Breakdown of Wir misten der Ordnung zuliebe überflüssige Dinge aus.
wir
we
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
die Ordnung
the order, the tidiness
das Ding
the thing (object)
zuliebe
for the sake of
ausmisten
to declutter
überflüssig
superfluous
Questions & Answers about Wir misten der Ordnung zuliebe überflüssige Dinge aus.
Why is zuliebe placed after der Ordnung rather than before it?
Zuliebe is a postposition, which is a type of preposition that must be placed immediately after the noun it relates to. It means "for the sake of" or "as a favor to", making der Ordnung zuliebe translate to "for the sake of order".
Why does the feminine noun Ordnung use the article der here?
The postposition zuliebe always dictates that the noun preceding it must be in the dative case. Because Ordnung is a feminine noun, its definite article changes to der in the dative.
What is the base verb of misten ... aus, and what is its literal meaning?
The sentence uses the separable verb ausmisten. Literally, it means "to muck out" (clearing manure from a stable, from der Mist meaning "dung" or "crap"). In everyday German, it is a very common and slightly colloquial way to say "to declutter" or "to clear out".
Why does der Ordnung zuliebe come before the direct object überflüssige Dinge?
In German sentence structure, adverbial phrases that explain why an action is happening usually come before the direct accusative object. Der Ordnung zuliebe tells us the reason for decluttering, so it is placed before the actual items being thrown out.
Why does the adjective überflüssige end in -e?
The adjective is modifying a plural noun (Dinge) in the accusative case, and there is no article (such as die or keine) in front of it. Because there is no article to show the case, the adjective takes the strong ending -e.
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