Breakdown of Ich habe das Kleinkind ohne Aufsicht auf den Spielplatz laufen sehen.
ich
I
haben
to have
sehen
to see
ohne
without
auf
on / to (down/up to a level)
laufen
to walk / to run (steady pace, jog)
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
das Kleinkind
the toddler
die Aufsicht
the supervision
der Spielplatz
the playground
Questions & Answers about Ich habe das Kleinkind ohne Aufsicht auf den Spielplatz laufen sehen.
Why does the sentence use 'sehen' at the end instead of the past participle 'gesehen'?
This is the double infinitive rule! When a perception verb like sehen (or hören) is used alongside another verb (laufen) in the Perfekt tense, it drops its normal past participle (gesehen) and uses its infinitive form instead. This is also known as the substitute infinitive or Ersatzinfinitiv.
What is the word order rule for 'laufen sehen'?
In a double infinitive construction, both infinitives are pushed to the very end of the clause. The verb expressing the action being witnessed (laufen) comes immediately before the perception verb (sehen).
Why do we use the accusative 'auf den Spielplatz' rather than the dative 'auf dem Spielplatz'?
The preposition auf is a two-way preposition. Because the toddler is moving onto the playground from outside of it, this change of direction triggers the accusative case (den). If the toddler were already on the playground and just running around within it, you would use the dative (auf dem Spielplatz).
Why is there no article before 'Aufsicht' in 'ohne Aufsicht'?
Just like in the English translation 'without supervision', German often drops the article for abstract nouns or general concepts when they follow prepositions like ohne or mit.
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