Ich montiere den Sattel ab.

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Breakdown of Ich montiere den Sattel ab.

• der Sattel: the bicycle saddle
• abmontieren: to dismantle; to remove

Questions & Answers about Ich montiere den Sattel ab.

Why is ab at the end of the sentence?

Because the full verb is abmontieren, and ab- is a separable prefix.

In a normal main clause, German usually puts the conjugated part of the verb in position 2 and sends the separable prefix to the end:

• Ich montiere den Sattel ab.

So:

• abmontieren = infinitive
• montiere = conjugated verb
• ab = separated prefix

This is very common in German:

• Ich stehe auf. = I get up.
• Er kauft ein. = He shops / buys groceries.

What is the base verb here?

The base verb is abmontieren.

It is made up of:

• montieren = to mount, assemble, install
• ab- = a prefix that often gives the idea of off, away, or removal

So abmontieren means something like:

• to remove
• to unmount
• to take off by unscrewing or detaching

Why is it den Sattel and not der Sattel?