Breakdown of Die Wand im Zimmer ist dunkel.
sein
to be
in
in
dem
the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
das Zimmer
the room
dunkel
dark
die Wand
the wall
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Questions & Answers about Die Wand im Zimmer ist dunkel.
Why is the article die used before Wand?
Wand is a feminine noun in German. In the nominative case (subject of the sentence), all singular feminine nouns take the article die.
What does im mean, and why is it written as one word?
im is a contraction of in dem.
- in is the preposition “in” (which requires the dative after it when you’re indicating location).
- dem is the dative singular article for neuter nouns like Zimmer.
Putting them together yields im (“in the”).
Why is Zimmer capitalized?
In German, every noun is always capitalized, regardless of where it appears in a sentence. Zimmer (“room”) is no exception.
Why does dunkel have no ending (like dunkle or dunkles)?
Because dunkel here is a predicate adjective—it follows a form of sein (“to be”) and describes a property of the subject. Predicate adjectives do not take extra endings in German; they remain in their base form. If you used dunkel attributively (directly before a noun), e.g. die dunkle Wand, it would have to be inflected.
Could I move im Zimmer to the beginning or end of the sentence?
Yes. German word order allows the dative prepositional phrase to appear in different positions, as long as the verb stays in second position:
- Im Zimmer ist die Wand dunkel. (emphasis on “in the room”)
- Die Wand ist dunkel im Zimmer. (less common; sounds slightly unnatural)
The original Die Wand im Zimmer ist dunkel is neutral and clear.
What’s the difference between die Wand and die Mauer?
- die Wand refers to an interior wall or partition inside a building.
- die Mauer usually means a free‑standing or outer wall—think of a city wall or a garden wall.
Why do we say Die Wand im Zimmer ist dunkel instead of Es ist dunkel im Zimmer?
They describe different things:
- Die Wand im Zimmer ist dunkel specifically states that the wall inside the room is dark (it’s about the wall’s color).
- Es ist dunkel im Zimmer means “It is dark in the room” (referring to the lighting or overall brightness inside the room), using the impersonal es plus a predicate adjective.
Why is sein (in ist) used to describe a color rather than another verb like liegen or werden?
In German, sein is the standard verb to express a static state or inherent property (such as color, size, shape).
- liegen would describe physical position (“to lie/be located”), not color.
- werden can indicate change (“to become”), e.g. Die Wand wird dunkel (“the wall is becoming dark”). Here, however, the wall’s color is simply stated, so we use sein.