新澳门六合彩

When you first started learning German, creating sentences such as Der Mann ist nett (The man is nice), you probably thought 鈥済osh, this is easy!鈥�

THEN, you run into sentences such as Ich sehe den Mann (I see the man) where der 鈫� den or ein 鈫� einen (not to mention what happens if you want to add in an adjective!)

It gets tough, fast!

On top of that, you鈥檙e introduced to the dative case, which possibly sparked only more confusion. At this point, you might be saying to yourself, 鈥淗ow in the world do you know when to put a noun into the accusative case or the dative?? HELP!鈥�

I hear ya. We鈥檝e all been there!

Fortunately, there are some pretty straightforward rules to what the accusative case is and how and when to use it. Keep reading!

What You Need To Know

Wouldn鈥檛 it be nice if you could learn a new language and not have to do so much work with grammar?

Even those of us who are grammar nerds can find it a bit overwhelming at times, so I know all the grammar mumbo-jumbo can get painful really fast for the rest of you.

Unfortunately, you must learn at least the key grammar points if you want to speak German with any proficiency whatsoever. There鈥檚 just no way around it.

That said, I know you can do it! You can learn the most important things (and forget the rest) and it doesn鈥檛 even have to be so bad. Promise.

What is the Accusative Case?

The accusative case can also be called the direct object case because it鈥檚 used whenever we talk about direct object.

Take a quick look at this overview of the 4 cases, the roles they signify, and what those roles do in a sentence (i.e. how they relate to each other):

A direct object is a person or thing that receives action from the subject.

I mow the grass.
He plants a garden.
You water the flowers.

You might find it really helpful to think of sentences as having 鈥榮lots鈥� that we either have to (or optionally may) fill in:

subject + verb + direct object

If that resonates with you, then think of it like this: in any sentence, we have to fill up the 鈥榮ubject slot鈥� (nominative) first. There needs to be someone or something that will do something.

The next slot is then the verb — what the subject is doing.

Then, if there is additional information needed (or just wanted), we default to putting that word (or phrase, i.e. a collection of words) into the 鈥榓ccusative slot鈥�.

So, with our example of I see the tree, I could have just a simple subject + conjugated verb, which is the most basic sentence possible: I see.

BUT I wanted to tell you WHO or WHAT I am seeing (who or what is the 鈥榬ecipient鈥� of my action of seeing), which is why I filled in the direct object (accusative) slot next: the tree.

How the Accusative Case Works in English

Alright. Take yourself back to 5th Grade English with me: do you remember learning about direct and indirect objects?

You may have studied sentences that looked something like this:

I is the subject doing the action of giving.

The money receives that action: it is what is being given.

Her receives the direct object (the money), making her the indirect object.

So, the money in this example is in the accusative case — the 鈥榙irect object slot鈥� in our sentence that we fill up after we鈥檝e filled up the 鈥榮ubject slot鈥� (nominative).

In this example, we can think of 鈥榯he money鈥� as being in the accusative case and 鈥榟er鈥� as being what鈥檚 called dative case (for indirect objects) because then it lines up so perfectly with those two cases in German. And that feels satisfying and not so intimidating.

But.

Really, in English we have just 2 cases: the subject (nominative) and the object (accusative & dative combined into what鈥檚 called the objective case).

In English, what is the subject and what is an object (direct or indirect) is signaled by the order of the words.

For instance, I could say:

In this case, the tall tree is the subject of the sentence. 

But I could take that exact same phrase and plug it into a different spot in my sentence:

And in this instance, I is now the subject, which means that the tall tree is an object. 

We could say that the tall tree in the 2nd sentence is the direct object specifically (which is then the accusative case), but it鈥檚 a somewhat pointless distinction because we could take the same exact phrase and plug it into a different sentence like this:

The same phrase, but in a different spot (and with the addition of a big hug) technically makes the tall tree the indirect object (dative case) of the sentence. 

But, again, the words themselves didn鈥檛 change — just the word order. And that鈥檚 pretty simple. That鈥檚 why in English we lump the accusative and dative cases together. If it鈥檚 not the subject, it鈥檚 an object (objective case) and that鈥檚 about all we need to know in English.

But in German there is a distinction between the accusative and dative cases. Little markers that I call 鈥榞rammar flags鈥� (declensions) would be put on the the tall tree to signal when the tree is the subject, or direct object, or indirect object.

