Lesson 5: Two-Way Prepositions and Building Complex Sentences
Master the Wechselpräpositionen (two-way prepositions) that can take both accusative and dative cases, learn to connect ideas with subordinating conjunctions, and build more sophisticated German sentences.
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You are arranging a room with a friend: put the chair at the table, hang the picture on the wall, then explain why the sofa belongs by the window. This lesson combines two skills: describing where something is or goes, and connecting ideas with because, although and when.
You already know accusative and dative articles. Keep those forms nearby; the new work is choosing the relationship and building a complete sentence around it.
1. Ask what the place phrase describes
Compare:
Ich gehe in die Küche. — I'm going into the kitchen.
Ich gehe in der Küche hin und her. — I'm walking back and forth in the kitchen.
Both people move. The first phrase gives a destination entered; the second gives the location where the walking happens.
For the spatial uses practiced here, two-way prepositions use:
- Accusative for a destination or new position: Wohin? — Where to?
- Dative for a location, including where an activity or movement happens: Wo? — Where?
Do not decide from “movement” alone. Die Kinder spielen unter den Bäumen describes where the children play, even if they run around there. Die Kinder laufen unter die Bäume can describe running into the area beneath the trees.
This is a starting pattern, not a complete account of every use. A route such as über die Brücke gehen (walk across the bridge) also takes accusative. Fixed prepositional expressions need to be learned separately. And other prepositions have their own case: zum Bahnhof gehen uses zu + dative even though the station is a destination.
2. Learn the nine two-way prepositions in phrases
| Preposition | Basic spatial meaning | Location: dative | Destination/new position: accusative |
|---|---|---|---|
| an | at/on, often contact or adjacency | an der Wand — on the wall | an die Wand — onto the wall |
| auf | on/onto, often a surface or top | auf dem Tisch — on the table | auf den Tisch — onto the table |
| hinter | behind | hinter dem Sofa | hinter das Sofa |
| in | in/into | in dem Zimmer | in das Zimmer |
| neben | next to | neben dem Fenster | neben das Fenster |
| über | above/over | über dem Bett | über das Bett |
| unter | under | unter dem Stuhl | unter den Stuhl |
| vor | in front of | vor der Tür | vor die Tür |
| zwischen | between | zwischen dem Tisch und dem Sofa | zwischen den Tisch und das Sofa |
The last column assumes placing or moving something into the stated position. The phrase über das Bett in such a placement describes a position above the bed; the same preposition also has route uses, as with the bridge.
Vocabulary: die Wand wall, der Tisch table, das Sofa sofa, das Zimmer room, das Fenster window, das Bett bed, der Stuhl chair, die Tür door. Say the article with each noun.
An and auf: helpful examples, not a geometry rule
Use an der Wand for a picture attached to a wall and auf dem Tisch for a cup resting on the table. These examples help you remember typical usage. But an does not mean “vertical” and auf does not mean “horizontal” in every expression:
- Ich sitze am Tisch. — I'm sitting at the table.
- Ich stelle den Stuhl an den Tisch. — I'm placing the chair at the table.
- Auf dem Bild ist eine Katze. — There is a cat in the picture.
Learn which relationship German conventionally expresses with the preposition, as well as which case that relationship needs.
Change the article, then check the noun
| Noun type | Accusative definite | Dative definite |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | den Tisch | dem Tisch |
| Feminine | die Wand | der Wand |
| Neuter | das Zimmer | dem Zimmer |
| Plural | die Bäume | den Bäumen |
Der Baum → die Bäume → den Bäumen shows the dative plural ending from lesson 3. Feminine and plural accusative articles can look like nominative ones; unchanged spelling does not mean unchanged case.
Possessive determiners change too: der Rucksack is masculine, so “into my backpack” is in meinen Rucksack, while “in my backpack” as a location is in meinem Rucksack. The word my must remain in your translation.
Common contractions:
| Full form | Contraction | Example |
|---|---|---|
| in dem | im | Er ist im Zimmer. |
| in das | ins | Er geht ins Zimmer. |
| an dem | am | Sie sitzt am Tisch. |
| an das | ans | Er geht ans Fenster. |
| auf das | aufs | Ich lege das Buch aufs Bett. |
Try it: The keys are already on the table. Complete Die Schlüssel liegen auf ___ Tisch.
Answer: dem. The phrase describes their location. Der Schlüssel has plural die Schlüssel; liegen agrees with the plural subject.
