Breakdown of Obwohl es eine Rezession gibt, gründet sie ein Startup.
ein
a, an (eine)
sie
she
es gibt
there is / there are
obwohl
although
gründen
to found
die Rezession
the recession
das Startup
the startup
Questions & Answers about Obwohl es eine Rezession gibt, gründet sie ein Startup.
How do I rewrite this sentence to use trotz (despite) instead of obwohl?
You change the subordinate clause into a prepositional phrase. Since trotz requires the genitive case, eine Rezession becomes der Rezession. The phrase es gibt is removed entirely because you are reducing a full clause to just a noun phrase. The new sentence is: Trotz der Rezession gründet sie ein Startup.
If I start the sentence with Trotz der Rezession, does the word order of the second half change?
No, it stays exactly the same! Whether you start with the full obwohl clause or the shorter trotz phrase, that entire block occupies position one in the sentence. The verb gründet must remain in position two, immediately followed by the subject sie.
Why does the original sentence use eine instead of einer?
The phrase es gibt (there is / there are) always takes a direct object in the accusative case. Because Rezession is a feminine noun, the accusative article is simply eine. It only changes to the genitive der when you switch the sentence to use trotz.
Are there other words I could use instead of obwohl here?
Yes, you could use obgleich or obschon, which mean the exact same thing and use the exact same sentence structure. However, obwohl is the standard choice for everyday communication, whereas the others sound more literary or formal.
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