Breakdown of Ich danke der Bibliothekarin für ihre freundliche Antwort.
ich
I
für
for
freundlich
friendly
ihre
her
die Antwort
the answer
danken
to thank
die Bibliothekarin
the librarian
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Questions & Answers about Ich danke der Bibliothekarin für ihre freundliche Antwort.
Why is der Bibliothekarin in the dative case instead of the accusative?
The verb danken always takes its object (the person you’re thanking) in the dative case. In English we say “I thank someone” with a direct object, but German uses the dative:
- Ich danke der Bibliothekarin.
If you tried accusative (“die Bibliothekarin”), it would be ungrammatical.
Why is there a für before ihre freundliche Antwort, and what case does für govern?
The preposition für means “for” in English, and it always requires the accusative case. So when you thank someone für ihre freundliche Antwort, ihre freundliche Antwort is an accusative object of für.
Why is the possessive pronoun ihre used here, and how does it agree with Antwort?
ihre is the feminine singular possessive pronoun “her.” It agrees with the noun Antwort, which is feminine (die Antwort). In the accusative singular feminine, ihr- takes the ending -e, giving ihre.
How does the adjective ending -e in freundliche Antwort get determined?
In German, adjectives after a determiner (definite article, possessive pronoun, etc.) take weak endings. Here:
- für (prep.) + ihre (possessive) signals accusative feminine, so the adjective ending is -e: freundliche Antwort.
Could I use Ich bedanke mich bei der Bibliothekarin instead of Ich danke der Bibliothekarin?
Yes. sich bedanken bei is a reflexive alternative:
- Ich bedanke mich bei der Bibliothekarin für ihre freundliche Antwort.
Here you use bei- dative and include the reflexive pronoun mich, but the meaning stays “I thank the librarian for her friendly answer.”
Can I change the word order to emphasize für ihre freundliche Antwort?
Certainly. German allows fronting of elements for emphasis, but you must keep the verb in second position:
- Für ihre freundliche Antwort danke ich der Bibliothekarin.
This stresses what you’re thanking for.
Why are Bibliothekarin and Antwort capitalized?
In German orthography, all nouns are capitalized. So every noun—like Bibliothekarin (librarian) or Antwort (answer)—always begins with a capital letter.
How do you form the feminine of professions like Bibliothekarin?
Many German professions add the suffix -in to the masculine form:
- der Bibliothekar → die Bibliothekarin
This marks the feminine. The plural feminine is Bibliothekarinnen.