the accusative case (der akkusativ) - sights + sounds€¦ · sie lehrt mich die deutsche sprache....
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The Accusative Case (der Akkusativ)dartmouth.edu/~deutsch/Grammatik/Nouns/accusative.html
In English:
In standard English, the direct object is marked either by word order or by certain forms of personal pronoun ( me,us, him, her, and them). Thus the difference between "Dog bites man" and "Man bites dog" is clear, as is thedifference between "I see her" and "She sees me."
Some things you can't explain in two or three sentences. Up to 15 hours of phone time. The new GigasetC340.
In German:
The accusative case has several functions in German. It is marked in a variety of ways, with word order being theleast important. The accusative personal pronouns are:
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mich = me uns = us
dich = you euch = y'all
Sie = you
ihn = him sie = her es = it
sie =them
There are accusative forms for other pronouns: man becomes einen, keiner becomes keinen, and wer becomeswen. In colloquial speech, jemand is usually the same in both the nominative and the accusative, but jemanden ispossible. The reflexive pronoun "sich" can indicate either the accusative or dative form of er, sie (= she), es, Sie, orsie (= they).
Articles and adjective endings also mark the accusative case. Note that the adjective endings depend not only ongender, but also on whether they follow a "der-word", an "ein-word", or no article at all:1
Masculine Feminine Neuter Plural
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den roten Stuhl die neue Lampe das alte Buch die roten Stühle
keinen roten Stuhl keine neue Lampe kein altes Buch keine neuen Lampen
roten Stuhl neue Lampe altes Buch alte Bücher
Please keep this area open for arriving and departing hotel guests. Many thanks.
There is also a class of so-called weak masculine nouns that take an "-n" in the accusative case (as well as in thedative and genitive cases). Among these nouns are those that end in "-e" (except Käse [cheese]):
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der Mensch den Menschen [human]
der Nachbar den Nachbarn [neighbor]
der Herr den Herrn [lord; gentleman]
der Held den Helden [hero]
der Name den Namen [name]
der Kunde den Kunden [customer]
der Junge den Jungen [boy]
der Experte den Experten [expert]
der Glaube den Glauben [belief]
der Wille den Willen [will]
der Gedanke den Gedanken [thought]
der Türke den Türken [Turk]
der Jude den Juden [Jew]
der Russe den Russen [Russian]
der Kollege den Kollegen [colleague]
der Riese den Riesen [giant]
Other endings of weak nouns are "-ant," "-arch," "-ege," "-ent," "-ist," "-oge," "-om," "-oph," and "-ot." Someexamples:
der Buddist [Buddhist]
der Katholik [Catholic]
der Protestant [Protestant]
der Pilot [pilot]
der Student [student]
der Komödiant [comedian]
der Astronom [astronomer]
der Patriarch [patriarch]
der Philosoph [philosopher]
der Fotograf [photographer]
der Enthusiast [enthusiast]
der Anthropologe [anthropologist]
Again: note that all of these nouns are masculine. Furthermore, their plural forms are the same as their accusativeforms: e.g., den Studenten; die Studenten. ("Herr" is an exception: den Herrn; die Herren).
Typically, dictionaries identify weak nouns by giving not only the plural but also the weak ending: "der Bauer (-n, -n)farmer, peasant." This first ending cited is actually that of the genitive case, but with weak nouns the accusative andthe genitive are usually identical.
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Do you know all of our pharmacy's services? We have a telephone service for our customers. Support hosemade to measure. Devices for caring for the sick at home. We measure your blood pressure. We rent out
electric breast pumps. We rent out baby carriages.
Uses of the accusative case:
1) To designate the direct object of a verb. This includes the expression es gibt:
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Es gibt noch eine Menge zu tun. There's still a lot to do.
Sie sucht einen reichen Mann.She's looking for a rich husband.
Arbeit macht das Leben süß.Work makes life sweet.
Er schreibt ihr einen langen Brief. He writes her a long letter.
Er trifft den Nagel auf den Kopf. He hits the nail on the head.
Denn wen der Herr liebt, den züchtigter wie ein Vater den Sohn, den er gernhat.
For whom the Lord loveth he correcteth,even as the father the son in whom hedelighteth.
2) A great many verbs distinguish their direct and indirect objects through a combination of the accusative anddative: "Sie gibt es mir"; "Er schenkt seiner Mutter ein Buch." One would expect fragen, kosten, and lehren tofollow the same pattern, but they do not; both objects are accusative:
Darf ich dich etwas Persönliches fragen? May I ask you something personal?
Das hat mich eine Menge Geld gekostet. That cost me a bunch of money.
Sie lehrt mich die deutsche Sprache. She's teaching me the German language.
3) The so-called "cognate accusative" marks a noun that completes or specifies the idea of the verb, evenwhen it is not necessarily a direct object:
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Wir fahren am liebsten Rad. We prefer to bike.
Sie läuft Ski. She skis.
Wir schliefen den Schlaf des Gerechten. We slept the sleep of the just.
Er starb den Tod eines Helden. He died a hero's death.
Sie fährt nur erste Klasse. She always travels first-class.
Meine Großmutter spielt sehr gut Tennis. My grandmother plays tennis very well.
