Introduction to Prepositions and Cases

Prepositions are short words — in, auf, mit, für, wegen — that express relationships between things: where something is, where something is going, who something is for, why something happened. In English, prepositions do this job alone. In German, they do not work alone: every preposition requires the noun that follows it to appear in a specific grammatical case, and that case determines how the article and adjective endings are written. This means that learning a German preposition is never just learning a word — it is learning a word together with the case it governs. The reward for doing this carefully is enormous: once you know which case a preposition takes, you automatically know how to write every article and adjective that follows it, in every sentence, every time. This lesson gives you a complete and organised map of the German preposition system, from the fixed Accusative and Dative prepositions through the two-way prepositions that change case depending on meaning, to the Genitive prepositions used in formal writing.

Why Prepositions and Cases Matter

They are unavoidable: Prepositions appear in virtually every German sentence — in directions, descriptions, explanations, time expressions, and everyday conversation. There is no way to speak natural German while avoiding them.
Case changes meaning: With two-way prepositions, the case you choose is not a grammatical formality — it changes the meaning of the sentence entirely. Ich gehe in die Küche means I am walking into the kitchen. Ich bin in der Küche means I am already there. One letter difference, two completely different situations.
They unlock article and adjective endings: Because each preposition locks in a case, knowing your prepositions is also the key to getting article and adjective endings right in the most common sentence structures learners encounter.
Contractions signal fluency: Native speakers contract prepositions and articles constantly — im, ins, am, ans, beim, vom, zum, zur. Using these naturally, rather than the full uncontracted forms, is one of the clearest signals of advancing fluency.

Understanding Prepositions and Cases

Accusative prepositions — always Accusative, no exceptions

These prepositions always require the Accusative case, regardless of whether the sentence describes motion or location. There are five core Accusative prepositions and they do not change.

Preposition	Meaning	Example	English
durch	through	Ich gehe durch den Park.	I walk through the park.
für	for	Das Geschenk ist für den Vater.	The gift is for the father.
gegen	against / around (time)	Wir spielen gegen den anderen Verein.	We play against the other club.
ohne	without	Sie geht ohne ihren Bruder.	She goes without her brother.
um	around / at (time)	Wir sitzen um den Tisch.	We sit around the table.

Dative prepositions — always Dative, no exceptions

These prepositions always require the Dative case. Unlike the two-way prepositions, context — motion or location — has no effect on them. They are fixed.

Preposition	Meaning	Example	English
aus	from / out of	Sie kommt aus der Schweiz.	She comes from Switzerland.
bei	at / near / with (at someone's place)	Er wohnt bei seinen Eltern.	He lives with his parents.
mit	with	Ich fahre mit dem Zug.	I travel by train.
nach	after / to (cities and countries)	Wir fahren nach Berlin.	We are going to Berlin.
seit	since / for (ongoing time)	Ich lerne seit einem Jahr Deutsch.	I have been learning German for a year.
von	from / of / by	Das ist ein Buch von dem Autor.	That is a book by the author.
zu	to (people and places)	Ich gehe zu meiner Freundin.	I am going to my friend's place.
gegenüber	opposite / across from	Die Bäckerei ist gegenüber dem Bahnhof.	The bakery is opposite the station.
außer	except for / apart from	Alle waren da außer dem Chef.	Everyone was there except the boss.

Two-way prepositions — Accusative or Dative depending on meaning

These nine prepositions are the most important group to master, because they take Accusative when the sentence describes movement toward a destination or a change of position, and Dative when it describes a static location or state. The question to ask is always: is something moving to a new place, or is it already there?

