Breakdown of Wir mussten am Bahnsteig umsteigen, aber der Zug fuhr in Eile ab.
in
in
wir
we
aber
but
müssen
must
Questions & Answers about Wir mussten am Bahnsteig umsteigen, aber der Zug fuhr in Eile ab.
What does umsteigen mean and when do I use it?
umsteigen literally means “to change” (trains, buses, etc.)—that is, to get off one vehicle and onto another.
Use it whenever your journey requires a transfer:
- Ich steige in München um. (I change trains in Munich.)
- Wir müssen am Flughafen umsteigen. (We have to change at the airport.)
Why is umsteigen written as one word, and why isn’t the um- prefix separated here?
German separable-prefix verbs (like umsteigen, abfahren, ankommen) are written as a single word in the infinitive and in non-finite forms. The prefix only detaches in finite verb forms:
- Present: ich steige um
- Präteritum: ich stieg um
But in the infinitive (here after a modal verb) it stays together: umsteigen.
Why is the main verb umsteigen at the end of the clause after mussten?
In German, when you use a modal verb (müssen) in a main clause, the finite form of the modal takes the second position (here mussten), and the main verb goes into its infinitive form at the very end:
… mussten … umsteigen.
Why do we say am Bahnsteig? What does am stand for, and what case is Bahnsteig in?