Breakdown of Niemand vermag diesen Mentor zu ersetzen.
dieser
this / that (fem.: diese, neut.: dieses)
niemand
no one
zu
to (infinitive marker)
ersetzen
to replace
Questions & Answers about Niemand vermag diesen Mentor zu ersetzen.
How is vermag ... zu ersetzen different from just using kann ... ersetzen?
The verb vermögen means to be capable or to have the power to do something. It is a highly formal, literary synonym for können. Grammatically, the main difference is that können is a true modal verb and pairs with a bare infinitive (kann ersetzen), whereas vermögen requires the zu plus infinitive structure (vermag zu ersetzen).
Why is the verb conjugated as vermag instead of vermögt?
The verb vermögen is based on the root verb mögen. It follows the exact same irregular conjugation pattern with a stem vowel change. Just as the third-person singular of mögen is mag, the third-person singular of vermögen is vermag.
Why is it diesen Mentor and not dieser Mentor?
Even though it appears earlier in the sentence, diesen Mentor is the direct object of the verb at the very end, ersetzen (to replace). Because Mentor is a masculine noun receiving the action, it must take the accusative case, changing the demonstrative pronoun dieser to diesen.
Could I put the object after the infinitive phrase, like Niemand vermag zu ersetzen diesen Mentor?