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Questions & Answers about Das Rezept ist kompliziert.
Why is das Rezept using das and not der or die?
In German every noun has a gender. Rezept is a neuter noun, so its nominative singular definite article is das.
What case is das Rezept in this sentence?
It’s in the nominative case because it functions as the subject of the sentence.
Why doesn’t kompliziert have an ending like komplizierte or komplizierter?
When an adjective follows a form of sein (to be) as a predicate adjective, it remains uninflected—no adjective ending is added.
What part of speech is kompliziert here?
It’s a predicate adjective (in this case technically a past participle used adjectivally) describing the subject das Rezept.
Could I use a synonym instead of kompliziert?
Yes. You might say Das Rezept ist schwierig (difficult) or Das Rezept ist verwickelt (intricate), depending on nuance.
Why is ist placed between das Rezept and kompliziert?
German main clauses follow V2 word order: the conjugated verb (ist) must be the second constituent, with the subject before it.
Can I start the sentence with Kompliziert to emphasize it?
No. To state “The recipe is complicated,” you need subject–verb–predicate order. If you front another element (e.g. an adverb), the verb still stays in second position, but you wouldn’t front the predicate adjective itself.
Could I replace das Rezept with es and say Es ist kompliziert?
Absolutely. Es is a placeholder subject; you use it when the real subject is obvious or mentioned elsewhere.
How would I say “a complicated recipe” in German?
As an attributive adjective, kompliziert must take an ending: ein kompliziertes Rezept.
How do you pronounce kompliziert?
Phonetically roughly /kɔm-pli-ˈtsiːɐ̯t/ with the stress on the third syllable -ziert.