Modern German Grammar: A Practical Guide, Second Edition

Subject + prepositional verb + two completions

etw. (acc.) auf etw. (acc.) schätzen ‘to estimate sth. at so much’

jmdn. vor jmdm. oder etw. (dat.) warnen ‘to warn sb. about sb./sth.’

 See also^38 (pp. 90–3).

Subject + verb + location

irgendwo liegen ‘to be lying somewhere’

sich irgendwo befinden ‘to be situated somewhere’ (see 37 )

Subject + verb + direction

irgendwohin gehen ‘to go somewhere’

sich irgendwohin begeben ‘to go somewhere’ (formal: lit. to betake oneself

somewhere)

Subject + verb + object + direction

jmdn./etw. (acc.) irgendwohin tun ‘to put sb./sth. somewhere’

Subject + verb + object + location

jmdn. oder etw. (acc.) irgendwo finden ‘to find sb./sth. somewhere’

Subject + verb + extent

einen Augenblick dauern ‘to last a moment’ (see 18.4)

um einen Kopf größer oder kleiner sein ‘to be a head taller or shorter’ (see 48 )

(e) Completion by a clause

In many of the above patterns the verb can be completed by a clause instead of a noun

or pronoun. The subject can also be a clause. For example, instead of noun phrases in

the SVOa pattern:

Diese Tatsache erklärt seine gute Laune.

This fact explains his good mood.

the object completion can be a clause:

Diese Tatsache erklärt, warum er jetzt den ganzen Tag singt.

This fact explains why he sings all day now.

Or the subject can be a clause:

Dass er bald heiratet, erklärt seine gute Laune.

The fact that he is getting married soon explains his good mood.

or both can be clauses:

Dass er bald heiratet, erklärt, warum er jetzt den ganzen Tag singt.

The fact that he is getting married soon explains why he sings all day now.

 See 5.2 (p. 7) for word order.

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VERBS