Breakdown of Der Fahrgast sitzt im Zug am Fenster.
Questions & Answers about Der Fahrgast sitzt im Zug am Fenster.
Fahrgast literally means traveling guest or riding guest (from fahren = to travel/drive and Gast = guest). In normal English it corresponds to passenger.
It is quite common in German and is used for passengers on public transport:
- der Fahrgast im Zug – the passenger on the train
- die Fahrgäste im Bus – the passengers on the bus
For passengers on planes or ships, Germans often prefer Passagier, but Fahrgast is still understandable.
Der Fahrgast means the passenger, so it refers to a specific, known passenger.
Ein Fahrgast would mean a passenger, introducing a new, non‑specific person.
Grammatically, both are correct; the article just changes whether you are talking about a definite or an indefinite person:
- Der Fahrgast sitzt im Zug am Fenster. – The (known) passenger is sitting …
- Ein Fahrgast sitzt im Zug am Fenster. – A (some) passenger is sitting …
Because Fahrgast is grammatically masculine in German.
Every German noun has a grammatical gender that you must memorize:
- der Fahrgast (masculine)
- die Fahrgäste (plural)
So in the nominative singular you must use der:
- Der Fahrgast sitzt … – The passenger is sitting …
sitzen means to sit; ist is a form of sein (to be).
In German, you must use a specific verb for posture or position:
- Der Fahrgast sitzt im Zug. – The passenger is sitting on the train.
- Der Fahrgast steht im Zug. – The passenger is standing on the train.
- Der Fahrgast liegt im Bett. – The passenger is lying in bed.
Using ist here (Der Fahrgast ist im Zug.) would only say The passenger is on the train, without specifying that he is sitting.
sitzen is the infinitive (dictionary form).
For er/sie/es (he/she/it), the present tense ending is ‑t:
- ich sitze
- du sitzt
- er/sie/es sitzt
- wir sitzen
- ihr sitzt
- sie/Sie sitzen
Since der Fahrgast is like er (he), the correct form is sieht? No: sitzt.
So: Der Fahrgast sitzt …
im is a contraction of in dem.
- in = in
- dem = the (dative, masculine/neuter singular)
- in dem Zug → im Zug
You cannot say in Zug on its own. You must use in dem Zug or the contracted form im Zug. In modern German, im Zug is the normal, natural choice.
The preposition in can take either accusative or dative:
- Accusative = movement into something (change of location)
- Dative = being in/at a place (no movement)
In this sentence the passenger is already inside the train, just sitting there, so it describes a location, not movement:
- Der Fahrgast sitzt im Zug. – He is sitting in the train. (location → dative: im = in dem)
- Der Fahrgast steigt in den Zug ein. – He is getting onto the train. (movement into → accusative: in den)
am is a contraction of an dem.
- an = at / on (vertical surface, edge, border)
- dem = the (dative, masculine/neuter singular)
- an dem Fenster → am Fenster
Just like im, the contracted form am Fenster is what people normally use in speech and writing.
In this context, am Fenster sitzen is an idiomatic way to say to sit by the window or in the window seat.
It does not necessarily mean the person is physically touching the window. It simply indicates the seat directly next to the window.
Compare:
- am Fenster sitzen – sit at/by the window (window seat)
- am Gang sitzen – sit in the aisle seat
The preposition an (in am) is another two‑way preposition, like in.
- With movement to a border/edge → accusative
- With location at a border/edge → dative
Here the passenger is already located at the window. There is no movement; it describes a position:
- Der Fahrgast sitzt am Fenster. – He is sitting at/by the window. (location → dative: am = an dem)
If there were movement to the window, you might say:
- Der Fahrgast setzt sich ans Fenster. – He sits down by the window. (movement → accusative: ans = an das)
You normally would not say beim Fenster here.
beim is a contraction of bei dem, and bei roughly means at the place of / near. It is more often used with people, institutions, or activities:
- beim Arzt – at the doctor’s
- beim Essen – while eating
For a seat next to a window, the natural expression is am Fenster sitzen.
beim Fenster would sound strange or at best very dialectal.
Yes, this word order is also grammatically correct:
- Der Fahrgast sitzt im Zug am Fenster.
- Der Fahrgast sitzt am Fenster im Zug.
Both are understandable and acceptable. The difference is very small; German often puts the more general location first, then the more specific:
- general: im Zug (in the train)
- specific: am Fenster (at the window seat)
So im Zug am Fenster feels slightly more natural, but am Fenster im Zug is not wrong.
Because in German all nouns are capitalized, regardless of where they appear in the sentence.
So you write:
- der Fahrgast
- im Zug
- am Fenster
Capitalization is a reliable way to recognize nouns in German.
You need the plural of Fahrgast and the plural verb form:
- Singular:
- Der Fahrgast sitzt im Zug am Fenster. – The passenger is sitting …
- Plural:
- Die Fahrgäste sitzen im Zug am Fenster. – The passengers are sitting …
Changes:
- Der Fahrgast → Die Fahrgäste (plural noun and article)
- sitzt → sitzen (plural verb form)
Yes, you can say:
- Der Passagier sitzt im Zug am Fenster.
It means the same thing: The passenger is sitting by the window on the train.
Nuances:
- Fahrgast is very common for public transport: trains, trams, buses.
- Passagier is common for planes and ships, and is also understood for trains and buses but can sound a bit more formal or technical depending on context.
Both are correct; Fahrgast just sounds more like everyday public transport language.