German · Wechselpräpositionen · A2–B1
Two-way prepositions: dative or accusative?
Nine little words that point two ways. The trick isn't memorizing them, it's asking one question: am I moving, or am I already there?
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01
The one idea
Motion or location. That's the whole decision.
Every two-way preposition can take either case. Which one depends entirely on meaning, so ask yourself which question the sentence answers.
Wohin?→Akkusativ
Where to? There's motion toward a destination.
Ich gehe in die Küche.I'm going into the kitchen.
Wo?→Dativ
Where? A fixed place, with no change of position.
Ich bin in der Küche.I'm in the kitchen.
02
See it
Same cat, same table. Only the case moves.
Watch the arrow. When the cat is heading onto the table, that's motion, accusative. Once it's just sitting there, that's location, dative. The preposition auf never changed. The meaning did.
Die Katze springt auf den Tisch.
The cat jumps onto the table.
Akkusativ · motion
Die Katze sitzt auf dem Tisch.
The cat sits on the table.
Dativ · at rest
Quick test: point at the sentence and ask “Wohin?” If something's going somewhere, use the accusative. If only “Wo?” fits, it just is somewhere, use the dative.
03
The verb tell
The verb usually gives it away.
German pairs its verbs: one for putting something somewhere, one for it being there. Spot the verb and the case follows.
Motion
Akkusativstellento place upright
legento lay down
setzento set
hängento hang sth.
Position
Dativstehento stand
liegento lie
sitzento sit
hängento be hanging
The pairs give it away: stellen / stehen, legen / liegen, setzen / sitzen. The first puts it there; the second says it is there.
04
What you produce
The case hides in the article ending.
You've decided the case, now you have to say it. It lands on the article, so these endings are the thing to get automatic.
auf den Tisch → auf dem Tisch
Onto the table, then on the table. One letter of difference. That's the whole game.
The endings
| Gender | Akk. | Dativ |
|---|---|---|
| Masculine | den Tisch | dem Tisch |
| Neuter | das Regal | dem Regal |
| Feminine | die Wand | der Wand |
| Plural | die Stühle | den Stühlen |
Same box, two cases
Ich lege den Ball in die Kiste.
Akkusativ · motion
Der Ball liegt in der Kiste.
Dativ · at rest
05
Worked examples
Decide the case, then tap to check.
The preposition and its article are highlighted. Before you tap, ask Wohin or Wo, then reveal the answer and why it goes that way.
1
Ich hänge das Bild an die Wand.
I hang the picture on the wall.
Why accusative
You're moving the picture onto the wall, motion. Transitive hängen, so: die Wand.
2
Das Bild hängt an der Wand.
The picture is hanging on the wall.
Why dative
Now nothing moves, it just hangs there. Intransitive hängen = location: der Wand.
3
Die Kinder spielen im Garten.
The children are playing in the garden.
Why dative (and what's “im”?)
They're playing within the garden, location. Dative in dem contracts to im.
Tap any sentence to reveal · tap the star to save
06
The full set
All nine two-way prepositions.
These are the ones that swing both ways. Every other German preposition is fixed to a single case, only these nine make you choose.
anon / at a vertical surface
aufon a horizontal surface
hinterbehind
inin / into
nebennext to
überover / above
unterunder / below
vorin front of
zwischenbetween
07
Questions
Frequently asked
Nine: an, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor, and zwischen. Each can take the dative or the accusative depending on whether you're describing location or direction.
Ask “Wohin?” or “Wo?”. If the sentence answers “Wohin?” (where to, motion toward a destination) use the accusative. If it answers “Wo?” (where, a fixed location) use the dative.
It helps. Motion verbs like stellen, legen, and setzen usually signal the accusative, while position verbs like stehen, liegen, and sitzen usually signal the dative. But it's really the meaning, direction vs location, that decides.
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