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Questions & Answers about Im Ferienhaus liegt ein frisches Kopfkissen auf jedem Bett.
Why is in + dem written as im in this sentence?
In German, the preposition in followed by the dative article dem contracts to im. So im Ferienhaus is simply short for in dem Ferienhaus (“in the holiday home”).
Why is Ferienhaus in the dative case?
Because the preposition in here indicates a static location (“inside”), it requires the dative case. Thus dem Ferienhaus (dative singular) appears after in, and after contraction we get im Ferienhaus.
Why do we use the verb liegt instead of ist?
Liegen means “to lie” or “to be situated” and is used to describe where something is positioned. Ist only means “is” (to be) and doesn’t convey the idea of location/position. Hence ein Kopfkissen liegt auf dem Bett (“a pillow lies on the bed”).
Why does the subject ein frisches Kopfkissen come after the verb liegt?
German follows the V2 (verb-second) word-order rule. Since the prepositional phrase Im Ferienhaus occupies the first position, the finite verb liegt must come second, and the subject follows in third position.
What determines the -es ending in frisches?
Here frisches is an attributive adjective modifying the neuter noun Kopfkissen in the nominative case. With an indefinite article ein, adjectives take mixed declension, giving frisches for nominative neuter singular.
Why is it auf jedem Bett and not auf jeder Bett?
The preposition auf, when used to express a static location, takes the dative case. Jedes Bett (nominative) becomes jedem Bett (dative neuter), so you need -em, not -er.
Could you say auf allen Betten instead of auf jedem Bett?
Yes, but the nuance changes. Auf allen Betten (dative plural) means “on all the beds” together. Auf jedem Bett (dative singular) emphasizes “on each bed” individually.
Why is Kopf kissen written together as Kopfkissen?
German often forms compound nouns by joining two or more words. Kopf (“head”) + Kissen (“pillow”) become the single noun Kopfkissen (“pillow”).
Why is Kopfkissen capitalised here?
In German orthography, all nouns are capitalised regardless of their position in a sentence. Therefore Kopfkissen begins with a capital letter.
Could we start the sentence with Ein frisches Kopfkissen liegt… instead of Im Ferienhaus liegt…?
Yes. You can freely choose which element to place first for emphasis, but you must still keep the verb in second position. For example:
Ein frisches Kopfkissen liegt auf jedem Bett im Ferienhaus.