Two-Way Prepositions
Nine prepositions — an, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor, zwischen — take the dative for a location and the accusative for a movement. Learn the wo/wohin test and the verb pairs stellen/stehen, legen/liegen and hängen.
Nine prepositions, two cases
Most prepositions you know are loyal to one case: mit and bei always take the dative, für and ohne always the accusative. Nine prepositions of space are different: an (at, on a vertical surface), auf (on top of), hinter (behind), in (in), neben (next to), über (above), unter (under), vor (in front of) and zwischen (between) switch case depending on what the sentence describes.
The rule: a location — where something is — takes the dative. A movement towards a goal — where something is going — takes the accusative. Die Katze sitzt auf dem Sofa (she is there: dative), but Die Katze springt auf das Sofa (she is heading there: accusative).
German even has two different question words for the two ideas: wo? asks about a location, wohin? asks about a direction. That pair is your test kit for the whole lesson.
Die Katze sitzt auf dem Sofa.
The cat is sitting on the sofa.
Wo? A location — dative.
Die Katze springt auf das Sofa.
The cat jumps onto the sofa.
Wohin? A movement towards a goal — accusative.
Wo ist mein Handy? — Es liegt unter der Zeitung.
Where is my phone? — It is lying under the newspaper.
Wo? Location takes the dative
Ask wo? and the answer stands still: the preposition takes the dative. Der Schlüssel liegt neben der Tür. Das Auto steht vor dem Haus. Das Bild hängt an der Wand. You already know the dative articles from A1 — dem, der, dem, den (plural) — so the only new work is remembering to use them after these nine prepositions whenever nothing is moving anywhere.
Two contractions are so common that the full forms sound stiff: an dem → am and in dem → im. Wir essen im Restaurant. Ich arbeite am Computer. Use the contractions whenever the article is a plain dem; keep the full form only when you point at something specific.
A detail worth noticing: verbs of position like stehen, liegen, sitzen and hängen almost always come with a wo-phrase. Where there is a position verb, expect the dative.
Das Bild hängt an der Wand.
The picture is hanging on the wall.
Wir essen heute im Restaurant.
We are eating at the restaurant today.
im = in dem.
Der Schlüssel liegt neben der Tür.
The key is lying next to the door.
Das Auto steht vor dem Haus.
The car is parked in front of the house.
Wohin? Movement takes the accusative
Ask wohin? and something changes place: the preposition takes the accusative. Ich hänge das Bild an die Wand — the picture starts in your hands and ends on the wall. Er stellt die Flasche in den Kühlschrank — the bottle travels. Only the masculine article visibly changes (der → den); feminine die and neuter das look the same as the nominative, so the masculine examples are the ones to drill.
The accusative side has its own contractions: an das → ans and in das → ins. The most useful of all is ins with places you go for fun: Wir gehen ins Kino, ins Café, ins Museum.
Careful with one trap: the verb gehen does not automatically mean accusative. Ich gehe im Park spazieren is a location (walking around inside the park), while Ich gehe in den Park is a direction (heading into it). Always ask wo or wohin about the phrase itself, not about the verb.
Ich hänge das Bild an die Wand.
I hang the picture on the wall.
Wir gehen heute Abend ins Kino.
We are going to the cinema tonight.
ins = in das.
Er stellt die Flasche in den Kühlschrank.
He puts the bottle in the fridge.
Masculine der Kühlschrank → in den: the visible accusative.
Ich hänge meine Jacke über den Stuhl.
I hang my jacket over the chair.
stellen or stehen? Placing things at home
German pairs its placement verbs: stellen (to put upright) goes with stehen (to stand), and legen (to lay flat) goes with liegen (to lie). The placing verb describes a movement, so it takes the accusative; the position verb describes a state, so it takes the dative. Stell die Milch in den Kühlschrank — and afterwards: Die Milch steht im Kühlschrank. Hängen conveniently does both jobs, changing only the case around it.
Whether something "stands" or "lies" depends on its shape and orientation: bottles, glasses and lamps stehen; books flat on a table, phones, keys and newspapers liegen. This sounds fussy at first, but it quickly becomes automatic — and it makes you sound genuinely German.
This is the grammar of moving in, tidying up and finding your things again. When you unpack a box or look for your glasses, narrate it: Ich habe die Brille auf den Tisch gelegt. Aber jetzt liegt sie unter der Zeitung. One little story, both cases, done.
Stell die Milch bitte in den Kühlschrank.
Please put the milk in the fridge.
Ich habe meine Brille auf den Tisch gelegt, aber jetzt liegt sie unter der Zeitung.
I put my glasses on the table, but now they are lying under the newspaper.
legen + accusative for the action, liegen + dative for the result.
Zwischen dem Sofa und dem Fenster steht eine Lampe.
Between the sofa and the window there is a lamp.
Check yourself
Quick checks on this lesson. Get at least three quarters right to mark it as completed.
Wo ist mein Handy? — Es liegt ___ Tisch.
Practise what you learned