Learn Hardcore German: Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig, indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe. - I like to learn new words by heart by writing them on a vocabulary card.

German has a verb‑second (V2) word order in main clauses: whatever is in the first position, the conjugated verb must come second. The subject does not have to be first.

Neutral order:

Ich lerne neue Wörter gern auswendig. – I like learning new words by heart.

With emphasis on Neue Wörter:

Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig.

Here, Neue Wörter is put first for emphasis/topicalization (“As for new words, I like to learn them by heart”). Then lerne must come second, and ich moves after the verb.

Why is it lerne ich and not ich lerne after Neue Wörter?

Because of the V2 rule:

First position: Neue Wörter
Second position: the finite verb → lerne
Everything else (subject, objects, adverbs, etc.) comes after → ich gern auswendig

So:

Neue Wörter (position 1)
lerne (position 2 – required by V2)
ich gern auswendig (rest of the sentence)

You cannot have Neue Wörter ich lerne … in a main clause.

What exactly does auswendig mean, and how is auswendig lernen used?

auswendig means “from memory / by heart”.

auswendig lernen is a very common expression meaning “to memorize / to learn by heart.”

Examples:

Ich lerne neue Wörter auswendig. – I memorize new words.
Sie hat das Gedicht auswendig gelernt. – She learned the poem by heart.

In different tenses:

Perfekt: Ich habe die Vokabeln auswendig gelernt.
With a modal: Ich muss die Vokabeln auswendig lernen.

Think of auswendig lernen as a fixed expression: to learn something so you can say it without looking.

Is auswendig lernen a separable verb? Where does auswendig go?

Grammatically, lernen is the verb and auswendig is an adverb, but in practice they behave like a fixed combination.

In main clauses (present, simple past):

Ich lerne die Wörter auswendig.
Ich lernte die Wörter auswendig.

In Perfekt (with haben):

Ich habe die Wörter auswendig gelernt.
→ auswendig stands before the past participle gelernt.

With modals / infinitives:

Ich will die Wörter auswendig lernen.

So the pattern is:

Finite form of lernen (or gelernt) → auswendig is placed close to it, usually in the “right bracket” position of the clause.

What is the difference between gern and gerne?

No difference in meaning. Both mean “gladly / like to / enjoy doing”.

Ich lerne gern auswendig.
Ich lerne gerne auswendig.

Both are correct. gern is slightly shorter and often a bit more common in writing, but you can use them interchangeably.

Why is there a comma before indem?

indem introduces a subordinate clause (a dependent clause). In German, subordinate clauses are separated by a comma from the main clause.

Main clause:

Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig, …

Subordinate clause with indem:

… indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe.

So the comma is required because indem starts a new clause.

How does indem work, and what does it mean here?

indem is a subordinating conjunction that usually means “by …‑ing” in English. It tells you how something is done – the method or means.

Structure:

indem + subject + … + verb at the end

In this sentence:

indem – by
ich – I
sie – them (the words)
auf eine Vokabelkarte – onto a vocabulary card
schreibe – write

Whole clause: indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe → “by writing them on a vocabulary card.”

Note: because indem is subordinating, the finite verb goes to the end in that clause: … indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe.

What does sie refer to in indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe?

sie here is the 3rd person plural accusative pronoun (= them) and refers back to neue Wörter.

neue Wörter – plural noun
Pronoun for “them” (accusative plural) is sie

So:

Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig, indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe.
= “I like to memorize new words by writing them onto a vocabulary card.”

This sie is not the polite Sie (“you”) because:

it’s lowercase, and
it’s clearly referring to Wörter.

Why is it auf eine Vokabelkarte and not auf einer Vokabelkarte?

auf is a two‑way preposition (Wechselpräposition). It can take:

Accusative → when there is movement to a place (direction)
Dative → when something is located somewhere (no movement)

Here, schreibe … auf eine Vokabelkarte describes movement onto the card → direction → accusative:

auf eine Vokabelkarte (Akkusativ)

If you described a location (no movement), you’d use dative:

Die Wörter stehen auf einer Vokabelkarte. – The words are on a vocabulary card.

So schreibe … auf eine Vokabelkarte is correct because you are putting the words onto the card.

What is Vokabelkarte, and what gender and case does eine Vokabelkarte show?

Vokabelkarte means “vocabulary card / flashcard”.

Gender: feminine (die Vokabelkarte)
Singular forms:
- Nominative: eine Vokabelkarte
- Accusative: eine Vokabelkarte
- Dative: einer Vokabelkarte
- Genitive: einer Vokabelkarte

In the sentence you have:

auf eine Vokabelkarte → accusative singular of a feminine noun.
The article eine tells you it is accusative (or nominative) feminine singular; the preposition auf plus the meaning (movement) tells you it must be accusative here.

Why is Neue capitalized in Neue Wörter? Aren’t adjectives normally lowercase?

Adjectives in German are normally lowercase, but the first word of a sentence is always capitalized, no matter its part of speech.

So:

inside a sentence: Ich lerne neue Wörter auswendig. → neue is lowercase
at the beginning of a sentence: Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig. → Neue is capitalized only because it’s the first word.

If you moved Ich to the start, you’d write:

Ich lerne neue Wörter gern auswendig.

Then neue would be lowercase again.

Why is it Neue Wörter (plural) and not neues Wort (singular)?

It’s a matter of meaning, not grammar:

Neues Wort = “new word” (singular)
Neue Wörter = “new words” (plural)

The sentence is talking about a general habit of the speaker: whenever there are new words to learn, they like to memorize them by writing them on a card. That’s why the plural makes more sense:

Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig … – “I like to memorize new words …”

You could form a grammatical sentence with the singular, but it would change the meaning to “a/the new word”.

Could I also say Ich lerne neue Wörter gern auswendig, indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe? Is that more “normal”?

Yes. That is perfectly correct and is a very neutral, standard word order:

Ich lerne neue Wörter gern auswendig, indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe.

Difference in nuance:

Ich lerne neue Wörter gern auswendig …
→ Slightly more neutral; starts with the subject.
Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig …
→ Slightly more emphasis on Neue Wörter (“It’s new words that I like to memorize …”).

Both are good German; the choice is about focus/emphasis, not correctness.

Why is gern placed between lerne ich and auswendig? Could I say Ich lerne auswendig gern?

The common, natural order here is:

Ich lerne neue Wörter gern auswendig.
/ Neue Wörter lerne ich gern auswendig.

Rule of thumb:

gern tends to come relatively early in the “middle field,” close to the verb it refers to.
Adverb order is flexible, but some orders sound more idiomatic than others.

Ich lerne auswendig gern is grammatically possible, but sounds strange and marked; it suggests you “like to be in a state of learning by heart,” rather than simply liking the activity. Native speakers would very rarely say that in this context.

So stick with:

… lerne ich gern auswendig. for natural speech.

Could I use um … zu instead of indem here, like …, um sie auf eine Vokabelkarte zu schreiben?

You could, but the meaning changes:

indem ich sie auf eine Vokabelkarte schreibe
→ describes the method / means: I memorize them *by writing them on a card.*
um sie auf eine Vokabelkarte zu schreiben
→ expresses purpose/goal: in order to write them on a card.

Your original sentence focuses on how you memorize the words (your technique), so indem is the natural choice. An um … zu version would sound like your goal is to write them on a card, which is a different idea.