Breakdown of Der Stadtteil, in dem sie wohnen, hat einen kleinen Park am Ufer.
in
in
dem
the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
klein
small
haben
to have
wohnen
to live
der Park
the park
sie
they
der Stadtteil
the district
das Ufer
the shore
an
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Questions & Answers about Der Stadtteil, in dem sie wohnen, hat einen kleinen Park am Ufer.
Why is Der used before Stadtteil?
Stadtteil is a masculine noun and in the main clause it functions as the subject. In German the subject takes the nominative case, so the correct article is the masculine nominative Der.
Why are there commas around in dem sie wohnen?
This is a relative clause modifying Stadtteil. In German all relative clauses—whether they strictly define something or just add extra info—must be set off by commas.
Why is in dem used here, and why isn’t it contracted to im?
In a relative clause, the preposition (in) and the relative pronoun (dem) must stay separate to show their grammatical roles. Contractions like im (which stands for in dem) are only allowed in main clauses, not when a pronoun is involved.
Why is the relative pronoun dem and not den?
The pronoun refers back to the masculine noun Stadtteil, but the preposition in expresses a static location here, so it requires the dative case. The dative masculine singular form is dem, not den.
Why does wohnen appear at the end of the relative clause?
German subordinate clauses—including relative clauses—use verb‑final word order. That means the conjugated verb (wohnen) is placed at the very end of the clause.
Why is it einen kleinen Park instead of ein kleiner Park?
Park is masculine and serves as the direct object of hat, so it’s in the accusative case. The indefinite article ein changes to einen in the masculine accusative. After an article, adjectives take the weak ending -en, so klein becomes kleinen, giving einen kleinen Park.
Why do we say am Ufer, and what case is Ufer in?
am is the contracted form of an dem. Ufer is a neuter noun, and the preposition an when used for location takes the dative case. So dem Ufer contracts to am Ufer.
Could I use wo instead of in dem in the relative clause?
Colloquially, yes—you’ll hear Der Stadtteil, wo sie wohnen, … in spoken German. In formal or written German, however, you should use the full relative‑pronoun construction in dem.
Can I replace in dem with in welchem?
Yes. In more formal or literary style you can say der Stadtteil, in welchem sie wohnen, …. It’s grammatically correct but less common in everyday usage than in dem.