Breakdown of Wir brauchen eine Bekannte vom Chef.
ein
a, an (eine)
wir
we
brauchen
to need
der Chef
the boss (male)
vom
from the (von + dem) / of the (belonging to) / by the (agent in a passive clause)
bekannt
known
Questions & Answers about Wir brauchen eine Bekannte vom Chef.
Why is Bekannte capitalized if it comes from the adjective bekannt?
Bekannte is a nominalized adjective. By capitalizing the adjective bekannt (known), it turns into a noun meaning a known person or an acquaintance. In German, all nouns are capitalized, even those created from adjectives.
Since Bekannte is a noun now, does it have a fixed ending?
No, and this is the tricky part: it changes endings exactly like an adjective! Because the sentence refers to a female acquaintance in the accusative case, it takes the feminine ending -e after the article eine. If you were talking about a male acquaintance, you would use the masculine accusative ending, making it einen Bekannten.
If I want to say the acquaintance instead of an acquaintance, does the word change?
For a female acquaintance in this sentence, it stays the same: die Bekannte. But remember that because it follows adjective rules, the ending depends on the article before it. For a male acquaintance, it would be einen Bekannten (a male acquaintance) or den Bekannten (the male acquaintance).
Why does the sentence use vom Chef instead of the genitive case des Chefs?
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