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Questions & Answers about Der Zug fährt pünktlich.
What does each word in Der Zug fährt pünktlich. mean?
Der is the definite article for masculine singular nouns, meaning the. Zug means train. fährt is the third-person singular present form of the verb fahren, which means to travel/operate/run, and pünktlich means punctually or on time.
Why is the article Der used instead of Die or Das?
Because Zug is a masculine noun in German. In the nominative case, the masculine definite article is der, so Der Zug correctly means the train.
What tense is the verb fährt, and what does it indicate about the action in the sentence?
The verb fährt is in the present tense. This indicates that the train is currently running on time or that it habitually does so, making the statement a general fact or a current observation.
Is pünktlich functioning as an adjective or an adverb in this sentence, and what does it modify?
In this sentence, pünktlich functions as an adverb. Although its form is identical to the adjective form, here it modifies the verb fährt by describing the manner in which the train runs—namely, on time.
What is the basic sentence structure of Der Zug fährt pünktlich.?
The sentence follows a simple subject-verb-adverb structure. Der Zug is the subject performing the action, fährt is the action (verb) itself, and pünktlich is the adverb that provides additional information about how the action is carried out.