Preposition	Accusative (motion / direction)	Dative (location / state)
an	Ich hänge das Bild an die Wand. — I hang the picture on the wall.	Das Bild hängt an der Wand. — The picture hangs on the wall.
auf	Ich lege das Buch auf den Tisch. — I put the book on the table.	Das Buch liegt auf dem Tisch. — The book is lying on the table.
hinter	Er geht hinter das Haus. — He goes behind the house.	Er steht hinter dem Haus. — He is standing behind the house.
in	Ich gehe in die Küche. — I go into the kitchen.	Ich bin in der Küche. — I am in the kitchen.
neben	Sie stellt die Lampe neben den Sessel. — She places the lamp next to the armchair.	Die Lampe steht neben dem Sessel. — The lamp is next to the armchair.
über	Die Katze springt über den Zaun. — The cat jumps over the fence.	Die Lampe hängt über dem Tisch. — The lamp hangs above the table.
unter	Der Hund läuft unter den Tisch. — The dog runs under the table.	Der Hund schläft unter dem Tisch. — The dog sleeps under the table.
vor	Stell das Auto vor die Garage. — Put the car in front of the garage.	Das Auto steht vor der Garage. — The car is in front of the garage.
zwischen	Er setzt sich zwischen die beiden Frauen. — He sits down between the two women.	Er sitzt zwischen den beiden Frauen. — He is sitting between the two women.

Genitive prepositions — formal and written German

Genitive prepositions are standard in written German — journalism, business letters, formal reports — and you will encounter them constantly when reading. In everyday speech, native speakers sometimes replace them with Dative constructions, but as a learner you should use the Genitive forms in writing and formal contexts.

Preposition	Meaning	Example	English
trotz	despite	Trotz des Regens gehen wir spazieren.	Despite the rain, we go for a walk.
während	during	Während des Konzerts war es sehr laut.	During the concert it was very loud.
wegen	because of / due to	Wegen des schlechten Wetters bleiben wir zu Hause.	Because of the bad weather we stay home.
statt / anstatt	instead of	Statt des Kaffees trinke ich Tee.	Instead of coffee I drink tea.
außerhalb	outside of	Das Hotel liegt außerhalb der Stadt.	The hotel is outside the city.
innerhalb	within / inside of	Innerhalb des Gebäudes ist es warm.	Inside the building it is warm.

Common contractions — how prepositions merge with articles

In natural spoken and written German, certain preposition + article combinations are almost always contracted into a single word. Using the uncontracted form — in dem instead of im, or zu dem instead of zum — sounds stilted and unnatural in most contexts. These contractions are standard and expected.

Full form	Contraction	Example
in dem	im	Ich bin im Supermarkt.
in das	ins	Ich gehe ins Kino.
an dem	am	Wir treffen uns am Bahnhof.
an das	ans	Sie geht ans Fenster.
bei dem	beim	Er ist beim Arzt.
von dem	vom	Ich komme vom Markt.
zu dem	zum	Ich gehe zum Bahnhof.
zu der	zur	Ich fahre zur Schule.

Step-by-Step Guide to Using Prepositions and Cases

Identify the preposition: Locate the preposition in your sentence and categorise it — is it always Accusative, always Dative, two-way, or Genitive?
For two-way prepositions, ask the motion question: Is something moving to a new location or changing position? If yes, use Accusative. Is something already in a location or staying put? If yes, use Dative.
Determine the gender and number of the noun: The article ending depends on gender (der, die, das) combined with the case the preposition requires.
Apply the correct article form: Use the case table to find the right article — den/einen for masculine Accusative, dem/einem for masculine Dative, des/eines for masculine Genitive, and so on.
Check for contractions: If your preposition + article combination has a standard contraction (im, ins, am, beim, vom, zum, zur), use it — the uncontracted form will sound unnatural in most contexts.
Adjust adjective endings if present: The adjective following a preposition + article phrase must agree with the case. After a definite article in the Dative, for example, all adjectives take the ending -en: mit dem alten Freund.

