Breakdown of Wegen der Störung gab es gestern einen schlimmen Engpass.
ein
a, an (eine)
gestern
yesterday
es gibt
there is / there are
schlimm
bad / awful (severe)
wegen
because of
die Störung
the disruption
der Engpass
the bottleneck
Questions & Answers about Wegen der Störung gab es gestern einen schlimmen Engpass.
How would we express this same idea using a weil clause instead of wegen?
You would turn the noun phrase into a full subordinate clause, for example: Weil es eine Störung gab, gab es gestern einen schlimmen Engpass. The preposition wegen (because of) allows us to compress that causal clause into a single noun phrase.
Why does the feminine noun Störung use the article der here?
The preposition wegen requires the genitive case. In the genitive case, the feminine definite article die changes to der.
Why does the verb gab come right after Wegen der Störung?
German follows a strict verb-second rule in main clauses. The entire prepositional phrase Wegen der Störung acts as a single unit occupying the first position, so the conjugated verb gab must take the second position. The subject es is then pushed to the third position.
Why is it einen schlimmen Engpass and not ein schlimmer Engpass?
The phrase es gibt (and its past tense es gab) translates to 'there is' or 'there was', but grammatically it takes a direct object in the accusative case. Since Engpass is a masculine noun, we must use the accusative article einen and the corresponding accusative adjective ending -en.
How do the parts of the word Engpass create the meaning of 'bottleneck'?
It is a compound of the adjective eng (narrow) and the noun Pass (pass or passage). While it literally means a 'narrow pass', it is heavily used metaphorically in business, logistics, and daily life for supply shortages or points of congestion.
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