Word
Die Fäuste geballt, starrte der Spieler auf die Karten.
Meaning
Fists clenched, the player stared at the cards.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Die Fäuste geballt, starrte der Spieler auf die Karten.
auf
on / to (down/up to a level)
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
die Karte
the card
der Spieler
the player
Questions & Answers about Die Fäuste geballt, starrte der Spieler auf die Karten.
How does the phrase Die Fäuste geballt work without a preposition like mit?
This is the Absolute Accusative (Absoluter Akkusativ). It pairs a noun in the accusative case (Die Fäuste) directly with an adjective or past participle (geballt) to describe an accompanying physical action or posture. You do not need a preposition, and it translates perfectly to the English equivalent: fists clenched.
Does the Absolute Accusative affect the word order of the main clause?
Yes. The entire phrase Die Fäuste geballt acts as the first element (position 1) in the sentence. Because German requires the conjugated verb in position 2, starrte comes immediately after the comma, followed by the subject der Spieler.
Why do we use the accusative auf die Karten instead of the dative here?
The verb starren (to stare) uses the two-way preposition auf. Although staring might feel like a static action, verbs of looking, pointing, or aiming use the accusative to show the direction your eyes are focusing toward.
What verb does the participle geballt come from?
It is the past participle of ballen, which means to form into a ball. In German, it is almost exclusively used in the context of clenching one's hands or fists (die Faust ballen).