Dative Prepositions in German

This section explains Dative Prepositions in German. In German, some prepositions require the dative case, meaning the noun or pronoun following the preposition must be in the dative form. This is different from the accusative case, which is used with other prepositions.

Dative prepositions are used to indicate the indirect object of a sentence or to show location.

Here is a list of common dative prepositions:

• aus (from, out of)
• bei (at, with)
• mit (with)
• nach (after, to)
• seit (since, for)
• von (from, of)
• zu (to, at)

Dative with Definite Articles

When a dative preposition is used, the definite articles (the word for "the") change depending on the gender of the noun following the preposition.

Definite Articles in the Dative:

Examples:

Ich gehe mit dem Freund.
(I am going with the friend.)

dem is used because Freund (friend) is masculine.

Er fährt mit der Familie.
(He is going with the family.)

der is used because Familie (family) is feminine.

Sie kommt aus dem Haus.
(She is coming out of the house.)

dem is used because Haus (house) is neuter.

Wir wohnen bei den Eltern.
(We live at the parents' house.)

den is used because Eltern (parents) is plural.

Dative with Personal Pronouns

When using personal pronouns with dative prepositions, the pronouns must also be in the dative case. Here are the dative personal pronouns:

Examples with Dative Pronouns:

Kannst du mir helfen?
(Can you help me?)

mir is the dative pronoun for ich (I).

Ich gehe mit dir ins Kino.
(I am going with you to the cinema.)

dir is the dative pronoun for du (you informal).

Er gibt ihr das Buch.
(He is giving her the book.)

ihr is the dative pronoun for sie (she).

Wir haben es von ihnen bekommen.
(We received it from them.)

ihnen is the dative pronoun for sie (they).

Sie fährt nach ihm.
(She is going to him.)

ihm is the dative pronoun for er (he).

Foundation Tier Example Sentences:

Ich gehe mit dem Hund spazieren.
(I am going for a walk with the dog.)

dem is used for Hund (masculine).

Sie kommt aus der Schule.
(She is coming from the school.)

der is used for Schule (feminine).

Er fährt nach dem Restaurant.
(He is going to the restaurant.)

dem is used for Restaurant (neuter).

Wir sind bei den Nachbarn.
(We are at the neighbours’ house.)

den is used for Nachbarn (plural).

Higher Tier Example Sentences:

Ich habe das Geschenk von meiner Schwester bekommen.
(I received the gift from my sister.)

meiner is the dative form of meine for Schwester (feminine).

Sie spricht mit dem Lehrer über das Projekt.
(She is speaking with the teacher about the project.)

dem is used for Lehrer (masculine).

Wir haben seit einem Jahr keinen Urlaub gemacht.
(We haven't had a holiday for a year.)

einem is used for Jahr (neuter).

Ich gehe zu den Freunden.
(I am going to the friends.)

den is used for Freunden (plural).

Er arbeitet seit vielen Jahren bei dieser Firma.
(He has been working at this company for many years.)

dieser is the dative form of dies for Firma (feminine).

Summary:

• Dative prepositions (e.g., aus, bei, mit, nach, seit, von, zu) always require the noun or pronoun following them to be in the dative case.
• Definite articles in the dative change depending on the gender of the noun. For example, der becomes dem (masculine), die becomes der (feminine), das becomes dem (neuter), and die becomes den (plural).
• Personal pronouns also change in the dative case. For example, ich becomes mir, du becomes dir, er becomes ihm, and so on.

Key Vocabulary:

• from: aus
• at: bei
• with: mit
• after/to: nach
• since/for: seit
• from/of: von
• to/at: zu