Ich warte auf das Boot am Ufer.

the; (masculine or neuter, dative)

Breakdown of Ich warte auf das Boot am Ufer.

• ich: I
• warten auf: to wait for
• an: at

Questions & Answers about Ich warte auf das Boot am Ufer.

Why is warten followed by auf? Why can’t I say Ich warte das Boot?

German warten is always combined with the preposition auf when expressing “waiting for” something. That prepositional phrase (auf + accusative) functions as the object of warten. Without auf, the sentence would be ungrammatical.

What case does auf govern in auf das Boot, and why is it accusative?

Although auf is a two-way preposition (it can take either dative or accusative), in the fixed expression warten auf it always requires the accusative. The thing you’re waiting for is therefore in accusative case.

If das Boot is accusative, why doesn’t the article change to den?

Boot is a neuter noun. In German, the definite article for neuter singular is das in both nominative and accusative. Only masculine nouns change form (for example, der → den in the accusative).

What does am Ufer mean, and how is it formed?

Am is the contraction of an dem. Here an means “at” (a location), and dem is the dative article for the neuter noun Ufer (“shore” or “bank”). So am Ufer literally means “at the shore.”