Breakdown of Dank der zehnfachen Prüfung ist das Risiko klein.
sein
to be
klein
small
die Prüfung
the exam
das Risiko
the risk
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
dank
thanks to
zehnfach
tenfold
Questions & Answers about Dank der zehnfachen Prüfung ist das Risiko klein.
How does the suffix -fach change the meaning of zehn, and how does it differ from zehnmalige?
Adding -fach to a number creates a multiplicative adjective meaning '-fold', so zehnfach means 'tenfold.' While zehnmalige would mean the test happened ten separate times, zehnfache emphasizes that the examination itself has ten layers or is ten times as thorough.
Why does zehnfach have the -en ending here?
It is acting as an adjective modifying the feminine noun Prüfung. Because it follows the preposition Dank, which usually takes the genitive case, the feminine definite article becomes der. After a definite article in the genitive case, adjectives take the weak ending -en.
Could I use zehnfach as an adverb without an ending to express a similar idea?
Absolutely. If you use it to modify a verb instead of a noun, it does not take an ending. For example, you could say Wir haben es zehnfach geprüft (We checked it tenfold). In our main sentence, however, it describes a noun, so it must be declined.
Does the preposition Dank always trigger the genitive case like it does in der zehnfachen Prüfung?
In formal standard German, Dank (thanks to) is traditionally used with the genitive case. However, in everyday spoken German, you will often hear it used with the dative case. Interestingly, if this sentence used the dative, it would look exactly the same, because the feminine dative article is also der and the dative adjective ending is also -en.
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