Pro Tip: For two-way prepositions, the verbs in the sentence are often the best clue. Verbs of placing or moving — legen, stellen, hängen, setzen, stecken — almost always trigger Accusative. Verbs of being or staying — liegen, stehen, hängen, sitzen, stecken — almost always trigger Dative. Notice that some verbs like hängen and stecken appear in both lists but with different meanings and conjugations.

Memory Pattern: Think of the two-way prepositions as a photograph versus a film clip. If the sentence is a still photograph — nothing is moving, everything is already somewhere — use Dative. If the sentence is a film clip — something is travelling toward a destination — use Accusative. Ask yourself: still image or moving image?

Exceptions & Special Cases

Two-way prepositions that do not follow the motion/location rule

The Accusative = motion and Dative = location rule is reliable, but there are several common situations where it breaks down. These are not rare edge cases — they come up regularly in everyday German and must be learnt individually.

Expression	Case used	Why it surprises	Example
an + Dative for time expressions	Dative	No location involved at all — an here marks a point in time	am Montag, am Morgen, am Wochenende
auf + Accusative for waiting and hoping	Accusative	No motion — the verb warten auf and hoffen auf always take Accusative regardless	Ich warte auf den Bus. Ich hoffe auf gutes Wetter.
über + Accusative for talking and thinking	Accusative	No motion or location — verbs like sprechen über, nachdenken über, freuen über fix the case	Wir sprechen über den Film. Ich freue mich über das Geschenk.
in + Dative for countries with articles	Dative	Travelling to a country normally takes nach, but countries with a definite article use in + Dative	Ich fahre in die Türkei. Ich fahre in den Iran.
vor + Dative for time ago	Dative	Expresses how long ago something happened — no location at all	Das war vor einem Jahr. Vor drei Wochen war ich in Wien.

Verb-preposition combinations with fixed cases

Many German verbs are permanently paired with a specific preposition, and that preposition fixes its own case regardless of the motion/location question. These combinations must be learnt as whole units — the preposition here is part of the verb's meaning, not a free-standing spatial marker.

Verb + preposition	Case	Example	English
warten auf	Accusative	Ich warte auf meinen Freund.	I am waiting for my friend.
sich freuen auf	Accusative	Ich freue mich auf den Urlaub.	I am looking forward to the holiday.
sich freuen über	Accusative	Ich freue mich über das Geschenk.	I am happy about the gift.
sprechen über	Accusative	Wir sprechen über das Problem.	We are talking about the problem.
denken an	Accusative	Ich denke an dich.	I am thinking of you.
leiden unter	Dative	Er leidet unter dem Stress.	He suffers from the stress.
bestehen aus	Dative	Das Team besteht aus drei Personen.	The team consists of three people.
sich erinnern an	Accusative	Ich erinnere mich an den Urlaub.	I remember the holiday.

Genitive prepositions replaced by Dative in spoken German

In informal speech, several Genitive prepositions are routinely replaced by Dative constructions. This is a well-documented feature of colloquial German and is not considered an error in conversation — but in writing, the Genitive forms are expected.

Written (Genitive)	Spoken (Dative)	English
wegen des Regens	wegen dem Regen	because of the rain
trotz des Problems	trotz dem Problem	despite the problem
während des Essens	während dem Essen	during the meal
statt des Kaffees	statt dem Kaffee	instead of the coffee

Prepositions that change meaning depending on context

A small number of prepositions have significantly different meanings in different contexts, and learners who have only encountered one meaning are sometimes caught off guard by the others.

