Breakdown of Das Haus sieht von außen schön aus.
das Haus
the house
schön
beautiful
von
from
aussehen
to look
Questions & Answers about Das Haus sieht von außen schön aus.
Why is the verb split into sieht ... aus?
Because the full verb is aussehen, which is a separable verb.
- Infinitive: aussehen = to look / to appear
In a main clause, the conjugated part goes to the usual verb position, and the prefix goes to the end:
- Das Haus sieht ... aus.
- Ich sehe müde aus.
- Sie sieht gut aus.
So in this sentence:
- sieht = the conjugated verb part
- aus = the separable prefix
That is completely normal German word order for separable verbs.
Does sehen here really mean to see?
Not by itself. The full verb is aussehen, and that means to look or to appear.
So:
- sehen = to see
- aussehen = to look / to appear
That is why Das Haus sieht von außen schön aus does not mean The house sees beautifully from the outside. It means the house looks beautiful from the outside.
Why is it Das Haus and not something like Dem Haus?