Breakdown of Das Begräbnis des Königs ist gut dokumentiert.
sein
to be
gut
good / well
der König
the king
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
dokumentieren
to document
das Begräbnis
the funeral
Questions & Answers about Das Begräbnis des Königs ist gut dokumentiert.
How do I know the gender and plural of Begräbnis?
What verb is Begräbnis related to, and how does the suffix work here?
The root comes from the strong verb begraben, meaning 'to bury'. Adding -nis to a verb stem often creates an abstract noun that represents the event, result, or state of that action. Here, the act of burying becomes the event of a funeral or burial (das Begräbnis).
Why is there an extra -s on Königs?
This is a reminder of the genitive case, which shows possession or association (translating to 'of the king'). In the genitive case, masculine and neuter nouns like der König take an -s or -es ending.
Why does the sentence use ist dokumentiert instead of wird dokumentiert?
This is an example of the statal passive (Zustandspassiv), which is formed with sein and focuses on the completed, resulting state of an action. If the sentence used wird (the standard processual passive), it would mean the funeral is actively being documented right now.
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