Wir gehen morgen zum Arzt, außerdem kaufen wir neue Medikamente in der Apotheke.

We are going to the doctor tomorrow; in addition, we are buying new medication at the pharmacy.

Breakdown of Wir gehen morgen zum Arzt, außerdem kaufen wir neue Medikamente in der Apotheke.

• in: in
• dem: the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
• neu: new
• wir: we
• gehen: to go
• zu: to
• kaufen: to buy
• morgen: tomorrow
• das Medikament: the medication
• die Apotheke: the pharmacy
• der Arzt: the doctor
• der: the; (feminine, dative)
• außerdem: also, in addition

Questions & Answers about Wir gehen morgen zum Arzt, außerdem kaufen wir neue Medikamente in der Apotheke.

What does zum mean, and why isn’t it written as two words?

zum is a contraction of zu dem.

• zu is a preposition meaning to (in the sense of going to a person/place for a purpose).
• dem is the dative form of der (masculine/neuter).
  So zum Arzt literally means to the (male) doctor. In everyday German, zu dem → zum is very common.

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Why is it zum Arzt and not zu den Arzt or zu der Arzt?

Because Arzt is masculine: der Arzt. After zu, German uses the dative case:

• nominative: der Arzt
• dative: dem Arzt So it becomes zu dem Arzt → zum Arzt.
  zu der Arzt would be wrong because der is feminine dative, and Arzt isn’t feminine.

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Why does the sentence use in der Apotheke (dative) instead of in die Apotheke (accusative)?

With in, German chooses the case based on meaning:

• in + dative = location (where?) → in der Apotheke = in/at the pharmacy
• in + accusative = direction/motion into (where to?) → in die Apotheke = into the pharmacy Here the idea is buying while at the pharmacy (location), so dative is used.

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Why is morgen placed where it is? Could it go somewhere else?

Yes, morgen (tomorrow) is flexible. German main clauses keep the finite verb in position 2, and time adverbs often appear early. Common options:

• Wir gehen morgen zum Arzt. (neutral, very common)
• Morgen gehen wir zum Arzt. (more emphasis on tomorrow)
• Wir gehen zum Arzt morgen. (possible but less natural; sounds marked) So the chosen position is a natural, neutral one.

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How does word order work after außerdem? Why is it außerdem kaufen wir… and not außerdem wir kaufen…?

Because außerdem can function like a sentence adverb at the start of a main clause. In German main clauses, the finite verb must be in position 2:

• Position 1: außerdem
• Position 2: kaufen
• Then: subject wir So außerdem kaufen wir… is correct.
  außerdem wir kaufen… would push the verb too far back and breaks the verb-second rule.

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What’s the difference between außerdem, auch, and und here?

• und simply adds another action: …und wir kaufen… (neutral “and”)
• auch means also/too, often implying “in addition (like something already mentioned)” and can focus on what follows: …wir kaufen auch neue Medikamente…
• außerdem means besides that / furthermore / in addition, and often sounds a bit more “structured” or formal than auch. It links the second clause as an additional point.

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Why is there a comma before außerdem?

Because the sentence contains two main clauses: 1) Wir gehen … zum Arzt 2) außerdem kaufen wir … German commonly separates main clauses with a comma, especially when a connector like außerdem introduces the second clause. It makes the structure easier to read.

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Why is neue Medikamente and not neuen Medikamente or neues Medikamente?

Because Medikamente is plural, and the adjective ending depends on:

• case: here it’s accusative (direct object of kaufen)
• number: plural
• article type: there is no article (bare plural) With no article, adjectives take the “strong” endings. Accusative plural strong ending is -e:
• neue Medikamente

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Can you drop the second wir to avoid repetition?

Not in this exact structure. Since the second part is a full main clause with its own verb (kaufen), you normally keep the subject:

• …, außerdem kaufen wir … (standard) You can avoid repetition by restructuring, for example:
• Wir gehen morgen zum Arzt und kaufen außerdem neue Medikamente in der Apotheke. Here both verbs share the same subject wir in a coordinated structure.

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Why are words like Arzt, Medikamente, and Apotheke capitalized?

In German, all nouns are capitalized, not just proper names.
So:

• der Arzt (doctor)
• die Medikamente (medications)
• die Apotheke (pharmacy)
  This is a core spelling rule and helps readers identify noun phrases quickly.