Breakdown of Der Kandidat gewinnt den Hauptgewinn, außer wenn er gegen die Regel verstößt.
er
he
gewinnen
to win
gegen
against
die Regel
the rule
der Kandidat
the candidate
verstoßen
to violate
außer wenn
unless
der Hauptgewinn
the jackpot
Questions & Answers about Der Kandidat gewinnt den Hauptgewinn, außer wenn er gegen die Regel verstößt.
Why does the verb verstößt go to the very end of the sentence?
The phrase außer wenn (unless / except if) functions as a subordinating conjunction. It introduces a dependent clause, which forces the conjugated verb to the end.
Can I use es sei denn instead of außer wenn to mean unless?
Yes, but the word order would change. Unlike außer wenn, the phrase es sei denn does not kick the verb to the end. You would say: ..., es sei denn, er verstößt gegen die Regel.
Why do we need the word gegen here? In English we just say breaks the rule.
The German verb verstoßen (to violate or break a rule) strictly requires the preposition gegen plus the accusative case. It translates more literally to offending against the rule.
Kandidat is a weak noun that usually gets an extra -n or -en. Why is it missing here?
Weak nouns (also called n-declension nouns) add that extra ending in the accusative, dative, and genitive cases. Because der Kandidat is the subject of the sentence (nominative case), it remains in its basic dictionary form.
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