On the most basic level, the accusative case is used as the marker for direct objects. In this way (and this way only), the accusative case in English and German are the same. In English, we can sometimes split hairs and talk about accusative vs. dative. But in German, the distinction is always made.

How the Accusative Case Works in German

Again, in English, who is doing what to whom is indicated simply by the word order. The words (e.g. the tall tree) don鈥檛 change, just the position of them.

In German, though, the role of every noun in a given sentence is 鈥榝lagged鈥� by little grammar changes (called declensions) to the words that come in front of the noun.

There are two types of words that come in front of nouns: determiners and adjectives.

Determiners are little words (a, the, some, many, all, every, etc.) that tell us how many or which one.
Adjectives are words that describe some feature of the noun (e.g. big, flat, rough, new, green, etc.).

In German, when we put a noun into the accusative 鈥榮lot鈥� in our sentence, the determiner and/or adjective(s) will take declensions, such as all these instances of -en:

(I see the tall tree)

In order to put a noun (e.g. Mann) into the accusative 鈥榮lot鈥�, you need to know the right 鈥榞rammar flags鈥� (declensions) to use. We actually have two types of declensions: strong & weak.

Furthermore, declensions change based on:

• the gender of the noun
• which case it鈥檚 in
• what type of words are in front of the noun
• how many of each type are in front of the noun

Yikes! I know that sounds a bit intense, but there are some quick-n-easy declension patterns you can learn that actually make the accusative case totally manageable.

Accusative Case Declensions

All determiners and adjectives used to indicate gender / case work with just two types of declensions: strong & weak.

Strong declensions better (but not flawlessly) indicate the gender/case of the noun because they are the most varied.

Weak declensions do not indicate the gender/case of the noun because they have almost no variation (there are just two options for any gender/case combo: -e or -n).

Look at this accusative case snippet of my all-in-one declensions chart. Notice the    for the strong declensions, the for the    weak declensions.

Note that the feminine, neuter, and plural strong & weak declensions are all the same as the nominative case! Or, in other words: the only spot on our chart where the accusative declensions are any different from the nominative declensions is with masculine nouns.

Special Declension Adjustments

Our standard is that an 鈥榚鈥� gets added in front of every declension that isn鈥檛 an -e already. (I鈥檝e left them out of the chart in part to make it look less overwhelming.) So, for example, we need an –en and –en in the masculine accusative and an –en for the plural accusative weak declension.

But in the feminine & plural, we have an -e strong declension. We鈥檙e not going to add an extra 鈥榚鈥�. And we are going to apply the -e declension a little differently dependent on if we鈥檙e using the definite article (鈥榯he鈥�) or any other determiner.

Feminine & plural鈥檚 strong declension -e gets added onto to determiners such as jed- (every), welch- (which), kein- (not any) as is, to look like this: jede, welche, keine. Easy!

BUT! (Here鈥檚 the oddball part:) If you want to use the definite article (鈥榯he鈥�), it will be die in both instances (feminine & plural). The important part is still the -e declension, it just has the 鈥榠鈥� in front of it in these spots (just as in the nominative case): die. Got it?

The final oddball spot on the accusative declensions chart is in the neuter. The strong declension is an -s. It鈥檚 going to follow our rule and add an 鈥榚鈥� in front of it for any determiner other than the definite article (鈥榯he鈥�): jedes, welches, keines.But the definite article will add an 鈥榓鈥� instead: das.

Basic Declensions Patterns

There are 4 total declension patterns that help us use the declensions chart properly. 

Notice a general preference for strong declensions over weak ones. 馃榾

Pattern #1 is the most universally applicable (i.e. used with both singular & plural nouns in all cases; and with no special restrictions). Example shortly!

Pattern #2 is used in just 3 instances (masculine nominative, neuter nominative, and neuter accusative) and only if the determiner is specifically an ein-word determiner. However, it is still very commonly used declension pattern! More on this soon. 馃檪

Pattern #3 is used only with plural nouns or collective / non-countable nouns (e.g. water, rice, love). See example below!

Pattern #4 is restricted to just specific plural determiners, which is covered in detail elsewhere.

Now, we want to see how this graphic of 4 declension patterns interacts with the All-In-One Declensions Chart. Let鈥檚 look at some examples to bring this all home!

