Breakdown of Die Untersuchung ergab ein klares Bild.
das Bild
the picture
klar
clear; obvious
die Untersuchung
the examination
ergeben
to yield, to result in
Questions & Answers about Die Untersuchung ergab ein klares Bild.
Why is ergab a strong verb if it is acting as a transitive verb here? Our lesson pairs usually have weak transitive verbs.
While verb pairs like legen (weak, transitive) and liegen (strong, intransitive) follow a neat pattern, it is not a universal rule for all verbs. Ergeben is based on the root verb geben, which is inherently strong (geben, gab, gegeben) despite being transitive. Verbs with prefixes like er- always keep the strong conjugation of their root.
Why does the adjective take the -es ending in ein klares Bild?
Bild is a neuter noun (das Bild) acting as the direct object (accusative case). Because the indefinite article ein has no ending in the neuter accusative, the adjective must carry the gender marker. Therefore, klar takes the strong neuter accusative ending -es.
I often see this verb used reflexively as sich ergeben. How does the meaning change when it is not reflexive, like in this sentence?
Used transitively with a direct object, ergeben means 'to yield', 'to produce', or 'to show a result' (like an investigation yielding a clear picture). When used reflexively (sich ergeben), it means 'to surrender' or, when paired with the preposition aus, 'to logically result from'.
Is the noun Untersuchung always feminine?