KAPITEL 3
| TEIL 3 - PRESENT
TENSE: VERBS WITH PREFIXES |
B. Verbs with separable prefixes (Verben mit trennbaren Vorsilben)
German has many separable verb prefixes. Most of them are adverbs or prepositions such as an-, auf-, aus-, durch-, ein-, nach-, unter-, etc. Sometimes, a verb can function as a separable prefix as well (kennen lernen = to get to know somebody). Separable prefixes are always stressed when pronounced. A very important feature of separable prefix verbs is that the prefix separates from the verb and is placed at the end of the clause. Note the examples below:
Maria kommt heute nachmittag an.
Maria arrives this afternoon.
Intermatik Audio: kap3/k3-3b-s1Kommt Maria heute nachmittag an?
Does Maria arrive this afternoon?
Intermatik Audio: kap3/k3-3b-s2Wann kommt Maria heute nachmittag an?
When does Maria arrive this afternoon?
Intermatik Audio: kap3/k3-3b-s3
The meaning of separable prefix verbs can sometimes be guessed by combining the meaning of the prefix with the meaning of the stem (examples 1-3), sometimes it can not be guessed (examples 4-6).
mit with,
along mitkommen to
come along wieder again wiedersehen to
see again auf open aufbrechen to
break open auf open aufgeben to
give up aus out aussuchen to
choose nach after nachdenken to
reflect, ponder
Note:
There are some nouns which form a semantic unit with the verb (Auto fahren 'to drive a car', Rad fahren 'to bicycle' , Halt machen 'to make a stop'). These nouns are separated from the verb and capitalized.