). Because it is inseparable, it never splits off to the end of the sentence.
How can I easily remember that it is die Landschaft rather than der or das?
You can rely on the word ending! Every German noun that ends in the suffix -schaft (like die Freundschaft or die Mannschaft) is always feminine, so it will always use the article die.
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