Breakdown of Es handelt sich um einen Millionär und das Testament.
ein
a, an (eine)
es
it
und
and
der Millionär
the millionaire
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
sich handeln um
to be about
das Testament
the will (legal document)
Questions & Answers about Es handelt sich um einen Millionär und das Testament.
How is es handelt sich um different from es geht um?
Both expressions mean "it is about" and both use the preposition um followed by the accusative case. Es handelt sich um is just a bit more formal and precise. You will often see it in the news, literature, or when summarizing a book or movie plot (like in this sentence).
Why do we need the word sich in this sentence?
The verb phrase is inherently reflexive: sich handeln um. When using this specific expression to mean "to be about," the sich is a mandatory part of the package. It always stays paired with the fixed third-person subject es.
Why is it einen Millionär instead of ein Millionär?
The preposition um always requires the accusative case. Since Millionär is a masculine noun, the indefinite article changes from the nominative ein to the accusative einen.
Since Millionär is a masculine noun describing a person, shouldn't it get an extra -n ending in the accusative (n-declension)?
It is a great guess, but no! While many masculine nouns for people do take an extra -n or -en in the accusative (like einen Studenten or einen Jungen), nouns ending in -är (like Millionär or Sekretär) follow the normal rules and do not get an extra ending.
Is das Testament also in the accusative case here?
Yes! The preposition um applies to both nouns connected by und. Because Testament is a neuter noun, its accusative article (das) looks exactly the same as its nominative article, but grammatically it is still in the accusative case here.
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