Breakdown of Um einen Rabatt zu bekommen, eröffne ich online ein neues Konto.
neu
new
ich
I
um
in order to
der Rabatt
the discount
Questions & Answers about Um einen Rabatt zu bekommen, eröffne ich online ein neues Konto.
Why is Um einen Rabatt zu bekommen placed at the beginning of the sentence, and why do eröffne and ich swap places?
In German any element you put in first position forces the finite verb into second position, even if that element is a non-finite clause. Here Um einen Rabatt zu bekommen is one unit (a purpose clause), so eröffne comes next (position 2) and ich follows in position 3. The comma separates the non-finite um … zu clause from the main clause.
What exactly does the um … zu construction mean, and how does it work?
um … zu introduces a purpose clause (“in order to …”). Structure: um + accusative object + zu + infinitive. It answers “why?”—here, “why do I open a new account? → Um einen Rabatt zu bekommen.”
Why is einen Rabatt in the accusative case?
Two reasons:
- bekommen (to get) is a transitive verb that takes a direct object in the accusative.
- The preposition um (in the um … zu clause) also governs the accusative.
Since Rabatt is masculine, ein becomes einen.
Why does neu take the ending -es in ein neues Konto?