Breakdown of Zwecks einer Einigung sprechen wir mit dem Mediator.
ein
a, an (eine)
wir
we
sprechen
to speak
mit
with
zwecks
for the purpose of
die Einigung
the agreement (consensus or settlement)
der Mediator
the mediator
Questions & Answers about Zwecks einer Einigung sprechen wir mit dem Mediator.
What kind of word is zwecks, and what case does it require?
Zwecks comes from the noun der Zweck (the purpose). In formal and business German, it is used as a preposition meaning 'for the purpose of.' Like many formal prepositions, it requires the genitive case, which is why it is followed by the feminine genitive einer Einigung.
If I wanted to include an -ermaßen adverb from this lesson, like bekanntermaßen (as is well known), where would it go in this sentence?
In German, adverbs usually sit directly after the conjugated verb and the subject. You would place it right after wir: Zwecks einer Einigung sprechen wir bekanntermaßen mit dem Mediator. Alternatively, you could start the sentence with it: Bekanntermaßen sprechen wir zwecks einer Einigung mit dem Mediator.
Could I express this same meaning using um ... zu (in order to)?
Yes, but the grammar would shift. Zwecks is a preposition used directly with a noun (einer Einigung). The um ... zu construction requires an infinitive verb phrase. You would have to rephrase it as: Um uns zu einigen, sprechen wir mit dem Mediator (In order to reach an agreement, we are speaking with the mediator).
Why does the verb sprechen come before the subject wir?
This is due to the standard V2 (verb-second) rule. The entire phrase Zwecks einer Einigung occupies the first position in the sentence. The conjugated verb sprechen must take the second position, which pushes the subject wir into the third position.
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