Wir gehen langsam durch den Park, wobei wir auf die Fußgänger achten.

We walk slowly through the park, while paying attention to the pedestrians.

Breakdown of Wir gehen langsam durch den Park, wobei wir auf die Fußgänger achten.

• wir: we
• langsam: slowly
• der Park: the park
• durch: through
• den: the; (masculine, accusative)
• achten auf: to pay attention to
• die: the; (plural, accusative)
• gehen: to walk
• der Fußgänger: the pedestrian
• wobei: and in doing so / whereby

Questions & Answers about Wir gehen langsam durch den Park, wobei wir auf die Fußgänger achten.

Why is it durch den Park and not durch dem Park?

Because durch is a preposition that (in this meaning: motion “through”) takes the accusative case.

• der Park (nominative) → den Park (accusative)
  So: durch den Park = “through the park.”

Is den Park definitely accusative here, and how can I tell?

Yes. You can tell in two ways: 1) durch almost always governs accusative (except some rare fixed uses).
2) The masculine article changes from der (nom.) to den (acc.).
So den Park is the direct object of the preposition phrase, not a “direct object” of the verb.

Why is there a comma before wobei?

Because wobei introduces a subordinate clause (Nebensatz). Subordinate clauses in German are separated from the main clause by a comma:

• Wir gehen langsam durch den Park, wobei ...

What exactly does wobei mean here, and when would I use it?

wobei is roughly “whereby / while doing so / in the process.” It links the second clause to the whole situation in the first clause. It often adds a side action or accompanying circumstance:

• Wir gehen ... , wobei wir ... achten. = “We walk ..., while paying attention ... / and as we do so we pay attention ...”

It’s especially common when the second clause comments on or accompanies the first, rather than simply stating a separate event.

Why is the verb achten at the end of the wobei-clause?

Because wobei makes the clause subordinate, and in German subordinate clauses typically have verb-final word order:

• ..., wobei wir auf die Fußgänger achten.
  Subject wir comes early, and the conjugated verb achten goes to the end.

Why is it auf die Fußgänger (accusative) and not dative?

Because the verb achten is used with the preposition auf in the sense of “pay attention to,” and that pattern takes accusative:

• auf + Akk.: auf die Fußgänger
  Also, die Fußgänger here is plural, and plural accusative looks the same as plural nominative (die), so the article doesn’t “show” the case difference—grammar does.

What’s the difference between achten (auf) and aufpassen (auf)?

Both can mean “to pay attention,” but the feel is different:

• aufpassen (auf) is very common in everyday speech and often implies “be careful / watch out” (sometimes even “babysit/keep an eye on” depending on context).
• achten (auf) can sound a bit more deliberate or formal: “to pay attention to / to be mindful of.”

In this sentence, achten suggests mindful attention to pedestrians while walking.

Could I replace wobei with während? Would it change the meaning?

Often yes, but there’s a nuance:

• während is more directly “while” in a time-overlap sense: während wir auf die Fußgänger achten = “while we pay attention...”
• wobei is more “in doing so / as part of that action,” and it feels more like an added accompanying detail.

Both can work, but wobei is especially natural for “main action + accompanying circumstance.”

Why is langsam placed where it is, and could it move?

langsam is an adverb modifying gehen. Its position is flexible, but placement changes emphasis:

• Wir gehen langsam durch den Park. (neutral: we walk slowly)
• Langsam gehen wir durch den Park. (emphasis on “slowly”)
• Wir gehen durch den Park langsam. (possible but less natural; can sound like an afterthought)

The given word order is the most neutral/common.

Does Fußgänger have an umlaut, and what’s its plural?

It’s Fußgänger (with ß, no umlaut in this word). The plural is die Fußgänger—same form as singular, just different article/context:

• singular: der Fußgänger
• plural: die Fußgänger