Wir laufen Gefahr, den Zug zu verpassen. We run the risk of missing the train.
4) To indicate specific time (when no prepositions are involved):
Was machst du nächste Woche? What're you doing next week?
Jeden Samstag essen wir auswärts. We eat out every Saturday.
Letztes Jahr sind wir ans Meer gefahren. Last year we drove to the ocean.
5) To express a measurement:
Er ist zwei Meter groß. He's two meters tall. (= 6' 6.7")
Er ist einen halben Kopf größer als ich. He's half a head taller than me.
Das Mädchen ist ein Jahr alt. The girl is one year old.
Er geht einen Schritt zurück. He goes one step back.
Der Ort liegt eine Stunde von der Stadt. The place is an hour from the city.
6) As the case for certain standard greetings and wishes. The implication is that the speaker is wishing theother something (e.g. "Gute Nacht" is short for "Ich wünsche dir eine gute Nacht." Other examples:
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On which one will you decide?
Guten Morgen. Good morning.
Schönen Tag noch. Have a nice (rest of the) day.
Herzlichen Glückwunsch! Congratulations!
Vielen Dank. Many thanks.
Gute Besserung. Get well.
Guten Appetit. Bon appetit.
With prepositions:
1) As the object of the following prepositions: bis, durch,für, gegen, ohne, um, and wider:
Er bleibt bisnächste Woche.
He's staying until nextweek.
Die Liebe gehtdurch den Magen.
The way to a man'sheart is through hisstomach.
Er tut alles für seinKind.
He does everything forhis child.
Was hast dugegen ihn?
What do you haveagainst him?
Ohne mich! Count me out!
Es geht mir nichtum das Geld.
For me it's not aquestion of the money.
Seine Handlungwar wider dasGesetz.
His action was againstthe law.
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Decide yourself when it's a question of your health.
2) Under certain circumstances with the following "two-way" prepositions: an, auf, hinter, in, neben, entlang,über, unter, vor, and zwischen. When these prepositions delineate a spacial area, and the verb indicatesmovement that crosses the border into that area, the preposition takes the accusative (if the action is entirelywith the area, then it takes the dative case):
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Sie geht an die Tür. She goes to the door.
Er wirft sein Buch auf denTisch.
He throws his book onto the table.
Sie fährt hinter das Haus. She drives behind the house (into the area behind thehouse).
Bringen Sie den Stuhl indie Küche
Bring the chair into the kitchen.
Er legt die Besteckeneben den Teller.
He puts the silverware next to the plate (into the areanext to the plate).
Er tritt vor das Haus. He steps out the door (in front of the house).
Der Hund läuft zwischendie Häuser.
The dog runs between the houses (through or into thearea between the houses).
These prepositional phrases are often contracted (if the article is "das"):
Er geht ans Fenster. He goes to the window.
Sie setzt sich aufs Sofa. She sits down on the sofa.
Ein Fremder kommt ins Haus. A stranger comes into the house.
Wir fahren heute aufs Land. We're driving to the country.
Die Brücke führt übers Wasser. The bridge leads across the water.
3) When these two-way prepositions define time, rather than space, they take the dative. The exceptions areauf and über:
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Why think about age already now?
Er geht auf (für) ein Jahr nach Mainz. He's going to Mainz for a year.
Der Vortrag hat über eine Stunde gedauert. The talk lasted over an hour.
Was machst du übers Wochenende? What're you doing over the weekend?
4) These two-way prepositions take the accusative case in many idioms, as well. A few examples:
Sie denkt oft an ihre alteLehrerin.
She often thinks ofher old teacher.
Er glaubt an mehrereGötter.
He believes inseveral gods.
Wir erinnern uns gernan unsere Kindheit.
We like toremember ourchildhood.
Ich kann mich nicht anseine schrecklicheStimme gewöhnen.
I can't get used tohis terrible voice.
Ich warte auf meineFreundin.
I'm waiting for mygirlfriend.
Das geht dich nichts an. That's none of yourbusiness.
Können Sie auf meineFrage antworten?
Can you answermy question?
Wir hoffen auf besseresWetter.
We're hoping forbetter weather.
Es ist kein Wunder, dasssie auf dich böse ist.
It's no wonder thatshe's mad at you.
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Wir haben keineAussichten auf einebessere Zukunft.
We have noindications of abetter future.
Leider müssen wir aufden Film verzichten.
Unfortunately we'llhave to do withoutthe film.
Unsere Kinder sindverrückt auf ihren neuenCoach.
Our children arecrazy about theirnew coach.
Er hat gar nicht aufmeinen Vorschlagreagiert.
He never reactedto my suggestion.
Du kannst auf dich stolzsein.
You can be proudof yourself.
Er hat sich total in sieverliebt.
He's totally fallen inlove with her.
Wir sind glücklich überdas neue Haus.
We're happy aboutthe new house.
Ich freue mich aufdeinen Besuch.
I'm looking forwardto your visit.
Wir sprechen geradeüber die politischeSituation.
We're just nowtalking about thepolitical situation.
1 The so-called "der-words" are the articles der, die, das; dies-, jed-, jen-, manch-, solch-, welch-. The "ein-words" are ein, kein, and the possessive pronouns: mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer, Ihr, ihr back to text
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