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Questions & Answers about Am Abend räumte ich das saubere Geschirr aus dem Geschirrspüler und legte es in den Schrank.
Why is the prefix aus- of ausräumen separated from räumte and placed at the end of the clause?
In German many verbs are “separable‐prefix” verbs. The infinitive here is ausräumen (to empty). In main‐clause conjugations (present or simple past), you split the prefix off and put it at the end. So you get räumte … aus rather than one word.
Why does the sentence use the simple past (Präteritum) räumte and legte instead of the present perfect?
The simple past is common in written narratives (stories, reports). In spoken or informal German you’d often hear the present perfect:
“Am Abend habe ich das saubere Geschirr aus dem Geschirrspüler geräumt und es in den Schrank gelegt.”
Why does the sentence begin with Am Abend instead of the subject ich?
German has a “verb‐second” rule: the conjugated verb must come second. If you start with a time adverbial (Am Abend), the verb (räumte) follows, and the subject (ich) comes third.
Why is it das saubere Geschirr and not die Geschirr or der saubere Geschirr?
Geschirr (“dishes/crockery”) is a neuter noun, so its definite article in nominative or accusative is das. Here it’s the direct object (accusative), so you keep das. The adjective sauber takes the weak ending -e after a definite article in the neuter singular: das saubere Geschirr.
How do you decline the adjective sauber after a definite article in the neuter accusative?
Weak adjective endings after a definite article:
- Masculine Acc: den sauberen
- Feminine Acc: die saubere
- Neuter Acc: das saubere
- Plural Acc: die sauberen
So you get das saubere Geschirr.
Why is the prepositional phrase aus dem Geschirrspüler in the dative case?
The preposition aus (out of/from) always takes the dative when indicating origin or source. The masculine noun Geschirrspüler therefore uses dem in dative: aus dem Geschirrspüler.
Why is it in den Schrank (accusative) and not in dem Schrank (dative)?
The preposition in can govern dative (location) or accusative (movement/direction). Here you move the dishes into the cupboard (directional), so you use the accusative masculine den: in den Schrank. If you were already inside, you’d say in dem Schrank or contracted im Schrank.
What does es refer to in legte es in den Schrank?
es is the accusative pronoun replacing das saubere Geschirr (neuter singular). After naming the dishes once, you can avoid repetition by using es (“it”).
What’s the difference between ausräumen and aufräumen?
Both are separable‐prefix verbs but with different meanings:
- ausräumen = to empty something (e.g. the dishwasher, a cupboard)
- aufräumen = to tidy up or clean up (e.g. a room, a desk)