Breakdown of Wir haben das Gehege mit der Bürste zu reinigen.
haben
to have
wir
we
mit
with
die Bürste
the brush
reinigen
to clean (formally, thoroughly)
das Gehege
the enclosure
Questions & Answers about Wir haben das Gehege mit der Bürste zu reinigen.
How does haben ... zu reinigen work here? Doesn't haben just mean "to have"?
In this sentence, haben combined with zu and an infinitive verb (reinigen) expresses a strict obligation or instruction. It means "have to clean" or "must clean". This structure is very similar to using the modal verb müssen, but often sounds a bit more formal or like an official rule.
Could I just say Wir müssen das Gehege mit der Bürste reinigen instead?
Yes, absolutely! Wir müssen ... reinigen is the standard, everyday way to say "We must clean...". Using Wir haben ... zu reinigen is just an alternative way to express it, frequently used for written instructions, work tasks, or formal contexts.
Why is it der Bürste if the word for brush is feminine (die Bürste)?
The preposition mit (with) always requires the dative case. In the dative case, the feminine article die changes to der. Therefore, die Bürste becomes mit der Bürste.
Why does zu reinigen go at the very end of the sentence?
The haben + zu + infinitive construction follows the standard German sentence bracket rules. The conjugated verb (haben) takes the second position in the sentence, while the zu + infinitive part (zu reinigen) gets pushed all the way to the end of the clause.
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