Breakdown of Der Parkplatz vor dem Hotel ist frei.
sein
to be
das Hotel
the hotel
frei
free / off
vor
in front of
der Parkplatz
the parking space, the car park
Questions & Answers about Der Parkplatz vor dem Hotel ist frei.
Why is it vor dem Hotel and not vor das Hotel?
vor is a two-way preposition. Because the parking space is just located there and nothing is moving toward the hotel, it describes a fixed location answering the question 'where?' (wo?). Therefore, it takes the dative case. Since Hotel is neuter (das Hotel), the article changes to dem.
Does frei mean the parking space doesn't cost any money?
Not necessarily! In English, 'free' can mean both 'unoccupied' and 'costing nothing'. In German, frei in this context just means 'available' or 'unoccupied'. If you want to say the parking costs no money, you would use kostenlos or gratis.
How do we know the gender of Parkplatz?
Parkplatz is a compound noun made from Park and Platz. In German, the gender of a compound noun always comes from its final word. Since it is der Platz (the place or square), the whole word is masculine: der Parkplatz.
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