Breakdown of Die schwarze Maske gehört einem geschickteren Dieb.
ein
a, an (eine)
gehören
to belong to
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
schwarz
black
der Dieb
the thief
geschickt
skillful
die Maske
the mask
Questions & Answers about Die schwarze Maske gehört einem geschickteren Dieb.
Why does the adjective geschickteren have such a long ending (-eren)?
This is a combination of the comparative form and a standard adjective ending. The base word is geschickt (skillful). First, we add -er to make it comparative (geschickter, meaning more skillful). Then, because it describes a masculine dative noun (Dieb) after einem, we must add the mixed dative adjective ending -en. Together, you get geschickt + er + en = geschickteren.
Why is the thief in the dative case (einem Dieb)?
The verb gehören (to belong to) is a dative verb. It always requires the dative case for the person or thing that owns the item. Since the thief owns the mask, the masculine noun der Dieb changes to its dative form, einem Dieb.
Why does schwarze only get an -e ending, not -en?
Maske is the subject of the sentence, so it is in the nominative case. For a feminine nominative noun following a definite article like die, the adjective takes the weak ending -e.
I've seen geschickt used to mean sent. Is it the same word?
Yes, they look identical! geschickt is the past participle of the verb schicken (to send). However, it also functions as a normal adjective meaning skillful or dexterous. You can tell it is an adjective in this sentence because it is placed directly before a noun and takes an adjective ending.
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