Learn Hardcore German: Wir brauchen einen klaren Zweck für das Projekt.

In German, the noun Zweck (purpose) is masculine. It’s the direct object of the verb brauchen, so it must be in the accusative case. The indefinite article ein changes to einen in the masculine accusative.

Why does klaren have the ending -en?

This is an example of the weak adjective declension. When you have an attributive adjective (one that comes before its noun) and an indefinite article in the masculine accusative, the adjective always takes -en. Hence klar → klaren to match einen klaren Zweck.

Why is Zweck capitalized? Aren’t adjectives and verbs capitalized, too?

In German, all nouns are capitalized, regardless of where they appear in the sentence. Adjectives, verbs, articles, etc., remain lowercase unless they’re at the very beginning of a sentence or part of a title.

Why is für das Projekt used, and what case does für require?

The preposition für always governs the accusative case in German. Projekt is a neuter noun, so its definite article das stays das in both nominative and accusative. That’s why we have für das Projekt.

Could I use benötigen instead of brauchen here?

Yes. benötigen is a more formal synonym for brauchen (“to need”). You could say: • Wir benötigen einen klaren Zweck für das Projekt. However, brauchen is more common in everyday spoken German.

What’s the difference between Zweck and Ziel in this context?

While both can translate as “goal” or “purpose,” there’s a subtle nuance: • Zweck emphasizes the underlying reason or intent (“purpose”)—the why.
• Ziel emphasizes a concrete target or outcome (“goal”)—the what.
So einen klaren Zweck focuses on why the project exists, whereas ein klares Ziel would focus on what the project aims to achieve.

Why does the sentence start with Wir followed by the verb brauchen? Can I change the word order?

German main clauses generally follow the Subject–Verb–Object order, and the finite verb must be in the second position. You can shift elements for emphasis, but the verb stays second: • Emphasize the purpose: Einen klaren Zweck brauchen wir für das Projekt.
• Emphasize the project: Für das Projekt brauchen wir einen klaren Zweck.
You cannot put the verb at the end in a main clause—that’s only for subordinate clauses.