Breakdown of Die Abhängigkeit von dem Smartphone ist schlimm.
sein
to be
von
from, of / by (agent in passive clauses)
schlimm
bad / awful (severe)
das Smartphone
the smartphone
Questions & Answers about Die Abhängigkeit von dem Smartphone ist schlimm.
Why do we use von here when the English translation says "on"?
Just like the adjective abhängig (dependent), the noun Abhängigkeit requires the fixed preposition von. Prepositions rarely translate one-to-one between languages, so you have to memorize that "dependence on" is Abhängigkeit von in German.
What case follows Abhängigkeit von in this sentence?
It takes the dative case. The preposition von always requires the dative, which is why the neuter noun das Smartphone changes its article to dem.
Could I contract von dem to vom here?
Yes, you absolutely can say Die Abhängigkeit vom Smartphone ist schlimm. Using the uncontracted von dem sounds a bit more formal or emphasizes the article, but vom is much more common in everyday spoken German.
Does the verb form of this word also use von?
Yes! The verb is abhängen (to depend), the adjective is abhängig (dependent), and the noun is Abhängigkeit (dependence). All three of them use the fixed preposition von followed by the dative case.