Learn Hardcore German: Er sitzt im Garten.

So im Garten and in dem Garten are grammatically the same. Im Garten is just the normal, more natural way to say it in everyday German. You would only use the full in dem Garten for special emphasis or in very formal/written style.

Why is Garten in the dative case here?

Because in can take either accusative or dative, depending on the meaning:

in + accusative → movement into something
- Er geht in den Garten. = He is going into the garden.
in + dative → location in something (no movement)
- Er sitzt im Garten. = He is sitting in the garden.

In your sentence, he is already there and just sitting, so it’s about location, not motion. Therefore, in uses the dative, and der Garten (masculine nominative) becomes dem Garten (masculine dative) → im Garten.

What is the difference between im Garten and in den Garten?

They describe two different ideas:

im Garten = in dem Garten (dative, location)
- “in the garden” (he is there)
- Er sitzt im Garten. → He is sitting in the garden.
in den Garten (accusative, direction)
- “into the garden” (he is going/moving there)
- Er geht in den Garten. → He is going into the garden.

So:

Wo? (Where?) → im Garten (dative)
Wohin? (Where to?) → in den Garten (accusative)

Where is the word “is”? Why is there no separate word for “is” in Er sitzt im Garten.?

In German, the simple present tense verb already covers both English “sits” and “is sitting”.

Er sitzt literally: “He sits”
but it is also used for: “He is sitting.”

German usually does not need a separate “is” + -ing form. So:

Er sitzt im Garten. can mean:
- He sits in the garden. (general / habitual)
- He is sitting in the garden. (right now)

Context decides which English translation is better, but the German form is the same.

Does Er sitzt im Garten. describe something happening right now, or a habitual action?

It can do both, depending on context:

Right now (progressive meaning):
- You look out the window: Er sitzt im Garten. → “He is sitting in the garden.”
Habitual / regular action:
- Talking about his routine:
  Er sitzt im Sommer oft im Garten. → “He often sits in the garden in summer.”

German present tense (sitzt) covers:

English “sits” (simple present)
and “is sitting” (present progressive).

What is the difference between sitzen and setzen?

They are related but not interchangeable:

sitzen = “to sit” (state, intransitive)
- describes the position someone/something is in
- Er sitzt im Garten. → He is sitting in the garden.
setzen = “to set / to put (into a sitting position)” (action, transitive or reflexive)
- describes the action of moving into a sitting position
- Er setzt sich in den Garten. → He sits down in the garden / He seats himself in the garden.

Think:

sitzen → the result/state (already sitting)
(sich) setzen → the action of sitting down

Can I also say Im Garten sitzt er.? Does the meaning change?

Yes, you can say Im Garten sitzt er. It is grammatically correct and means the same basic thing.

The difference is emphasis and focus:

Er sitzt im Garten.
- Neutral word order; focus is slightly more on er (who is sitting?).
Im Garten sitzt er.
- You put im Garten at the beginning, so you emphasize the location more (where is he sitting? In the garden).

Both respect the German rule that the finite verb must be in the second position:

Position 1: Im Garten
Position 2: sitzt
Then: er

Could you leave out er and just say Sitzt im Garten?

In normal, complete sentences, no. German is not a “pronoun-dropping” language like Spanish or Italian.

You normally must state the subject pronoun:

Correct: Er sitzt im Garten.
Incorrect as a neutral main clause: ∗Sitzt im Garten.

You might see or hear Sitzt im Garten:

in very informal note-taking,
in headlines,
or as a short answer fragment, e.g.:
- Wo ist er? – (Er) sitzt im Garten.

But as a full, neutral sentence, you should include er.

How do you pronounce sitzt correctly?

Sitzt looks tricky because of the consonant cluster at the end. Approximate pronunciation:

sitzt → [zɪtst] (roughly “zittst”)

Key points:

s before a vowel in si- is pronounced like English z: [z]
i is short, like in English sit.
z in German is pronounced [ts] (like “ts” in “cats”).
tst at the end is all pronounced, but very quickly.

So you get something like:

zi (as in “zip”) + tst → “zittst” (all merged together).

Why is Er capitalized here, but sometimes I see er written with a lowercase e?

In German:

The first word of a sentence is always capitalized.
Otherwise, the third-person singular pronoun is written er (lowercase).

So:

Er sitzt im Garten. (start of sentence → E capital)
In the middle of a sentence: …, weil er im Garten sitzt.

Exception:

The formal Sie (you) is always capitalized, but that’s a different pronoun.

Is Garten always masculine? How would this look with a feminine or neuter noun?

Yes, Garten is a masculine noun: der Garten.

In the dative singular after in (for location), the article changes depending on gender:

Masculine: der Garten → in dem Garten → im Garten
Neuter: das Haus → in dem Haus → im Haus
Feminine: die Küche → in der Küche (no contraction)

Examples with the same structure:

Er sitzt im Garten. (masc.) – He is sitting in the garden.
Er sitzt im Haus. (neut.) – He is sitting in the house.
Er sitzt in der Küche. (fem.) – He is sitting in the kitchen.

Note that in der (feminine dative) does not contract the way in dem → im does.

How would the sentence change for other persons, like I, we, or they?

You only change the subject pronoun and the verb ending; im Garten stays the same.

Present tense of sitzen:

ich sitze im Garten – I am sitting in the garden.
du sitzt im Garten – You (singular, informal) are sitting in the garden.
er/sie/es sitzt im Garten – He / she / it is sitting in the garden.
wir sitzen im Garten – We are sitting in the garden.
ihr sitzt im Garten – You (plural, informal) are sitting in the garden.
sie sitzen im Garten – They are sitting in the garden.
Sie sitzen im Garten – You (formal, singular or plural) are sitting in the garden.

So the pattern is:

1st & 3rd person plural: sitzen
2nd person plural & 2nd sing. informal: sitzt
1st person singular: sitze
3rd person singular: sitzt

Is there any nuance difference between Er sitzt im Garten. and Er ist im Garten.?

Yes:

Er sitzt im Garten.
- Focus on his position or activity: he is sitting (not standing, walking, etc.).
- Often used if what he is doing (sitting) is relevant.
Er ist im Garten.
- Simply says where he is; no information about what he is doing.
- More neutral; you might say this if someone asks “Where is he?”

So:

If you care about the action/posture → Er sitzt im Garten.
If you only care about location → Er ist im Garten.