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→Word order
===Word order===
===Word order===
German word order in complex sentences is based on a so-called "bracket construction," with the most important parts being close to the beginning and at the end. In sentences with more than one verb, the second verb (or group of verbs) goes at the very end:
''Ich <u>habe</u> ihr das Buch in der Schule <u>gegeben</u>.'' (I gave her the book at school.)
In the example above, the verb ''haben'' is conjugated in the first person singular and placed just after the subject, and the past participle of ''geben'' (to give) is placed at the end of the sentence. The sentence also contains a direct object (das Buch = the book), an indirect object (ihr = her), and a place indicator (in der Schule = at school).
Word order other than this bracket construction is somewhat flexible. For example, the following sentences have the same meaning:
''Das Buch <u>habe</u> ich ihr in der Schule <u>gegeben</u>.''<br />
''In der Schule <u>habe</u> ich ihr das Buch <u>gegeben</u>.''
Notice that however the constituent parts are arranged, the main verb always is placed in the second position.
This bracket construction is a defining characteristic of German word order. It is also used with modal verbs, as well as the peculiar "seperable verbs." An example of this is the verb ''abgeben'', which means to "give up." When it is the only verb appearing in the sentence, the prefix "ab" is separated from the rest of the verb, which is conjugated and placed in the second position, and the prefix is placed at the end of the sentence:
''Ich <u>gebe</u> jetzt <u>ab</u>.'' (I'm giving up now.)
German has many such verbs, which are always constructed from a definable preposition and a main verb. However, when using the past tense or a modal verb, these sepearable verbs appear at the end of the sentence in the appropriate form.
==References==
==References==