Breakdown of Sie hatten die Substanz erhitzt und hierdurch die Gefahr erkannt.
und
and
haben
to have
sie
they
die Gefahr
the danger
erkennen
to recognize / to realize
hierdurch
through this
die Substanz
the substance
erhitzen
to heat
Questions & Answers about Sie hatten die Substanz erhitzt und hierdurch die Gefahr erkannt.
What exactly does hierdurch mean and refer to in this sentence?
hierdurch translates to "through this" or "by doing this." It is a proximate pronominal adverb connecting the two halves of the sentence. Here, the "this" refers back to the entire action of heating the substance (die Substanz erhitzt). It shows that the heating was the specific method by which they recognized the danger.
Could I use dadurch instead of hierdurch here?
Yes, you could absolutely use dadurch ("thereby" or "through that"). At a B2 level, you'll notice that hier- compounds are often used in written or formal German to create a stronger, more immediate link to the action just mentioned. It emphasizes "by means of this specific action."
Why is there no helping verb (like hatten) next to erkannt?
The auxiliary verb hatten applies to both past participles in this sentence: erhitzt and erkannt. Because the two clauses are joined by und, German allows you to drop the second auxiliary verb to avoid repeating it. If you wrote it out fully, it would be: ...und hierdurch die Gefahr erkannt hatten.
Why do both erhitzt and erkannt lack the ge- prefix typically found on past participles?
Both verbs begin with the prefix er- (erhitzen, erkennen). This is an inseparable prefix. Verbs with inseparable prefixes (like be-, emp-, ent-, er-, ver-, zer-) never take a ge- in their past participle form.
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