Word
Die Kinder schauen dem Hund im Garten zu.
Meaning
The children watch the dog in the garden.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Die Kinder schauen dem Hund im Garten zu.
das Kind
the child
dem
the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
der Hund
the dog
der Garten
the garden
Questions & Answers about Die Kinder schauen dem Hund im Garten zu.
Why is it dem Hund and not den Hund?
Because zuschauen (to watch, to observe) is a verb that takes a dative object, not an accusative object.
- dem Hund = dative singular masculine
- den Hund = accusative singular masculine
Some verbs in German require the dative case for the person/thing affected. zuschauen is one of them, so you must say:
- Ich schaue dem Hund zu. – I watch the dog.
not - Ich schaue den Hund zu. ✅ meaning: wrong
Compare with sehen, which takes the accusative:
- Ich sehe den Hund. – I see the dog. (accusative)
Why is zu at the end of the sentence?
Because zuschauen is a separable verb. In main clauses, separable verbs split into:
- the stem (here: schauen) in the 2nd position, and
the prefix (here: zu) at the end of the clause:
Die Kinder schauen dem Hund im Garten zu.
In infinitive or dictionary form, it stays together:
- zuschauen – to watch
- Die Kinder wollen dem Hund im Garten zuschauen. (infinitive → not split)
What is the difference between , , and ?