Verbs can have prefixes. There are two types of verb prefixes: separable and inseparable. Often, prefixes change the meaning of the verb.
Inseparable prefixes are not separated from the verb. The important ones are: be-, emp-, ent-, er-, ge-, ver-, zer-. Generally, they do not really have a meaning by themselves, but they change the meaning of the verb they are attached to. They are not stressed in pronunciation.
| Beispiele | |||
| be- | stehen | bestehen | (to stand - to exist) |
| emp- | finden | empfinden | (to find - to feel, sense) |
| ent- | lassen | entlassen | (to let/allow - to let go, dismiss) |
| er- | hören | erhören | (to hear/listen - to yield to) |
| ge- | hören | gehören | (to hear/listen - to belong) |
| miss- | achten | missachten | (to acknowledge/respect - to ignore) |
| ver- | raten | verraten | (to guess - to betray, give away) |
| wider- | sprechen | widersprechen | (to speak - to contradict) |
| zer- | stören | zerstören | (to bother, disturb - to destroy) |
In a main clause, separable prefixes are separated from the verb and move to the very end. Potentially, there are many seperable prefixes. The most important ones are: ab-, an-, auf-, aus-, ein-, fort-, heim-, her-, hin-, mit-, nach-, nieder-, vor-, weg-, zu-, zurück-, zusammen-. As can be seen, many are prepositions or adverbs, and have a meaning by themselves. They are stressed in pronunciation.
| Beispiele | |||
| ab- | schreiben | abschreiben | (to write - to copy) |
| an- | kommen | ankommen | (to come - to arrive) |
| auf- | hören | aufhören | (to listen - to stop/end) |
| aus- | schalten | ausschalten | (to switch - to turn off) |
| ein- | schlagen | einschlagen | (to hit - to smash in) |
| fort- | fahren | fortfahren | (to drive - to continue, go on) |
| heim- | gehen | heimgehen | (to go - to go home, return) |
| her- | geben | hergeben | (to give - to give up) |
| hin- | werfen | hinwerfen | (to throw - to throw down) |
| mit- | nehmen | mitnehmen | (to take - to take along) |
| nach- | geben | nachgeben | (to give - to give in) |
| nieder- | schlagen | niederschlagen | (to beat/hit - to knock down) |
| vor- | machen | vormachen | (to do/make - to demonstrate) |
| weg- | laufen | weglaufen | (to run - to run away/flee) |
| zu- | hören | zuhören | (to listen - to listen closely) |
| zurück- | geben | zurückgeben | (to give - to return/give back) |
| zusammen- | halten | zusammenhalten | (to hold - to hold together) |
HINT: Because there is only a small and limited number of inseperable prefixes, knowing these and assuming that everythign else is separable should make it easy working with them. (However, see also the note below).
Beispiele (Präsens)
NOTE: Some prefixes are both separable and inseparable (occasionally even with the same verb). In this case, they have different meanings.
Beispiel: übersetzen
|
Somewhat related...: Prepositions in English There is a debate concerning the use of a preposition at the end of a sentence. Phrases ending in a preposition can be heard frequently on radio and in television commercials. And then there is the tale of the little boy who was ill and confined to his bed. His mother decided to read to him and carried a book to his bedside. The boy exclaimed, "What did you bring that book that I don't like to be read to out of up for?" |
|
If you cannot enter special characters directly: * Cut & Paste the appropriate character from here: ß - Ä - ä - Ö - ö - Ü - ü * Or, for the "ß" use the capital letter "B" (or an "sz"), for umlauts use these transcriptions: ä = ae; Ä = AE; ü = ue etc. |
© 1998ff. Horst Kurz. All rights reserved.