Two-Way

The secret to these prepositions is the question you ask. If you are asking "Where to?" (Wohin?), you use the Accusative. This indicates movement from point A to point B. If you are asking "Where?" (Wo?), you use the Dative. This indicates a fixed position or movement within a specific area.

Imagine you are at a trendy cafe in Berlin. You walk into the cafe. That is movement to a destination. Use Accusative: Ich gehe in das Café. Once you are inside, you are sitting in the cafe. That is a fixed location. Use Dative: Ich sitze in dem Café. It is all about the transition. If you cross a boundary, it is usually Accusative. If you stay within the boundary, it is Dative.

1. 1To build a sentence correctly, follow these four steps:
2. 2Pick your preposition (e.g., auf, in, unter).
3. 3Determine the action. Are you moving to a new place or staying put?
4. 4Choose the case. Movement to a destination = Accusative. Fixed location = Dative.
5. 5Change the article of the noun.
6. 6For Accusative (Movement):
7. 7Masculine: der becomes den
8. 8Feminine: die stays die
9. 9Neuter: das stays das
10. 10Plural: die stays die
11. 11For Dative (Location):
12. 12Masculine: der becomes dem
13. 13Feminine: die becomes der
14. 14Neuter: das becomes dem
15. 15Plural: die becomes den (and add an -n to the noun!)

You will use this grammar every single day. Use it when you are decorating your room. You put the picture an die Wand (Accusative). Now the picture hangs an der Wand (Dative). Use it when you are at work. You put your laptop auf den Schreibtisch (Accusative). Now it sits auf dem Schreibtisch (Dative).

It is also vital for giving directions. If you tell someone to go hinter das Haus (behind the house), you use Accusative. If you are waiting for them there, you are hinter dem Haus (Dative). It helps people know if they should keep walking or stop! Think of the Dative case as a cozy sofa. Once you are there, you stay there. The Accusative case is more like a treadmill. You are going somewhere!

Not every preposition is two-way. Some prepositions are "Dative only" (like mit, nach, zu). Others are "Accusative only" (like für, durch, ohne). You cannot use the movement rule with these. For example, zu always takes Dative, even if you are moving. Ich gehe zu dem (zum) Bahnhof.

Also, avoid overthinking movement. If you are jogging *inside* a park, you aren't going to a new destination. You are staying within the park. In that case, use Dative: Ich jogge in dem Park. Only use Accusative if you are jogging *into* the park from the street.

The most common slip-up is forgetting the Dative plural -n. If you say zwischen den Stühle, it sounds slightly off. It should be zwischen den Stühlen. Another classic mistake is mixing up the masculine articles. Remember: in den Garten (going in) vs. in dem Garten (being there).

Don't forget the contractions! Germans love to shorten things. in dem becomes im. in das becomes ins. an dem becomes am. an das becomes ans. Using these makes you sound much more natural. It is like the difference between "I am" and "I'm" in English.

Compare these prepositions to static verbs vs. dynamic verbs.

• stellen (to place vertically) + Accusative
• stehen (to be standing) + Dative
• legen (to lay down horizontally) + Accusative
• liegen (to be lying down) + Dative
• setzen (to set/place) + Accusative
• sitzen (to be sitting) + Dative

If the verb ends in -en and describes an action you do to an object, it usually triggers the Accusative. If it describes a state of being, it triggers the Dative. It is a neat little system once you see the pattern.