Adverbs of Place For Intermediate learners
What are Adverbs of Place?
Adverbs of place (Lokaladverbien) are adverbs that give us information about locations or directions. They usually answer to the question "where"? In German, adverbs of place can be organized in three main categories.
Main Categories of Adverbs of Place
Location - (Static)
Direction - (Movement)
Origin
Location
These adverbs of place describe the static location of someone or something. Here are some of the common adverbs of place that usually answer the question "Wo"?
hier | here |
|---|---|
dort/da | there |
drauĂen | outside |
drinnen | inside |
oben | up/above |
unten | down/below |
vorne | in front |
hinten | in back |
ĂŒberall | everywhere |
nirgends | nowhere |
Das Buch liegt dort.
The book is lying there.
Die Kinder spielen drauĂen.
The children are playing outside.
Direction
These adverbs of place have a sense of direction and movement. They usually describe going from point A to point B. Here are some of the common adverbs of place that usually answer the question "Wohin"?
hierher | to here |
|---|---|
dorthin | to there |
hinauf/rauf | upwards |
hinunter/runter | downwards |
hinein/rein | into |
heraus/raus | out of |
Komm hierher!
Come here!
Er geht hinein.
He goes inside.
Origin
These adverbs of place describe the original location of something or someone and in English they start with "from". Here are some of the common adverbs of place that usually answer the question "Woher"?
von hier | from here |
|---|---|
von dort | from there |
von oben | from above |
von unten | from below |
von innen | from inside |
von auĂen | from outside |
Sie kommt von dort.
She comes from there.
Das GerÀusch kommt von oben.
The noise comes from above.
Position of the Adverb
An adverb of place can have different positions in a sentence:
First Position
Third Position
Last Position (after the object)
First Position
You can put the adverb of place first in a standard statement. In this case, the emphasis of the sentence will be on the place.
Dort arbeitet mein Vater.
My father works there.
Im Garten spielen die Kinder.
The children are playing in the garden.
Third Position
It is usual to put the adverb of place in the third position and after the verb. If there are other adverbs, the adverbs of time and manner come before the adverb of place.
[Time] + [Manner] + [Place]
Ich bin hier.
I am here.
Wir treffen uns am Bahnhof.
We are meeting at the station.
Sie stellt die Vase vorsichtig auf den Tisch.
She carefully places the vase on the table.
Die Kinder spielen den ganzen Tag fröhlich im Garten.
The children are playing happily in the garden all day.
Last Position (after the object)
It is common for place adverbs to come after the accusative objects.
Ich stelle das Buch auf den Tisch.
I put the book on the table.
Er sucht seinen SchlĂŒssel ĂŒberall.
He is looking for his key everywhere.
Order of Multiple Adverbs of Place
If you have more than one adverb of place in a sentence, you should order them from general to more specific.
Das Paket ist irgendwo in der KĂŒche.
The package is somewhere in the kitchen.
irgendwo (General) + in der KĂŒche (Specific)
Der SchlĂŒssel hĂ€ngt dort an der Wand.
The key is hanging there on the wall.
dort (General) + an der Wand (Specific)
Sie wohnt in Berlin in einer kleinen Wohnung.
She lives in Berlin in a small apartment.
in Berlin (General) + in einer kleinen Wohnung (Specific)
Comparison
There are a few adverbs of place that can have a comparative and superlative form. Most place adverbs, however, are fixed since they are not measurable and therefore can't be compared.
Comparative: adverb + -er
Superlative: am + adverb + -sten
nah (near)
nÀher (nearer)
am nÀchsten (nearest)
Wir mĂŒssen nĂ€her ran gehen.
We need to get closer.
If the adverb ends in -t or -d, an -e- will be added before -sten.
weit (far)
weiter (further)
am weitesten (furthest)
Das Haus liegt am weitesten vom Zentrum entfernt.
The house is farthest from the center.
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