Im Joghurt sind Trauben und Kirschen, deshalb schmeckt er süß.

There are grapes and cherries in the yogurt, therefore it tastes sweet.

Breakdown of Im Joghurt sind Trauben und Kirschen, deshalb schmeckt er süß.

• sein: to be
• und: and
• deshalb: therefore
• schmecken: to taste
• er: it
• im: in the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
• süß: sweet
• der Joghurt: the yogurt
• die Traube: the grape
• die Kirsche: the cherry

Questions & Answers about Im Joghurt sind Trauben und Kirschen, deshalb schmeckt er süß.

What does im mean, and why isn’t it in dem?

Im is a contraction of in dem.

• in = in
• dem = the (dative form for masculine or neuter nouns)

So:

• im Joghurt = in the yogurt

German very often uses these contractions in everyday language:

• in dem → im
• an dem → am
• zu dem → zum
• zu der → zur

Using im here is completely normal and natural.

Why is Joghurt in the dative case in im Joghurt?

Because in takes the dative when it describes a location.

Here, im Joghurt tells us where the grapes and cherries are: they are in the yogurt. That is a location, so German uses the dative.

Compare:

• im Joghurt = in the yogurt (location → dative)
• in den Joghurt = into the yogurt (direction/movement → accusative)

So in this sentence, dative is used because nothing is moving; it is just describing where the fruit is.

Why does the sentence begin with Im Joghurt instead of Trauben und Kirschen?

German word order is more flexible than English. The sentence could also be:

• Trauben und Kirschen sind im Joghurt.

Both versions are grammatically correct.

When Im Joghurt is placed first, the speaker is putting a little more focus on the yogurt as the setting or context. After that, the finite verb must come in second position, which is why we get:

• Im Joghurt sind Trauben und Kirschen.

This is a very common German pattern:

• first element: Im Joghurt
• second element: sind
• then the rest of the clause

Why is it sind and not ist?

Because the subject is Trauben und Kirschen, and that subject is plural.

Even though Joghurt is singular, it is not the subject here. The sentence structure is basically:

• Trauben und Kirschen sind im Joghurt.

So the verb agrees with Trauben und Kirschen, not with Joghurt.

That is why German uses:

• sind = are

not

• ist = is

Why are there no articles before Trauben and Kirschen?

Because German often leaves out the article with plural nouns when speaking generally or when the exact quantity is not important.

So:

• Trauben und Kirschen means grapes and cherries

This sounds natural when listing ingredients or contents.

You could add articles in some contexts, but it would change the feel:

• Im Joghurt sind die Trauben und die Kirschen.
  This sounds like you mean specific grapes and specific cherries already known from context.

Without articles, it sounds more like a normal ingredient description.

Why is there a comma before deshalb?

Because the sentence contains two main clauses:

1. Im Joghurt sind Trauben und Kirschen
2. deshalb schmeckt er süß

The comma separates these two independent clauses.

Also, deshalb is not a subordinating conjunction like weil. It is an adverb, so it belongs to the second clause rather than linking the clauses in the same way as because does in English.

So the comma is the normal way to separate the two full clauses here.

Why is the word order deshalb schmeckt er süß and not deshalb er schmeckt süß?

Because German main clauses follow the verb-second rule.

In the second clause, deshalb is placed first. Once that happens, the finite verb must come next:

• deshalb schmeckt er süß

Structure:

• position 1: deshalb
• position 2: schmeckt
• then: er
• then: süß

This is one of the most important German word-order rules.

Compare:

• Er schmeckt süß.
• Deshalb schmeckt er süß.
• Heute schmeckt er süß.

Whenever something else takes the first position, the verb still stays in second position.

Why does the sentence use er for Joghurt?

Because pronouns in German match the grammatical gender of the noun, not whether the thing is actually male or female.

In standard German:

• der Joghurt is masculine

So when referring back to Joghurt, German uses:

• er = he/it for masculine nouns

In English, we use it for things. In German, the choice is based on grammatical gender:

• der noun → er
• die noun → sie
• das noun → es

So er here really means it, not he in the personal sense.

A small extra note: in some regions, especially Austria, das Joghurt is also common. But in standard German, der Joghurt is the form many learners are taught first.

Why does German use schmeckt süß instead of just saying ist süß?

Because schmecken specifically refers to taste.

• Er ist süß. = It is sweet.
  This can describe a general quality.
• Er schmeckt süß. = It tastes sweet.
  This specifically talks about flavor.

Since the sentence is explaining why the yogurt has a sweet taste, schmeckt is the more natural verb.

German often uses sensory verbs like this:

• gut schmecken = to taste good
• bitter schmecken = to taste bitter
• süß schmecken = to taste sweet

Why doesn’t süß have an ending here?

Because süß is being used predicatively, not directly before a noun.

Adjectives in German only take endings when they come before a noun:

• ein süßer Joghurt = a sweet yogurt

But after verbs like sein, werden, bleiben, or schmecken, the adjective usually stays in its basic form:

• Der Joghurt ist süß.
• Der Joghurt schmeckt süß.

So süß has no ending here because it is describing the result of the tasting, not modifying a noun directly.

Is deshalb a conjunction like because?

Not exactly. Deshalb is better thought of as an adverb meaning something like therefore, for that reason, or that’s why.

That matters because it affects word order.

With deshalb:

• Im Joghurt sind Trauben und Kirschen, deshalb schmeckt er süß.

But with a subordinating conjunction like weil:

• Der Joghurt schmeckt süß, weil Trauben und Kirschen im Joghurt sind.

Notice that with weil, the verb goes to the end of the clause:

• ... weil ... sind

With deshalb, the clause stays a normal main clause with the verb in second position:

• deshalb schmeckt er süß

So even if the meaning is similar, the grammar is different.