Die Frau reinigt die Küche.

the woman

Breakdown of Die Frau reinigt die Küche.

• die Küche: the kitchen
• reinigen: to clean

Questions & Answers about Die Frau reinigt die Küche.

Why is the article for Frau die?

In German, Frau is a feminine noun. In the nominative case (the subject of the sentence), the feminine singular definite article is die, so die Frau means “the woman” as the subject.

Why is the article for Küche also die?

Küche is also feminine, but here it’s the direct object in the accusative case. Feminine nouns use die in both nominative and accusative singular, so die Küche stays the same.

What case is used for Die Frau and die Küche?

Die Frau is in the nominative case (it’s the subject). Die Küche is in the accusative case (it’s the direct object).

Why is the verb reinigen conjugated as reinigt?

In the present tense, regular German verbs add -t for third person singular (er/sie/es). The infinitive is reinigen, so with sie (die Frau) it becomes reinigt.

What is the word order in this sentence?

It’s a standard German main clause with Subject–Verb–Object (SVO) order:

1. Subject: Die Frau
2. Verb: reinigt
3. Object: die Küche

Could I use putzen instead of reinigen?

Yes. putzen is another verb for “to clean.” reinigen often sounds more formal or implies a thorough cleaning; putzen is more everyday. You could say Die Frau putzt die Küche.

How would I change this sentence to past tense?

German usually uses the perfect tense for past actions. You need the auxiliary hat (from haben) plus the past participle gereinigt.
So it becomes: Die Frau hat die Küche gereinigt.

Where would I place a time adverb like “today”?

Time adverbs typically come directly after the verb or at the beginning of the sentence. For example:

• Die Frau reinigt heute die Küche. (“The woman cleans the kitchen today.”)
• Heute reinigt die Frau die Küche. (Here heute leads, pushing the verb to second position.)