Breakdown of Der richtige Gebrauch der Wörter hilft dir im Alltag.
in
in
dem
the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
dir
you; (informal singular, dative)
helfen
to help
Questions & Answers about Der richtige Gebrauch der Wörter hilft dir im Alltag.
What is the grammatical role of each part of the sentence?
- Subject: Der richtige Gebrauch der Wörter (head noun: Gebrauch, singular)
- Verb: hilft (3rd person singular of helfen)
- Indirect object (dative): dir
- Adverbial/prepositional phrase: im Alltag
- There is no direct (accusative) object because helfen does not take one.
Why is it Der and not Die or Das?
Because Gebrauch is a masculine noun. In the nominative singular (as the subject), the definite article is der. The whole subject phrase is singular because the head noun Gebrauch is singular.
Why does richtig become richtige here?
It’s an attributive adjective after a definite article in the nominative masculine singular. In that pattern, the adjective ending is -e: der richtige Gebrauch. Other cases, for reference:
- Accusative: den richtigen Gebrauch
- Dative: dem richtigen Gebrauch
- Genitive: des richtigen Gebrauchs
What case is der Wörter, and how can I tell? Could I use von Wörtern instead?