Breakdown of Bei der nächsten Gelegenheit frage ich ihn.
fragen
to ask
bei
at, near, with
nächste
next
die Gelegenheit
the opportunity
Questions & Answers about Bei der nächsten Gelegenheit frage ich ihn.
How can I easily remember the gender of Gelegenheit?
Look at its ending! Nouns ending in -heit (like die Gelegenheit, meaning the opportunity) are always feminine. Because it is feminine, it uses the feminine dative article der after the preposition bei.
Why does the adjective nächste get an -n ending here to become nächsten?
The preposition bei always forces the dative case. In the dative case, adjectives that come after a definite article (like the dative feminine der) always take the ending -en.
Why does the sentence say frage ich instead of ich frage?
This is because of the V2 rule, which says the conjugated verb must be the second block of information in a main clause. The entire phrase Bei der nächsten Gelegenheit counts as the first block, so the verb frage must come right after it, pushing the subject ich to the third position.
The English translation says 'I will ask', but the German sentence uses the present tense frage. Why?
German frequently uses the present tense to talk about the future, as long as the context makes it clear. The phrase Bei der nächsten Gelegenheit makes it obvious this will happen later, so the present tense frage is the most natural way to say this.
Why is it ihn and not the dative ihm?
Because the verb fragen (to ask) requires a direct object in the accusative case. Even though asking someone might feel like a dative interaction (like giving someone a question), you must use the accusative ihn for the person being asked.
Learn Bei der nächsten Gelegenheit frage ich ihn and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free