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Breakdown of Der Hund schläft im Haus.
das Haus
the house
der Hund
the dog
schlafen
to sleep
im
in the; (masculine or neuter)
Questions & Answers about Der Hund schläft im Haus.
Why do we say der instead of die?
Because Hund is a masculine noun, it takes the masculine definite article der in the nominative case. Die is for feminine or plural nouns.
What does the verb form schläft mean?
Schläft is the third-person singular present tense of the verb schlafen (to sleep). It agrees with a singular subject (here, der Hund).
Why is im used, rather than in dem?
Im is a standard contraction in German, formed from in + dem. It indicates that the dog is inside the house, with dem in the dative case (masculine or neuter noun).
How do we recognize the dative case here?
In German, when in indicates a stationary location (where something is), it typically takes the dative case. Since the dog is resting in the house, dem (dative) is used, contracted to im.
Why is Haus capitalized?
In German, all nouns are capitalized. Haus is a noun meaning "house," so it starts with a capital letter.
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“How do German cases work?”
German has four grammatical cases: nominative (subject), accusative (direct object), dative (indirect object), and genitive (possession). The case determines the form of articles and adjectives. For example, "the dog" is "der Hund" as a subject but "den Hund" as a direct object.
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