Preposition	Meaning 1	Meaning 2	Meaning 3
nach	after (time): nach dem Essen	to (cities/countries): nach Berlin fahren	according to: meiner Meinung nach
von	from (origin): von der Arbeit kommen	by (author/creator): ein Lied von Beethoven	of (possession, informal): ein Freund von mir
über	above/over (location): die Lampe über dem Tisch	about (topic): ein Buch über Geschichte	via/through: Wir fahren über Frankfurt.
um	around (space): um den See gehen	at (clock time): um drei Uhr	by (quantity): um zehn Prozent gestiegen

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Ich gehe in der Stadt.
- Fix: In is a two-way preposition. When the sentence describes movement toward a destination — going into the city — it requires Accusative. Correct: Ich gehe in die Stadt. Reserve the Dative in der Stadt for sentences where you are already there: Ich bin in der Stadt.
Mistake 2: Ich fahre mit der Zug.
- Fix: Mit is always Dative, and Zug is masculine. The Dative masculine article is dem, not der (which is Dative feminine or Nominative masculine). Correct: Ich fahre mit dem Zug.
Mistake 3: Das Buch liegt auf den Tisch.
- Fix: Liegen is a verb of static location — the book is already on the table, nothing is moving. Two-way prepositions with a static location take Dative. Correct: Das Buch liegt auf dem Tisch.
Mistake 4: Wegen dem Wetter (in formal writing).
- Fix: In written and formal German, wegen takes the Genitive. The Dative form is common in speech but incorrect in writing. Correct: Wegen des Wetters.
Mistake 5: Ich warte auf dem Bus.
- Fix: Warten auf is a fixed verb-preposition combination that always takes Accusative — this is not a location but a verb-governed case. Correct: Ich warte auf den Bus.
Nuance 1: Using nach to travel to countries that have a definite article.
- Fix: Nach is used to travel to most cities and countries — nach Berlin, nach Frankreich. But countries that use a definite article require in + Accusative instead: in die Türkei, in den Iran, in die Schweiz. The article is the signal — if the country has one, use in.
Nuance 2: Forgetting that seit describes ongoing situations and requires the present tense in German.
- Fix: Where English uses the past — "I have been learning German for a year" — German uses the present tense with seit: Ich lerne seit einem Jahr Deutsch. Using the perfect tense here (Ich habe seit einem Jahr Deutsch gelernt) implies the action is finished.

Pronunciation Guide

durch – DOORCH – Ich gehe durch den Park. — the ch is the soft palatal sound, as in ich
für – FÜR – Das ist für dich. — rounded front vowel, lips forward
mit – MIT – Ich fahre mit dem Zug. — short, clipped vowel
wegen – VEH-gen – Wegen des Wetters. — the w is pronounced as English v
gegenüber – geh-gen-Ü-ber – gegenüber dem Bahnhof — stress on the third syllable; the ü is a rounded front vowel
trotz – TROTS – Trotz des Regens. — the final tz is a crisp double consonant
während – VEH-rent – während des Konzerts — the ä is an open front vowel, similar to English air

Cultural Insights

Precision as a cultural value: The distinction between Accusative and Dative with two-way prepositions encodes a difference that German speakers consider important — whether something is moving or stationary. This level of spatial precision is built into the language, and getting it right is noticed. Using the wrong case with a two-way preposition does not just sound grammatically incorrect; it can communicate the wrong physical situation entirely.
Contractions and register: Fluent German speakers contract prepositions and articles automatically in everyday speech — im, am, beim, vom, zum, zur, ins, ans. Consistently avoiding these contractions and always saying in dem or zu dem marks a speaker as still learning. In formal legal or official writing, however, uncontracted forms are sometimes required for clarity.
Genitive in formal writing: Genitive prepositions like wegen, trotz, während, statt appear constantly in German newspapers, official letters, and academic texts. Reading German at this level requires recognising them instantly. In conversation, Dative replacements are so widespread that insisting on Genitive in casual speech can actually sound overly stiff.
Fixed verb-preposition pairs in social language: Many of the most important social expressions in German are fixed verb-preposition combinations — sich freuen auf (to look forward to), sich freuen über (to be happy about), warten auf (to wait for), denken an (to think of someone). Learning these as fixed phrases rather than trying to apply spatial logic to them will save considerable confusion.

