|
Certain prepositions take dative objects when
describing where something is located, but accusative objects when the object is a destination. We have seen three cases of this so far.
| Wo soll ich die Koffer hinstellen? |
| Where should I put the suitcases? |
| Neben das Bett. |
| Beside the bed. |
| Aber man fährt eine Stunde in die Innenstadt. |
| But you drive for an hour to get into the city center. |
| Ich möchte eine Überweisung an Firma Dieter Schottmaler. |
| I’d like a funds transfer to the Dieter Schottmaler Company. |
The prepositions that alternate in this way are: an, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor, zwischen. As they appeared in context in this course, they have been listed in the vocabulary with the notation separately for location plus dative and destination plus accusative. Sometimes they are called two-way prepositions because of this alternation.
Idiomatic Uses of Two-Way Prepositions
In some instances, prepositions in this "two-way" group cannot be interpreted as describing either a location or a destination.
| Ich möchte eine Überweisung über DM 2 000,-. |
| I’d like a funds transfer in the amount of 2000 marks. |
| Ich möchte Ihnen einige Fragen übers Hotel stellen. |
| I’d like to ask a few questions about the hotel. |
In these instances, the case they take cannot be inferred from spatial logic, but is simply idiomatic. These instances will be noted in the vocabulary.
|
