Breakdown of Ich möchte wissen, wie der Schredder das Metall zerschneidet.
ich
I
wie
how
möchten
would like
wissen
to know (a fact)
der Schredder
the shredder
das Metall
the metal
zerschneiden
to cut up
Questions & Answers about Ich möchte wissen, wie der Schredder das Metall zerschneidet.
Why does zerschneidet go at the very end of the sentence?
The second part of this sentence (wie der Schredder das Metall zerschneidet) is an indirect question. Indirect questions act like subordinate clauses in German, which means the conjugated verb (zerschneidet) gets pushed to the very end.
What does the prefix zer- add to the word schneidet?
The prefix zer- usually implies that something is being destroyed, broken, or taken apart into pieces. So while schneiden just means "to cut", zerschneiden specifically means "to cut up" or "to cut to pieces". Also, zer- is an inseparable prefix, so it never splits from the verb.
How can we tell from the grammar who is doing the cutting here?
We look at the articles. der Schredder uses the masculine nominative article, marking it as the subject doing the action. das Metall uses the neuter accusative article, showing it is the object receiving the action. If the metal were somehow cutting the shredder, it would be den Schredder.
Is Schredder just an English word?
It is a loanword from English, but it has been adapted to German. It is spelled with Sch instead of "Sh" to match German spelling rules, and it takes a capital letter because all nouns are capitalized in German.
Learn Ich möchte wissen, wie der Schredder das Metall zerschneidet and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free