Breakdown of Viele Leute mögen Smalltalk. Allerdings finden wir ihn oberflächlich.
wir
we
die Leute
the people
finden
to find
viel
much / a lot
ihn
him
mögen
to like
der Smalltalk
the small talk
allerdings
however / admittedly (mind you)
oberflächlich
superficial
Questions & Answers about Viele Leute mögen Smalltalk. Allerdings finden wir ihn oberflächlich.
Why is the verb finden before the subject wir in the second sentence?
Because the sentence starts with allerdings (however). Allerdings is an adverbial connector that takes up the first position in the sentence. In German main clauses, the conjugated verb must always come in the second position (the V2 rule). Therefore, the verb finden comes right after allerdings, pushing the subject wir to the third position.
Could I use aber instead of allerdings here?
Yes, but the word order would change! Aber is a coordinating conjunction, which means it occupies 'position zero' and doesn't count towards the V2 rule. If you used aber, the sentence would be: Aber wir finden ihn oberflächlich. Because allerdings is an adverb, it takes up position 1, forcing the verb to come next.
Why does the second sentence use ihn for 'it'?
In German, pronouns must match the gender of the noun they replace. Smalltalk is a masculine noun (der Smalltalk). Since it is the direct object of the verb finden, it must be in the accusative case. The masculine accusative pronoun for 'it' (or 'him') is ihn.
Does finden always mean to physically 'find' a lost object?
Not always! Just like in English, finden is often used to express an opinion or a subjective feeling about something. Here, finden wir ihn oberflächlich means 'we find it superficial' or 'we think it is superficial'.
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