Breakdown of Der Fluss trocknet aus, demzufolge sterben viele Insekten aus.
viel
much / a lot
der Fluss
the river
austrocknen
to dry up
demzufolge
as a result
das Insekt
the insect
aussterben
to go extinct
Questions & Answers about Der Fluss trocknet aus, demzufolge sterben viele Insekten aus.
Why does the verb sterben come directly after demzufolge?
Because demzufolge is an adverbial connector, not a coordinating conjunction (like und or denn). It occupies the first position in the clause, so the verb sterben must immediately follow it to stay in the second position, following standard V2 word order.
Can I place demzufolge somewhere else in the second half of the sentence?
Yes! Because it acts as an adverb, it is flexible. You can start the second clause with the subject and move the connector later in the sentence: ... viele Insekten sterben demzufolge aus.
Why do both clauses end with the word aus?
Both clauses happen to use different separable verbs that share the same prefix. The first is austrocknen (to dry out) and the second is aussterben (to die out or go extinct). In main clauses like these, the separable prefix is pushed to the very end of its clause.
Is it mandatory to join these clauses with a comma, or can I use a period?
You can definitely use a period. Connectors like demzufolge, folglich, and infolgedessen link two main clauses, so breaking them into two separate sentences works perfectly well: Der Fluss trocknet aus. Demzufolge sterben viele Insekten aus.
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