Breakdown of Den Experten zufolge wird die Überschwemmung verheerend.
werden
to become / to get (change of state)
der Experte
the expert
zufolge
according to (often follows the noun)
verheerend
devastating
die Überschwemmung
the flood (inundation of land)
Questions & Answers about Den Experten zufolge wird die Überschwemmung verheerend.
Why is zufolge placed after the noun rather than before it?
When used to report information from an external source (like 'according to'), zufolge acts as a postposition, meaning it is placed after the noun it refers to. When placed after the noun, it always forces that noun into the dative case.
Why does the word Experten end in -n here?
The noun der Experte is a masculine N-declension noun, meaning it takes an -n ending in all cases except the nominative singular. Here, the article den tells us it is the dative plural. If it were singular ('according to the expert'), it would still have the -n but use the singular article: dem Experten zufolge.
Why is the verb wird placed immediately after zufolge?
Because of the V2 (verb-second) rule. The entire prepositional phrase Den Experten zufolge acts as a single block occupying position 1. Therefore, the conjugated verb wird must take position 2, placing it right next to zufolge.
The English translation says 'will be,' but there is no sein (to be) at the end of the German sentence. Why?
When used with an adjective like verheerend (devastating), the verb werden translates literally to 'to become' or 'to get'. German often uses the present tense of werden to describe a future state, so wird verheerend literally means 'becomes devastating,' which we naturally translate as 'will be devastating'.
Why does the word verheerend end in -end?
It is a present participle created from the verb verheeren (to devastate). In German, you can turn a verb into an adjective describing an active, ongoing effect by adding -d to the infinitive (similar to adding '-ing' in English). Because it is used as a predicate adjective (after the verb) rather than directly before a noun, it does not take any extra declension endings.
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