Wir montieren das Rad ab.

We remove the wheel.

Breakdown of Wir montieren das Rad ab.

• wir: we
• das Rad: the bike
• abmontieren: to dismantle; to remove

Questions & Answers about Wir montieren das Rad ab.

Why is ab at the end of the sentence?

Because the full verb is abmontieren, which is a separable verb.

In a normal main clause, the conjugated part goes in the usual verb position, and the prefix moves to the end:

• abmontieren → Wir montieren das Rad ab.

This is very common in German:

• Ich rufe dich an. = anrufen
• Sie macht das Fenster auf. = aufmachen

When the verb is not split, the parts stay together:

• Wir wollen das Rad abmontieren.
• Das Rad abzumontieren ist schwer.

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What is the basic dictionary form of the verb here?

The dictionary form is abmontieren.

In this sentence, it appears split up:

• Wir = we
• montieren = the conjugated verb part
• ab = the separated prefix

So if you look it up in a dictionary, you would usually search for abmontieren, not just montieren.

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What does montieren mean by itself, and how does abmontieren change it?