My Home: Grammar & Phonics (AQA GCSE German): Revision Note
Exam code: 8662
Prepositions are essential for describing your home - where rooms are, where things are, and where you go
Let's look at four grammar points that will help you do this accurately
Prepositions with a fixed case
Some German prepositions always take a certain case
The most useful ones for talking about your home are the dative prepositions
Whenever you use one of these prepositions, the noun that follows must be in the dative case
Preposition | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
aus | out of, from | Ich komme aus dem Zimmer. I come out of the room. |
bei | at, at the home of | Ich wohne bei meiner Familie. I live with my family. |
mit | with | Das Haus mit dem Garten gefällt mir. I like the house with the garden. |
nach | after, to (with place names) | Nach dem Abendessen gehe ich in mein Zimmer. After dinner I go to my room. |
von | from, of | Das Fenster von meinem Zimmer ist groß. The window of my room is big. |
zu | to | Nach der Schule gehe ich zu meiner Freundin. After school I go to my friend's house. |
Two of these prepositions have contracted forms that you will use very frequently:
Full form | Contracted form | Example |
|---|---|---|
von dem | vom | Der Blick vom Fenster ist schön. The view from the window is lovely. |
zu dem | zum | Ich gehe zum Garten. I am going to the garden. |
zu der | zur | Ich gehe zur Küche. I am going to the kitchen. |
The preposition in
The preposition in is one of the most useful words for talking about your home
Unlike the fixed-case prepositions above, in is a dual-case preposition
This means that it can take either the dative or the accusative case - and the case you use depends on whether you are describing where something is or where something is going
in + dative = location (no movement) - someone or something is in a place
in + accusative = movement (going into a place) - someone or something moves into a place
A useful question to ask yourself: is there movement involved? If yes, use the accusative; if no, use the dative
Dative (location) | Example | Accusative (movement) | Example | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
masculine (der) | in dem → im | Die Bank ist im Garten. The bench is in the garden. | in den | Sie läuft in den Garten. She runs into the garden. |
feminine (die) | in der | Ich bin in der Küche. I am in the kitchen. | in die | Ich gehe in die Küche. I am going into the kitchen. |
neuter (das) | in dem → im | Er schläft im Bett. He is sleeping in the bed. | in das → ins | Ich gehe ins Wohnzimmer. I am going into the living room. |
Contracted forms of prepositions
You will have noticed in the table above that two of the forms are shortened in everyday German
Full form | Contracted form | Example |
|---|---|---|
in dem (dative, m/nt) | im | Ich bin im Keller. I am in the cellar. |
in das (accusative, nt) | ins | Ich gehe ins Bad. I am going to the bathroom. |
Note that in die (accusative feminine/plural) does not contract - it always stays as in die
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Im and ins are so common in German that using the full forms in dem or in das often sounds unnatural in everyday language
In most cases, you should use the contracted forms in speaking and writing
Prepositions of place
Higher tier only
At Higher tier, you need to understand and use a further set of dual-case prepositions
These are particularly useful for describing where furniture and objects are in your home
Like in, they take the dative when describing location and the accusative when describing movement
Preposition | Meaning | Dative example (location) | Accusative example (movement) |
|---|---|---|---|
neben | next to, beside | Das Bett steht neben dem Fenster. The bed is next to the window. | Ich stelle den Stuhl neben den Tisch. I put the chair next to the table. |
hinter | behind | Der Garten ist hinter dem Haus. The garden is behind the house. | Die Katze läuft hinter die Tür. The cat runs behind the door. |
vor | in front of | Der Tisch steht vor dem Fenster. The table is in front of the window. | Ich stelle die Lampe vor das Bett. I put the lamp in front of the bed. |
unter | under, below | Die Schuhe liegen unter dem Bett. The shoes are under the bed. | Ich lege das Buch unter den Tisch. I put the book under the table. |
über | above, over | Die Lampe hängt über dem Tisch. The lamp hangs above the table. | Ich hänge das Bild über das Bett. I hang the picture above the bed. |
zwischen | between | Das Regal steht zwischen der Tür und dem Fenster. The shelf is between the door and the window. | Ich stelle den Stuhl zwischen den Tisch und die Wand. I put the chair between the table and the wall. |
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