Breakdown of Wir möchten die Armut derer lindern, die nichts haben.
haben
to have
wir
we
möchten
would like
nichts
nothing
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
die Armut
the poverty
derer
of those (pointing forward)
lindern
to alleviate
Questions & Answers about Wir möchten die Armut derer lindern, die nichts haben.
Why do we use derer here instead of deren?
Both are genitive plural demonstrative pronouns, but they look in different directions! You use deren to refer backward to a noun that was already mentioned. You use derer to point forward to a relative clause that explains who you are talking about. Since the relative clause die nichts haben (who have nothing) comes right after, derer is required here.
Could we use the dative pronoun denen instead of derer?
No, because we need to express possession here: "the poverty of those". Possession requires the genitive case. denen is dative plural, so it wouldn't make grammatical sense as a possessive after Armut.
Why is the verb lindern placed before the comma, rather than at the very end of the whole sentence?
lindern is at the end of the main clause (Wir möchten die Armut derer lindern). Because möchten is the conjugated modal verb in position 2, the infinitive lindern gets pushed to the end of that clause. The relative clause (die nichts haben) is a dependent clause that gets attached after the main clause is already grammatically complete.
What exactly does lindern mean compared to other verbs for helping or fixing?
It is highly specific. lindern means "to alleviate", "to soothe", or "to relieve". It is typically used with conditions that cause suffering, such as Schmerzen (pain), Not (hardship), or Armut (poverty), where the goal is to make a bad situation more bearable rather than curing or fixing it completely.
Learn Wir möchten die Armut derer lindern, die nichts haben and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free