Practice Scenarios

At Home: Describing where things are and where you are putting them, e.g., Ich lege die Zeitung auf den Tisch. Die Zeitung liegt auf dem Tisch.
- Der Hund schläft unter dem Bett.
- Ich hänge das Bild an die Wand.
- Die Schlüssel liegen neben der Tür.
Getting Around: Giving and following directions using prepositions of motion and location, e.g., Gehen Sie durch den Park und dann links an der Ampel.
- Die Apotheke ist gegenüber dem Supermarkt.
- Ich fahre mit der U-Bahn zum Hauptbahnhof.
- Wir treffen uns um halb drei am Eingang.
Making Plans: Talking about what you are looking forward to or waiting for, e.g., Ich freue mich auf das Wochenende.
- Ich warte auf eine Antwort.
- Wir denken oft an unsere Zeit in Wien.
- Sie freut sich über die gute Nachricht.
Explaining and Describing: Using Genitive prepositions and time expressions in more formal contexts, e.g., Wegen des Staus bin ich zu spät angekommen.
- Während des Meetings bitte nicht stören.
- Trotz des schlechten Wetters sind wir gewandert.
- Statt des Busses nehme ich das Fahrrad.

Follow-Up Questions

How do I decide whether to use Accusative or Dative with a two-way preposition?
- Example Answer: Ask whether something is moving to a new location or changing position. If yes, use Accusative — Ich gehe in die Küche. If no and something is already somewhere or staying put, use Dative — Ich bin in der Küche. A reliable secondary test is the verb: placing verbs like legen, stellen, setzen, hängen (to put/place) take Accusative; being verbs like liegen, stehen, sitzen, hängen (to be/lie/stand) take Dative.
When do I use nach and when do I use in to say I am going to a country?
- Example Answer: Use nach for most countries and all cities — nach Deutschland, nach Berlin, nach Japan. Use in plus Accusative for countries that have a definite article in German — in die Türkei, in den Iran, in die Schweiz, in die USA. The article is the trigger: if the country name takes an article, use in.
Why does warten auf take Accusative even though nothing is moving?
- Example Answer: Warten auf is a fixed verb-preposition combination where the preposition is governed by the verb, not by spatial logic. The Accusative here has nothing to do with motion — it is simply the case that this verb requires. These combinations must be learnt as whole units: warten auf + Accusative, denken an + Accusative, leiden unter + Dative.
Is it wrong to use wegen with the Dative in conversation?
- Example Answer: In spoken German, wegen dem is so widespread that it is not considered an error in conversation. However, in written German — essays, formal letters, journalism, academic work — wegen des (Genitive) is the correct and expected form. As a learner, it is best to use the Genitive in writing and to recognise both forms when you hear them.
What is the difference between seit and vor when talking about time?
- Example Answer: Seit describes an ongoing situation that started in the past and continues to the present — Ich wohne seit drei Jahren in Berlin, I have been living in Berlin for three years (and still do). Vor describes a completed point in the past — Das war vor drei Jahren, that was three years ago. Seit uses the present tense in German where English uses the perfect tense; vor uses a past tense.

Conclusion

Prepositions are one of the areas of German where investing time in systematic learning pays off most quickly. Once you know which case each preposition governs — and once you internalise the motion/location distinction for the two-way prepositions — you gain reliable control over article and adjective endings across a vast range of sentence types. The fixed verb-preposition combinations require separate memorisation, but they are finite in number and appear so frequently that exposure alone will consolidate them quickly. From here, the natural next step is the passive voice, which relies heavily on the preposition von to express the agent of an action and builds directly on the case knowledge you have developed in this lesson.

Practice Makes Perfect

In the exercises below you will practise choosing the correct case with two-way prepositions, selecting the right article form after Accusative and Dative prepositions, forming sentences with fixed verb-preposition combinations, and using Genitive prepositions in written contexts. Pay particular attention to the two-way prepositions — distinguishing motion from location in more complex sentences is where most intermediate learners still make errors.