Declension Pattern #1 Example:

Look at our example with the tall tree again:

(I see the tall tree).

Our direct object here is den 驳谤辞脽别苍 Baum. So, it is in the accusative case slot.

We have a determiner (den) and an adjective (驳谤辞脽别苍).

The den is technically the  鈥榮trong鈥� declension and the 3 adjectives all have the   鈥榳eak鈥� declension.

Do you see the strong declension (-n) on the determiner (鈥榯he鈥� = den)? Do you see listed under the    in the masculine?

Baum is a masculine noun, so you learn it with the article der. Der Baum (the tree) is technically in the nominative case because we learn all German nouns with their nominative (subject) case versions of 鈥榯he鈥� (der [masc.], die [fem.], and das [neut.]).

So, in front of the Baum, we change the -r on der into an -n to make it den. Now our masculine 鈥榯he鈥� (der) is in the accusative case instead of the nominative. Look at this comparison of the nominative and accusative case declensions:

Then, do you see the -n weak declension on all of our adjectives (驳谤辞脽别苍)? Do you see it listed under   in the declensions chart?

The 鈥榬oot鈥� form of the adjective is 驳谤辞脽. So, we take it and put the weak declension onto it. Just remember that we need to add an -e first!

Can you see with this example how it all fits together? How den 驳谤辞脽别苍 Baum is in the accusative case, taking a strong declension on the determiner and a weak declension on the adjective as dictated by declension pattern #1?

Making sense? Great. Now it鈥檚 onto the one oddball we discuss here (you can read here to learn about 鈥榬ulebreaker鈥� plural determiners) — declension pattern #2!

Declension Pattern #2

Remember that this declension pattern is relevant in the accusative case only as concerns neuter nouns!

For example, we could say:

(I plant a sweet, little tree).

Although Baum (tree) is a masculine noun, 叠盲耻尘濒别颈苍 (little tree) is a neuter noun because of the diminutive -lein (for more on this, read the neuter group / form sections in my gender guide!)

If we were to say Ich pflanze DAS 蝉眉脽e 叠盲耻尘濒别颈苍 (I plant THE sweet little tree), we would still be using declension pattern #1. BUT 鈥榓鈥� is what is called an ein-word. And now special rules apply!

Remember above when we were talking about determiners? Well, there are two types of determiners: der-words and ein-words.

EIN-words: ein (a), irgendein (any), kein (not a / any), and all possessive pronouns.

DER-words: all other determiners. For example, welch- (which), dies- (this), jed- (every).
REMEMBER: if the determiner is not an ein-word, it鈥檚 a der-word by default.

Working with the neuter accusative is one of just three instances that this distinction between der-words and ein-words matters — all the rest of the time, determiners are just determiners.

(Well, sort of. With declension pattern #4, we also draw a distinction between 2 types of determiners (not quite exactly der- and ein-words, though).

But in the neuter accusative, if you use an ein-word, you need to use declension pattern #2: the ein-word determiner takes no declension at all, which forces the adjective (蝉眉脽) to take the strong -es (蝉眉脽es).

Do you see how pattern #2 fits in with our declensions chart?

The spot with    is for ein-words only. Then, the following adjectives (if present) scoot over into the very next category, which, in this instance, is the .

Declension Pattern #3 Example:

(I see tall trees.)

Since this sentence fits in with declension pattern #3, we have no determiner — just an adjective (驳谤辞脽e).

Instead of Baum (singular), we鈥檙e now talking about 叠盲耻尘别 (plural). So we need to use the strong declension from the plural side of our declensions chart (-e) for our adjective (驳谤辞脽).

Since one of our rules is that the gender/case of the noun must be indicated by the determiner (if present) or by the adjectives (if a determiner isn鈥檛 present), that鈥檚 why we see the the adjectives with the strong declensions here.

For your reference, here is the graphic for our basic patterns again. Remember, right now we鈥檙e looking at an example of pattern #3:

Summary

Now you know the strong & weak declensions for direct object nouns (therefore in the accusative case). Thankfully, only the declensions for masculine nouns are any different from the nominative case, so that鈥檚 a breeze!

You鈥檝e seen how a couple basic rules about how gender/case is indicated in German gives us 3 declensions patterns for which declensions (strong or weak) the determiner and/or adjectives need.

