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Questions & Answers about Die Zahlung funktioniert nicht.
Why does the sentence use die Zahlung instead of just Zahlung?
In German, most singular countable nouns need an article. Even if English says “Payment doesn’t work” without “the,” German requires die here because Zahlung is a specific noun in the sentence. Dropping the article would sound unnatural and is ungrammatical in standard German.
Why is Zahlung feminine?
German nouns have genders (masculine, feminine, neuter) that often must simply be memorized or learned through patterns. One helpful rule: any noun ending in -ung is always feminine. Hence die Zahlung.
What case is die Zahlung in, and how do I recognize it?
die Zahlung is in the nominative case because it’s the subject of the sentence (the thing doing the “funktionieren”). In a basic German sentence (Subject–Verb–Object), the subject appears in nominative. Here there’s no direct object, so only the subject and verb remain.
Why is funktioniert in second position?
German main clauses follow the V2 (verb-second) rule: the finite verb must occupy the second slot. First comes one “sentence element” (often the subject die Zahlung), then the verb funktioniert, and finally the rest of the sentence.
Why is nicht placed at the end rather than before funktioniert?
In German, nicht generally follows the element it negates. If you’re negating the verb or the entire statement, nicht often comes at the end. Here it negates the whole verb idea (“doesn’t work”), so it sits after funktioniert.
Can I use other verbs instead of funktioniert, like geht or klappt?
Yes. Common alternatives in everyday speech are:
- Die Zahlung geht nicht durch. (The payment doesn’t go through.)
- Die Zahlung klappt nicht. (The payment isn’t working/going smoothly.)
Each carries a slightly different nuance:
• funktionieren is more neutral/technical;
• geht nicht durch emphasizes failure of processing;
• klappt nicht sounds more colloquial.
How would I express this sentence in the past tense?
Spoken German often uses the Perfekt:
- Die Zahlung hat nicht funktioniert.
In writing or formal contexts you might see the Präteritum: - Die Zahlung funktionierte nicht.
Why is Zahlung capitalized in German?
All German nouns are capitalized, regardless of position in the sentence. This helps you quickly spot nouns when reading. Since Zahlung is a noun, it must start with a capital Z.