Breakdown of Jene Reinheit ist selten. Wir legen großen Wert darauf.
sein
to be
groß
big / tall
wir
we
selten
rarely / rare
legen
to lay / to put (flat)
darauf
on it
der Wert
the value
jene
that (f) / those
die Reinheit
the clarity (purity, diamonds)
Questions & Answers about Jene Reinheit ist selten. Wir legen großen Wert darauf.
Why is jene used here instead of just die or diese?
Jene is a demonstrative pronoun that points to something further away in space, time, or thought, translating best as "that" rather than "this". Because Reinheit is a feminine noun in the nominative case here, the pronoun takes the feminine ending -e.
How does the phrase Wert legen darauf work?
Wert legen auf is a common fixed expression meaning "to place value on" or "to attach importance to". It always requires the preposition auf followed by the accusative case.
Why does the adjective in großen Wert end in -en?
Wert is a masculine noun (der Wert) and acts as the direct object of the verb legen, putting it in the accusative case. Because there is no article like einen or den in front of it, the adjective groß has to show the case and takes the strong accusative masculine ending -en.
Why does the sentence end with darauf instead of auf sie to mean "to it"?
When a preposition refers back to an inanimate object or an abstract concept like jene Reinheit, German combines da with the preposition. Since auf starts with a vowel, an -r- is added to make darauf. You would only use auf sie if you were talking about a person or a living creature.
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