Learn Hardcore German: Im Prüfungstraining simulieren wir eine echte Sprachprüfung, damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirkt. - In exam training we simulate a real language exam so that the day of the language exam feels familiar.

Yes, it’s completely normal. German main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb must be in second position, but the element in first position can be many things (subject, time, place, etc.).

Your sentence:
- Im Prüfungstraining (position 1: a prepositional phrase of place/situation)
- simulieren (position 2: the finite verb)
- wir (position 3: the subject)

So this is just an example of inversion: when something other than the subject is put first for emphasis, the subject moves to after the verb.

You could also say:

Wir simulieren im Prüfungstraining eine echte Sprachprüfung, ...

Both are correct. Starting with Im Prüfungstraining emphasizes the setting (“in the exam training”) more strongly.

What exactly is Im Prüfungstraining grammatically? Why im and not in dem or something else?

Im is simply the contracted form of in dem:

in (preposition) + dem (dative article for neuter singular)
→ im

The noun Prüfungstraining is neuter: das Prüfungstraining.
With in meaning “in/inside a situation or activity”, German usually uses the dative case:

in dem Prüfungstraining → in the exam training
Contracted: im Prüfungstraining

So:

Case: dative
Gender/number: neuter singular
Form: in dem → im

What does the compound noun Prüfungstraining actually mean? How is it built?

Prüfungstraining is a compound of:

die Prüfung – exam
das Training – training

Together: das Prüfungstraining = training (course, practice sessions) specifically for an exam.

So Im Prüfungstraining means something like “In the exam training course” or “During exam practice”.

Why is it eine echte Sprachprüfung and not ein echter Sprachprüfung or einen etc.? How do we know the right form?

The key is the gender and case of Sprachprüfung:

die Sprachprüfung – the language exam
- feminine noun (like die Prüfung)

In eine echte Sprachprüfung, we have:

eine – indefinite article, feminine accusative singular
echte – attributive adjective before a feminine accusative noun
Sprachprüfung – noun, feminine accusative singular

Why accusative? Because it is the direct object of simulieren:

Wir simulieren was? – eine echte Sprachprüfung.

So the correct form is:

eine echte Sprachprüfung (feminine accusative)
ein echter Sprachprüfung is wrong because Sprachprüfung is not neuter or masculine; it’s feminine.

Is there a difference between Sprachprüfung and Sprachtest?

Yes, there’s a nuance:

die Sprachprüfung
- Sounds more formal and official, like a certified exam (Goethe exam, TELC, TestDaF, etc.)
- Associated with institutions, certificates, and official results.
der Sprachtest
- Can be more general: any kind of language test or quiz.
- Can be informal (online tests, short placement tests, small class tests).

In this sentence, Sprachprüfung fits well because they’re talking about a proper formal exam situation.

In damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirkt, what exactly does damit mean? How is it different from um ... zu?

damit is a subordinating conjunction that introduces a purpose clause and means roughly:

so that, in order that

So the structure is:

Im Prüfungstraining simulieren wir eine echte Sprachprüfung, damit ...
→ “We simulate a real language exam in exam training so that ...”

Difference from um ... zu:

um ... zu
- infinitive:
- Used when the subject of both actions is the same.
- Example:
  - Wir simulieren eine Sprachprüfung, um uns vorzubereiten.
    “We simulate an exam in order to prepare (ourselves).”
    (Same subject: we simulate; we prepare.)
damit
- finite verb:
- Works with same or different subjects.
- In our sentence, the subjects are different:
  - Main clause: wir simulieren
  - Subclause: der Tag der Sprachprüfung wirkt
- You cannot use um ... zu there because the subjects differ.

So damit is required here:
..., damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirkt.

Why is the word order damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirkt and not damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung wirkt vertraut?

Because damit introduces a subordinate clause, and in German subordinate clauses the finite verb goes to the end.

Structure:

damit – subordinating conjunction
der Tag der Sprachprüfung – subject
vertraut – predicate adjective
wirkt – finite verb, therefore at the end

So:

Correct: damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirkt
Incorrect: ✗ damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung wirkt vertraut

This verb-final order is standard in all introduced subordinate clauses (with dass, weil, wenn, obwohl, damit, etc.).

