Prepositions Of Place In German

Prepositions are words that describe the location of a noun, in relation to another.

Der Nussknacker ist/geht...

...in dem Karton

...neben dem Karton

...auf dem Karton.

They are used to answer 'Where' and 'Where to' questions, or Wo and Wohin questions:

English	German	Question	Answer
Where	Wo	Wo ist der Nussknacker?	Der Nussknacker ist in dem Karton.
Where to	Wohin	Wohin geht der Nussknacker?	Der Nussknacker geht in das Zimmer.

Prepositions Of Place

Here are some tables of the prepositions of place:

Case	Preposition
Dative	ab, außer, zu, nach, bei, von, aus, mit, seit, gegenüber
Accusative	bis, durch, für, ohne, gegen, um
Two-way	in, an, auf, neben, hinter, über, unter, vor, zwischen

You'll notice that they are divided into three types:

dative prepositions,
accusative prepositions,
& two-way prepositions (can be used as a dative preposition AND an accusative preposition)

Dative, Accusative & Two-Way Prepositions

1. Dative Prepositions

When a dative preposition is used, such as mit, the object noun uses the dative case:

Der Mann isst mit der Frau.

The man eats with the woman.

2. Accusative Prepositions

When an accusative preposition is used, such as durch, the object noun uses the accusative case:

Der Fuchs läuft durch den Wald.

The fox walks through the forest

3. Two Way Prepositions

When a two-way preposition is used, such as auf, the object noun uses either the accusative case or the dative case, depending on whether a Wo or Wohin question is being answered:

Wo:

auf + dative (Wo)	English Translation	Where is
Die Katze ist auf dem Tisch.	The cat is on the table.	Where is the cat?

Wohin:

auf + accusative (Wohin)	English Translation	Where to
Die Katze klettert auf den Tisch.	The cat climbs onto the table.	Where to is the cat climbing?

Exercise: Dative or Accusative?

Take a look at the sentences below. Which sentences answer a Wo question, and which Wohin?

💡

Remember: Wo questions describe the static location of the subject. Wohin questions describe the moving direction of the subject.

Click on your guess, to reveal the answer.

Er ist in dem Schwimmbad.

(He is in the pool.)

Stellen Sie sich neben die anderen.

(Stand next to the others.)

Mama parkt zwischen den Autos.

(Mum parks between the cars.)

Das Mädchen kroch unter das Bett.

(The girl crawled under the bed.)

Sie versteckt sich hinter dem Baum.

(She hides behind the tree.)

Well done! 🎉

Let's continue with more exercises.

Exercises: Prepositions of Place

Take a look at the sentences below. Which case should be used, in each example?

Der Nussknacker steht auf

Karton.

Der Nussknacker geht um

Karton herum.

Der Nussknacker fliegt gegen

Karton.

Der Nussknacker liegt vor

Karton.

Der Nussknacker geht mit

Karton.

Der Nussknacker steigt in

Karton.

Take a look at the images in the table below. Then, complete each sentence underneath it, by selecting the correct preposition.

Sentences:

Der Nussknacker steht

dem Karton.

Der Nussknacker geht

den Karton.

Der Nussknacker kommt

den Karton.

Der Nussknacker liegt

dem Karton.

Der Nussknacker geht

dem Karton.

Der Nussknacker steigt

den Karton.

Well done! 🎉

You are starting to use prepositions of place in your sentences.

Course Complete 💥

And with that last lesson, you have finished the beginner course! Great Job! 👏

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