Word
Es findet eine Vorstellung im Zirkus statt.
Meaning
A performance is taking place in the circus.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Es findet eine Vorstellung im Zirkus statt.
ein
a, an (eine)
es
it
im
in the (used with months) / in the (contraction of in + dem)
stattfinden
to take place
Questions & Answers about Es findet eine Vorstellung im Zirkus statt.
Why does the sentence start with Es if the English translation does not use 'It'?
This is a placeholder or dummy Es. It just sits in the first position to keep the verb in position 2, allowing the real subject (eine Vorstellung) to be delayed until later in the sentence. This structure is often used to set a scene or introduce a new topic.
If Es is just a placeholder, what is the actual subject here?
The true subject is eine Vorstellung (a performance). Because it is singular, the verb is conjugated to match it (findet). If the subject were plural, the verb would change, for example: Es finden zwei Vorstellungen im Zirkus statt.
Can I write this sentence without using Es?
Yes! You can simply put the real subject in the first position: Eine Vorstellung findet im Zirkus statt. When you do this, the dummy Es disappears completely because the first position is already filled.
Why is statt at the very end of the sentence?
The verb being used is stattfinden (to take place), which is a separable verb. The core verb takes position 2 and is conjugated as findet, while the prefix statt gets pushed to the very end of the clause.
Why do we use im Zirkus instead of ?