What is going on grammatically in der Tag der Sprachprüfung? Why two times der?

Here we have:

der Tag – nominative masculine singular (subject of wirkt)
der Sprachprüfung – genitive singular of die Sprachprüfung

So der Tag der Sprachprüfung literally = “the day of the language exam”.

First der:
- Article of Tag, nominative masculine: der Tag.
Second der:
- Article of Sprachprüfung in the genitive feminine singular:
  - die Sprachprüfung → der Sprachprüfung in genitive.

Functionally, der Sprachprüfung is a genitive attribute specifying which day:

der Tag der Sprachprüfung = “the exam day”.

An alternative would be der Tag von der Sprachprüfung, but that’s much less natural; the genitive version is the standard written form.

Why is Sprachprüfung repeated: eine echte Sprachprüfung and then again der Tag der Sprachprüfung? Couldn’t you just say damit der Tag vertraut wirkt?

You could say:

..., damit der Tag vertraut wirkt.

This would be understandable, but it’s slightly less clear, because “der Tag” might feel a bit vague without context.

Repeating Sprachprüfung in der Tag der Sprachprüfung:

Makes it absolutely clear we mean the day of the language exam, not just any day.
Sounds stylistically normal and not redundant in German, especially when first introducing a concept or when clarity is important.

So the repetition here is natural and helps precision; it’s not considered clumsy.

Why is vertraut written with a lowercase v? Isn’t it related to the noun for “trust”?

In this sentence, vertraut is an adjective, used as a predicate adjective:

der Tag ... wirkt vertraut – “the day seems/feels familiar”

Predicate adjectives in German are written lowercase and have no ending in this position:

Der Tag ist lang.
Der Tag ist schön.
Der Tag wirkt vertraut.

There is a related adjective vertraut (familiar, close, intimate) and a verb jemandem vertrauen (to trust someone), and nouns like das Vertrauen (trust). But here we are using the adjective, so it’s lowercase.

Why does the sentence use wirkt vertraut instead of just ist vertraut? What is the difference?

Both are possible, but there’s a nuance:

ist vertraut – “is familiar”
- States a fact or a stable quality.
wirkt vertraut – “seems/appears/comes across as familiar”
- Emphasizes how it subjectively feels or appears to someone.

In the context of training:

The day of the exam isn’t objectively familiar (it’s still a new day), but it feels familiar because the situation has been practiced.
So wirkt vertraut nicely expresses this idea:
the exam day comes across as familiar to you.

Why is there a comma before damit in German?

Because damit starts a subordinate clause, and in German:

Every finite subordinate clause must be separated from the main clause by a comma.

So we have:

Main clause: Im Prüfungstraining simulieren wir eine echte Sprachprüfung
Subordinate clause: damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirkt

Rule: main clause , subordinate clause → comma required before damit.

Both clauses are in the present tense. In English we might say “so that the exam day will feel familiar.” Shouldn’t it be wirken wird in German?

Using the present tense here is normal and idiomatic in German, even when referring to the future in the subordinate clause.

Im Prüfungstraining simulieren wir ..., damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirkt.
- Literally: “..., so that the day of the language exam feels familiar.”
- Naturally understood as a future result.

You could use future tense:

..., damit der Tag der Sprachprüfung vertraut wirken wird.

But this sounds more formal and is usually unnecessary. In everyday German, you very often use the present tense for future meaning, especially in subordinate clauses like this.

Could I also say Beim Prüfungstraining simulieren wir ... instead of Im Prüfungstraining? Is there a difference?

Yes, you can say both, but there’s a subtle difference in feel:

Im Prüfungstraining
- Focuses slightly more on the setting/situation: within the exam training (course/unit).
Beim Prüfungstraining
- Is bei dem → beim, often used for “during / while (doing) X”.
- Emphasizes the activity/event itself: while we’re doing exam training...

In many contexts they would be interchangeable, and both are correct.
Here, Im Prüfungstraining sounds very natural, especially if Prüfungstraining is the name of a structured course or section in a textbook.