Breakdown of Mein Kumpel kommt heute Abend.
kommen
to come
heute
today
mein
my
der Abend
the evening
der Kumpel
the mate, the buddy
Questions & Answers about Mein Kumpel kommt heute Abend.
Why is the present tense kommt used here when he is arriving in the future?
In German, it is completely standard to use the present tense for future events as long as the time is specified. Because the sentence includes heute Abend (this evening), the future context is already clear, so you do not need to use the future tense with wird kommen.
Kumpel translates to 'mate', but how casual is this word?
Kumpel is a very common, informal word for a male friend, buddy, or mate. You would use it with friends and peers, but you should avoid it in formal situations like a job interview or with someone you address with the formal Sie.
Why is heute lowercase but Abend capitalized in the phrase heute Abend?
In time phrases like this, heute (today) acts as an adverb, so it is written in lowercase. Abend (evening) is a noun, so it must be capitalized. This pattern applies to similar phrases like morgen Vormittag (tomorrow morning) or gestern Nachmittag (yesterday afternoon).
Could I say diesen Abend instead of heute Abend to mean 'this evening'?
You will almost always hear native speakers say heute Abend to mean 'this evening' or 'tonight'. While diesen Abend is grammatically understood, it sounds slightly unnatural in everyday conversation. German strongly prefers combining heute (today) with the specific time of day.
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