3. Describe putting something somewhere, then its position
| Placing or seating | Resulting position |
|---|---|
| Ich lege das Buch auf den Tisch. — I lay the book on the table. | Das Buch liegt auf dem Tisch. — The book is lying on the table. |
| Ich stelle die Vase auf den Tisch. — I place the vase upright on the table. | Die Vase steht auf dem Tisch. — The vase is standing on the table. |
| Ich setze das Kind auf den Stuhl. — I seat the child on the chair. | Das Kind sitzt auf dem Stuhl. — The child is sitting on the chair. |
| Ich hänge das Bild an die Wand. — I hang the picture on the wall. | Das Bild hängt an der Wand. — The picture is hanging on the wall. |
In the left column, the thing placed is an accusative object: das Buch, die Vase, das Kind, das Bild. Separately, the prepositional phrase gives its destination/new position and uses accusative too.
In the right column, the thing described is the nominative subject. Its dative location phrase is a prepositional phrase, not a dative object required by liegen, stehen or sitzen.
Hängen looks the same in the present for these two meanings. The sentence structure tells you who hangs something up and what is already hanging. In the past, compare Ich habe das Bild aufgehängt (I hung the picture up) and Das Bild hat an der Wand gehangen (the picture was hanging on the wall). You need only recognize the contrast here.
Another useful verb is stecken: Ich stecke den Schlüssel ins Schloss (I put the key into the lock); Der Schlüssel steckt im Schloss (the key is in the lock). Unlike a simple “weak placement / strong position” mnemonic, both uses can have steckte / gesteckt. Learn verb forms individually.
Seat yourself: sich setzen
When the person seats themself, German uses a reflexive pronoun:
- Ich setze mich auf den Stuhl. — I sit down on the chair.
- Sie setzt sich auf den Stuhl. — She sits down on the chair.
- Ich lege mich auf das Bett. — I lie down onto the bed.
Mich refers back to ich, and sich refers back to sie here. Once seated or lying there, say Ich sitze auf dem Stuhl or Ich liege auf dem Bett.
The English “I want to sit next to the window” can focus on either the desired seated position or taking a seat:
Ich will neben dem Fenster sitzen.
Ich möchte mich neben das Fenster setzen.
Both are useful. Choose dative for the position with sitzen and accusative for taking the new position with sich setzen. Will expresses “want”; möchte is “would like” and often makes a request softer.
4. Add a reason, contrast or thought
A main statement puts its conjugated verb in second position: Heute bleibe ich zu Hause. Heute is the first unit; the subject need not come first.
A subordinate clause depends on another clause. In the standard written patterns practiced here, its conjugated verb comes at the end of the clause:
Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil es regnet. — I'm staying home because it is raining.
Ich glaube, dass das Café offen ist. — I think that the café is open.
Ich gehe spazieren, obwohl es regnet. — I'm going for a walk although it is raining.
| Conjunction | Meaning | What it adds |
|---|---|---|
| weil | because | a reason |
| dass | that | a reported thought or statement |
| obwohl | although | a contrast or unexpected circumstance |
| wenn | if / when / whenever | a condition or time relationship |
| als | when | a single past event or period |
| bevor | before | something that happens later than the main-clause event |
| nachdem | after | something that happens earlier than the main-clause event |
In weil ich müde bin, bin is the conjugated verb. With a modal, the infinitive comes before the conjugated modal:
Er geht in die Bibliothek, weil er ein Buch zurückgeben muss.
He's going into the library because he must return a book.
Die Bibliothek is the library, zurückgeben means return/give back, and muss means must. The ending is zurückgeben muss, not muss zurückgeben in this subordinate clause.
With the perfect tense, the participle precedes the conjugated auxiliary: weil ich gut geschlafen habe — because I have slept well. These are patterns to practice; German has additional verb-cluster and clause-position patterns beyond this lesson.
Weil and denn both give reasons
Ich bleibe hier, weil ich krank bin.
Ich bleibe hier, denn ich bin krank.
Both mean “I'm staying here because I'm ill.” Weil introduces the subordinate pattern. Denn connects main clauses; it sits outside the following clause's verb-second count. A time phrase can come first there too: denn heute bin ich krank.
In conversation you will encounter weil followed by main-clause word order. It has uses in spoken German; for the integrated subordinate clauses in these written exercises, practice the verb-final pattern shown above.
5. Put the subordinate clause first
Wenn ich Zeit habe, gehe ich schwimmen. — When/if I have time, I go swimming.
