Breakdown of Es ist illegal, denn er hat keine Erlaubnis, dieses Graffiti zu sprühen.
sein
to be
er
he
es
it
haben
to have
kein
no, not any
dieser
this / that (fem.: diese, neut.: dieses)
denn
because
zu
to (infinitive marker)
die Erlaubnis
the permission
illegal
illegal
das Graffiti
the graffiti
sprühen
to spray
Questions & Answers about Es ist illegal, denn er hat keine Erlaubnis, dieses Graffiti zu sprühen.
What modal verb does the phrase er hat keine Erlaubnis ... zu sprühen replace here?
It replaces dürfen (to be allowed to / may). This is a formal, noun-based alternative to using a modal verb. If you used the modal verb, the clause would be denn er darf dieses Graffiti nicht sprühen. Notice that the noun construction requires an infinitive clause with zu, while the modal verb takes the bare infinitive without zu.
Why is it negated with keine Erlaubnis rather than using nicht?
Because Erlaubnis is a noun, and in German, you negate a noun that has an indefinite article (or no article) by using a form of kein- (meaning "no" or "not any"). When you use the modal verb equivalent, you are negating the action itself, which is why you would use nicht: er darf nicht sprühen.
Why does the verb hat come immediately after er, instead of at the end of the clause?
This happens because of denn (because/for). denn is a coordinating conjunction that occupies "position 0" and does not affect the word order of the following clause. If the sentence used weil instead, it would force the conjugated verb to the end: ...weil er keine Erlaubnis hat.
Is the comma right before dieses Graffiti mandatory?
Yes, it is strictly required here. While commas before zu + infinitive clauses are sometimes optional in modern German, the rule states that a comma is mandatory if the infinitive clause depends directly on a noun. In this sentence, the clause dieses Graffiti zu sprühen directly explains the noun Erlaubnis.
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