Breakdown of Am Abend werden wir uns einfach ausruhen, weil wir den ganzen Tag gelernt haben.
dem
the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
wir
we
der Tag
the day
haben
to have
der Abend
the evening
weil
because
werden
will
ausruhen
to rest
uns
ourselves
lernen
to learn
einfach
simply
ganz
all
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Questions & Answers about Am Abend werden wir uns einfach ausruhen, weil wir den ganzen Tag gelernt haben.
Why is the auxiliary verb "werden" used before the subject "wir" in this sentence?
It’s used to form the future tense (Futur I) in German. In this construction, "werden" is conjugated for the subject "wir" (we), and the main verb "ausruhen" remains in its infinitive form at the end of the clause. This structure indicates that the action of relaxing will take place in the future.
What role does the reflexive pronoun "uns" play, and why is it placed after the subject?
"Uns" is a reflexive pronoun showing that the subject (wir) is both performing and receiving the action of "ausruhen" (to rest or relax). In German, when a verb is reflexive, the appropriate reflexive pronoun is included and typically follows the subject in main clauses.
How does the subordinating conjunction "weil" affect the word order in its clause?
"Weil" is a subordinating conjunction that means "because" and introduces a reason for the main clause. In subordinate clauses introduced by such conjunctions, the conjugated verb is moved to the end of the clause. That’s why you see "gelernt haben" at the very end of the clause.
Why is the past action described with "gelernt haben" instead of using a simple past tense?
In German, the present perfect (Perfekt) — formed here as "gelernt haben" — is commonly used in spoken language to describe past events. Even though the action of learning happened earlier in the day, using the Perfekt is natural and conversational in everyday German.
What is the function of the phrase "Am Abend" at the beginning of the sentence?
"Am Abend" is a time adverbial phrase meaning "in the evening." Placing it at the beginning of the sentence emphasizes when the future action (relaxing) will occur and follows the typical German sentence structure where time expressions often lead the sentence.