Word
Der Besucher hat den Abstand zum Raubtier einzuhalten.
Meaning
The visitor has to maintain the distance to the predator.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Der Besucher hat den Abstand zum Raubtier einzuhalten.
haben
to have
zum
to the (zu + dem)
der Besucher
the visitor
das Raubtier
the predator
Questions & Answers about Der Besucher hat den Abstand zum Raubtier einzuhalten.
Why does the sentence use hat ... einzuhalten instead of muss ... einhalten?
Both express that the visitor 'has to' do something, but using haben + zu + infinitive is a more formal and authoritative way to state an obligation. It is frequently used for official rules, public regulations, or strict instructions, similar to saying 'The visitor is required to maintain...' in English.
Why is zu stuck in the middle of einzuhalten?
The verb for 'to maintain' or 'to comply with' is einhalten. Because it is a separable verb, the word zu gets inserted directly between the separable prefix ein- and the base verb halten, squishing them into one single word: einzuhalten.
Why do we use zum before Raubtier?
When expressing a distance 'to' something in German, you use the preposition zu. Because zu always forces the dative case, and Raubtier (predator) is a neuter noun (das Raubtier), the preposition zu and the dative article dem combine into the contraction zum.
How does the prefix ein- change the meaning of halten here?