Breakdown of Die ganze Klasse hat die Prüfung bestanden.
haben
to have
ganz
quite, completely; whole
die Prüfung
the exam
bestehen
to pass (exam)
die Klasse
the class (school year, group)
Questions & Answers about Die ganze Klasse hat die Prüfung bestanden.
Why is it Die ganze Klasse instead of using alle?
Ganz means "whole" or "entire" and is used for a single, complete thing, like die ganze Klasse (the whole class) or der ganze Tag (the whole day). Alle means "all" or "every" and is used with plural nouns, like alle Klassen (all classes).
Why doesn't the past participle bestanden have a ge- prefix?
Verbs that start with an inseparable prefix, such as be-, ent-, er-, or ver-, do not take the ge- prefix in the perfect tense. Because the infinitive is bestehen, the past participle is simply bestanden.
Does bestehen always mean "to pass"?
No, it has a few different meanings depending on the context. With an exam or test (eine Prüfung bestehen), it means "to pass". However, on its own, it often means "to exist". It can also mean "to consist of" when followed by the preposition aus.
Both nouns use die in this sentence. How do we know which one is the subject and which is the object?
In German, feminine nouns use die for both the nominative case (the subject doing the action) and the accusative case (the direct object receiving the action). Here, word order and context tell us that die ganze Klasse is the subject passing the exam, making die Prüfung the accusative object.
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