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Das System im Museum wird täglich von einem Techniker geprüft.

Das System im Museum wird täglich von einem Techniker geprüft.
The system in the museum is checked daily by a technician.
FromLesson 17inHardcore German
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Questions & Answers about Das System im Museum wird täglich von einem Techniker geprüft.

In Das System im Museum wird täglich von einem Techniker geprüft., why is this phrased in the passive voice with wird geprüft instead of the active prüft?

We use the passive to focus on das System, not on who checks it. Grammatically, German forms the present passive (Vorgangspassiv) by combining:

  • the conjugated auxiliary werden (here wird)
    • the past participle of the main verb (here geprüft)
      So wird geprüft means “is checked.” In an active version, the sentence would be:
      • Ein Techniker prüft das System im Museum täglich.
How exactly do you form the present passive in German? Are there fixed steps?

Yes. To form the present passive you need:

  1. The appropriate form of werden (e.g. ich werde, du wirst, er/sie/es wird, wir werden…)
  2. The past participle of the main verb (e.g. geprüft for prüfen)
    Formula: Subject + … + werden
    • Partizip II
      In our sentence: Das System … wird … geprüft.
Why is einem Techniker in the dative case and introduced by von?
In German passives, the agent (the doer of the action) is normally marked by von + dative. So von einem Techniker tells us who performs the checking. Von always takes the dative case, hence einem Techniker.
Could I use durch einen Techniker instead of von einem Techniker?

Yes, grammatically you can. Both von and durch can introduce agents in the passive, but there’s a nuance:
• von + dative is more common in spoken or neutral contexts when referring to people.
• durch + accusative often appears in formal or written German and emphasizes the means or instrument.
Practically, both are correct here.

What case is das System in, and why?
Das System is in the nominative case because it’s the grammatical subject of the passive clause. In passive constructions, the former direct object (accusative) of the active sentence becomes the new subject (nominative).
What does im Museum mean, and why is it placed right after das System?

• im is the contraction of in + dem (dative).
• im Museum is a locative prepositional phrase telling us where the system is located.
It comes directly after the noun it modifies (das System) because it’s part of the subject noun phrase, not a free adverbial. This makes clear we’re talking about the system that exists in the museum.

Why is täglich placed between wird and von einem Techniker, and can I move it elsewhere?

In German main clauses, the finite verb (wird) is second, and adverbs like täglich generally sit in the “middle field” (Mittelfeld). Typical order for adverbials is Time – Manner – Place. Here:
• Time = täglich
• Manner/Agent = von einem Techniker
You could also front täglich for emphasis, which triggers inversion:
• Täglich wird das System im Museum von einem Techniker geprüft.

How would you turn this passive sentence into an active one?

Swap agent and object, use the active verb form:
• Ein Techniker prüft das System im Museum täglich.
Or for emphasis on time:
• Täglich prüft ein Techniker das System im Museum.

Can I say jeden Tag instead of täglich?

Absolutely. Jeden Tag (every day) is a time‑noun phrase and works the same way:
• Das System im Museum wird jeden Tag von einem Techniker geprüft.
Both mean “The system in the museum is checked every day,” with no real difference in meaning.

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German has four grammatical cases: nominative (subject), accusative (direct object), dative (indirect object), and genitive (possession). The case determines the form of articles and adjectives. For example, "the dog" is "der Hund" as a subject but "den Hund" as a direct object.

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