Breakdown of Die geplante Sanierung steht jetzt zur Diskussion.
jetzt
now
planen
to plan
zur
to the (zu + der)
stehen
to stand
die Sanierung
the refurbishment
die Diskussion
the discussion
Questions & Answers about Die geplante Sanierung steht jetzt zur Diskussion.
How does zur Diskussion stehen fit into our lesson on noun-verb support constructions, and what is its active counterpart?
zur Diskussion stehen is an intransitive state construction meaning that something is currently up for discussion. The subject (die geplante Sanierung) is the thing being discussed. If you want to say that someone brought the topic up for discussion (a transitive action), you shift the verb to stellen: Jemand stellt die Sanierung zur Diskussion.
Why does the phrase use zur instead of another preposition like für?
zur is the contraction of zu der (dative feminine). In German noun-verb support constructions, the preposition is strictly fixed. You must memorize zur Diskussion stehen as a set phrase, similar to up for discussion in English, rather than trying to translate the preposition literally.
Could I just say Die geplante Sanierung wird jetzt diskutiert?
Yes, using the passive voice (wird diskutiert) is grammatically correct and means exactly the same thing. However, noun-verb constructions like steht zur Diskussion are extremely common in formal German, business contexts, and the news because they sound more professional and objective.
Why does the adjective geplante end in -e here?
Sanierung is a feminine noun in the nominative case. Because it is preceded by the definite article die, the adjective takes the weak ending, which is simply -e for feminine nominative words.
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