Treat Wenn ich Zeit habe as one first unit. The main clause then starts with its conjugated verb gehe, followed by ich:
[Wenn ich Zeit habe], [gehe] [ich] schwimmen.
Do not insert another subject before gehe as Wenn ich Zeit habe, ich gehe schwimmen. The main verb still occupies second position; the first unit is simply a whole clause.
Try a contrast:
Obwohl alle Bücher interessant sind, kaufe ich nur eins.
Although all books are interesting, I buy only one.
Sind ends the subordinate clause. Kaufe starts the main clause after the comma. Eins or eines can stand for one book; nur ein Buch also works.
6. Choose wenn, als, bevor or nachdem
English “when” covers several German patterns. Ask what time relationship you mean.
| Intended meaning | German example |
|---|---|
| A present condition or repeated situation | Wenn ich Zeit habe, gehe ich schwimmen. |
| One future occasion | Wenn du morgen kommst, kochen wir zusammen. — When you come tomorrow, we'll cook together. |
| Repeated past occasions | Immer wenn es regnete, blieb ich zu Hause. — Whenever it rained, I stayed home. |
| One past event | Ich war im Park, als es zu regnen anfing. — I was in the park when it started raining. |
| One past period | Als ich jung war, wohnte ich in Berlin. — When I was young, I lived in Berlin. |
War means was; wohnte means lived; jung means young. Anfing is the past form of anfangen, “begin.” In als es zu regnen anfing, the conjugated anfing is last and the infinitive phrase zu regnen means “to rain.”
A single past period can contain repeated actions: Als ich jung war, spielte ich oft Fußball means “When I was young, I often played soccer.” Oft (often) does not force wenn: als introduces the one period of being young. Use immer wenn when the subordinate clause itself describes recurring occasions.
Before and after: make the sequence clear
Bevor ich gehe, schließe ich das Fenster. — Before I leave, I close the window.
First close it, then leave. Schließen means close.
Nachdem ich zu Hause angekommen bin, koche ich Abendessen. — After I have arrived home, I cook dinner.
First arrive, then cook. Ankommen means arrive; its perfect is bin angekommen with ich. In the subordinate clause the sequence is angekommen bin.
The perfect marks the arrival as completed before the present-tense cooking. A past narrative can instead use past perfect before simple past: Nachdem ich angekommen war, kochte ich Abendessen. Recognize this sequencing; the question bank practices the first version.
7. Put the skills together
Lena: Wohin stellen wir den Stuhl? — Where shall we put the chair?
Sam: Wir stellen ihn an den Tisch, weil ich dort arbeiten möchte. — We'll put it at the table because I'd like to work there.
Lena: Und das Bild? — And the picture?
Sam: Ich hänge es an die Wand. — I'll hang it on the wall.
Lena: Jetzt hängt es neben dem Fenster. — Now it's hanging next to the window.
Notice how the picture changes from the object es in a placement sentence to the subject es in a location sentence. Its spelling stays the same, but its role changes.
Later they make a plan:
Obwohl es regnet, gehen wir ins Café. Das Café liegt zwischen dem Buchladen und der Bäckerei. Wenn es später wird, gehen wir nach Hause.
Although it is raining, we go into the café. The café is between the bookstore and the bakery. When it gets later, we will go home. Der Buchladen means bookstore; die Bäckerei means bakery. Die Buchhandlung is another word for bookstore, with feminine der Buchhandlung in this dative location phrase.
Check yourself
- Put a cup upright on the floor: Er ___ die Tasse auf ___ Boden. Vocabulary: die Tasse cup, der Boden floor.
- Locate a restaurant: Das Restaurant liegt ___ dem Hotel ___ dem Museum. Use “between … and …”; both buildings are neuter.
- Say where the cat is: Die Katze liegt auf ___ Sofa.
- Explain staying home with weil: Ich bleibe zu Hause, ___ es ___. Use “it is raining.”
- Choose als or wenn: ___ ich jung war, spielte ich oft Fußball.
- Explain why a child running around im Zimmer still has a dative location phrase.
Answers: 1. stellt; den — upright placement onto the floor; 2. zwischen; und — location between the buildings; 3. dem — location on the sofa; 4. weil; regnet — a reason clause; 5. Als — one past period; 6. im Zimmer says where the running happens, not where the child goes to.
Finish by describing your own room in three sentences: one location, one planned placement and one reason beginning with weil. Check the spatial relationship first, then the article, then the position of the conjugated verb.