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Questions & Answers about Der Mann repariert das Auto.
Why is der Mann in the nominative case, and how can I tell?
Because der Mann is the subject of the sentence. In German, the subject always takes the nominative case, and the masculine nominative singular article is der.
Why does das Auto look the same in nominative and accusative, and how do I know it’s the object?
For neuter singular nouns, both nominative and accusative articles are das, so the form doesn’t change. You identify das Auto as the direct object because it’s what is being acted upon by the verb—der Mann (the subject) is doing the repairing to das Auto.
What is the infinitive form of repariert, and why does it end in ‑t here?
The infinitive is reparieren. In the present tense, 3rd person singular (er/sie/es), you drop ‑en and add ‑t, yielding repariert.
Why is the verb repariert placed immediately after der Mann instead of after das Auto?
German main clauses follow the Verb‑second (V2) rule: the finite verb must occupy the second position in the clause. Since der Mann is the first element, repariert comes second, and the object das Auto follows.
Can I replace der Mann with a pronoun? If so, which one and in what case?
Yes. Use the nominative masculine pronoun er (he). The sentence becomes Er repariert das Auto.
Does the verb reparieren require a preposition before its object?
No. Reparieren is a transitive verb that takes a direct object in the accusative case, without any preposition.
How would you express this idea in the conversational past tense?
You would typically use the present perfect in spoken German:
Der Mann hat das Auto repariert.
How do you pronounce repariert correctly?
Phonetically approximately re‑pa‑REERT, with:
• a voiced r at the start, a uvular r in the second syllable
• short e as in English “bed,” long ie as “ee” in “see”
• a clear final ‑t.
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“How do German cases work?”
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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