Breakdown of Die Bausubstanz ist nicht nur alt, sondern auch teils gepflegt, teils verfallen.
sein
to be
auch
also, too
nicht
not
alt
old
nur
only
sondern
but rather
teils
partly
verfallen
dilapidated
die Bausubstanz
the building fabric
gepflegt
well-kept
Questions & Answers about Die Bausubstanz ist nicht nur alt, sondern auch teils gepflegt, teils verfallen.
How does teils ..., teils ... work in this sentence?
The pair teils ..., teils ... means 'partly ..., partly ...'. It is used to describe a single subject that has two different, often contrasting, qualities at the same time. Here, it contrasts the condition of the building, showing that some areas are gepflegt while others are verfallen.
How does the grammar work with two multi-part conjunctions in one sentence?
You can nest conjunctions in German. The main structure is nicht nur ..., sondern auch ... (not only ..., but also ...). The second half of that structure is then further divided by the teils ..., teils ... phrase. Because these conjunctions are just linking adjectives and not full clauses, the verb ist only needs to be used once.
What exactly does the word Bausubstanz refer to?
It literally means 'building substance,' but it translates best as 'building fabric' or 'structural condition.' You use this advanced vocabulary word instead of just Gebäude (building) when you want to specifically talk about the physical state of the walls, roof, and foundation.
Why don't gepflegt and verfallen have adjective endings?
They are past participles acting as adjectives (from pflegen, to care for, and verfallen, to decay). Because they appear after the verb ist rather than directly in front of a noun, they are in the predicate position and therefore never take adjective endings.
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