Heute erklärt der Verantwortliche im Büro den Plan.

in

Breakdown of Heute erklärt der Verantwortliche im Büro den Plan.

• heute: today
• der Plan: the plan
• das Büro: the office

Questions & Answers about Heute erklärt der Verantwortliche im Büro den Plan.

Why does the verb erklärt come before the subject der Verantwortliche after Heute?

In German main clauses, the conjugated verb must be in second position (the “verb-second” or V2 rule).

• Position 1 here is the time adverb Heute.
• Position 2 must therefore be the verb erklärt.
• The subject der Verantwortliche then comes after the verb.

So:

• Heute (1) erklärt (2) der Verantwortliche im Büro den Plan.

If the subject stands first, the order changes, but the verb is still second:

• Der Verantwortliche (1) erklärt (2) heute im Büro den Plan.

What exactly is der Verantwortliche grammatically, and why is Verantwortliche capitalized?

Verantwortliche here is a nominalized adjective (an adjective used as a noun).

• The base adjective is verantwortlich = responsible.
• When it is used as a noun (meaning the person who is responsible / the one in charge), it is capitalized and takes an article:
  • der Verantwortliche – the (male) person responsible / the person in charge
  • die Verantwortliche – the (female) person responsible
  • die Verantwortlichen – the responsible people / the people in charge (plural)

Grammatically, der Verantwortliche is:

• Nominative masculine singular, acting as the subject of the sentence.
• That’s why the article is der, not den/dem/des.