You鈥檙e now also armed with some example sentences that flesh out exactly how to use the different declensions (including our one exception case with ein-words in the neuter accusative!).

So, now you know how to use the accusative case in German, but you need to also learn when to use it and 鈥� that鈥檚 right, it鈥檚 not just when there鈥檚 a direct object!

Unlike in English, in German, the accusative is also used 鈥�

• in conjunction with particular adjectives, prepositions, adverbial phrases;
• to indicate measurement, value, distance, duration, or movement;
• to provide additional, optional information to verbs that don鈥檛 require it
• to formulate most greetings & wishes.

If you want more information on these many applications of the accusative case, keep reading! For a quick summary of the most important features of the accusative case, read the Main Takeaways below. I also recommend you check out my Study Tips section!

Digging Deeper

The accusative case in German is important. It鈥檚 also confusing because it鈥檚 used so differently from English. Stay with me! We鈥檙e going to hash this out.

In this section, you will learn about the accusative case in connection with:

• transitive vs. intransitive verbs
• double accusative verbs
• accusative adjectives
• accusative prepositions
• accusative adverbial phrases
• measurements, distances, time, and other values
• common greetings & wishes

Accusative Verbs

There are verbs that can 鈥榮tand alone鈥�, such as sit, cough, run, laugh, and more. We can say simply I sit, I cough, I run, I laugh. No extra information is needed. These are still complete sentences.

Verbs that can 鈥榮tand alone鈥� like this are called intransitive because there is no transitioning from the subject through the verb to an object.

NERD ALERT: We can add extra info (e.g. I sit on a chair, I coughed all night, etc.), but in the form of adverbial phrases, not direct objects.

See related: Dative verbs & Genitive verbs

Transitive Verbs

However, there are verbs that require an object — they can鈥檛 鈥榮tand alone鈥�. These verbs are called transitive verbs because there is transitioning from the subject through the verb to the object.

For example, we can鈥檛 say just I buy, I wash, I offer, etc.We have a sense that we鈥檙e left hanging, right?

That鈥檚 because it鈥檚 essential that we add in the information of what we鈥檙e buying / washing / offering. And that what is a direct object in the accusative case! 馃檪

Anytime a verb requires an object (transitive verbs), you need to default to putting that object in the accusative case. This is an important principle! Remember it!

Here are a few examples:

Ich besuche den Mann / ihn. (I visit the man / him).
Ich besuche die Frau / sie (I visit the woman / her).
Ich besuche das Kind / es (I visit the child / it). — Yes, 鈥榗hildren鈥� are 鈥榠t鈥檚 in German!

Optionally Transitive Verbs

There are also lots of verbs that can function either transitively OR intransitively. For example, sleep, eat, sing, read, and many more. We can say simply I sleep, I eat, I sing, I read, etc. BUT we can also optionally add on a direct object:

Ich schlafe (I sleep) or 鈥� Ich schlafe den Schlaf der Gerechten (I sleep the sleep of the just!)

Summary

Some verbs (intransitive) don鈥檛 need objects at all. BUT when they either require or optionally take objects (transitive verbs), we default to putting those objects into the accusative case.

Accusative Prepositions

There are 5 prepositions that are always accusative: durch (through), f眉r (for), gegen (against), ohne (without), um (around).

Prepositions are always at the start of what are called prepositional phrases.

Some English examples would be with my best friend, at the grocery store, through the tunnel, without you, around the mulberry bush.

This concept of prepositional phrases is important because, when we see an accusative preposition, it means that the whole following prepositional phrase needs to be put into the accusative case.

What is the whole prepositional phrase? Well, it might include a determiner and/or adjective(s) that come between the preposition and the noun.

For example, if we have the prepositional phrase under the red chair, it breaks down like this:

under (prep) + the (det.) + red (adj.) + chair (noun)

Understanding what words make up the whole prepositional phrase is crucial because we have toproperly signal that the whole prepositional phrase is in the accusative case.

And to do that, we have to put 鈥榞rammar flags鈥� (declensions) on 鈥� do you remember which words? That鈥檚 right: the determiner and/or adjective(s).

Check out these few, quick examples:

Ich fahre durch die hektische, l盲rmende, ausgedehnte Stadt(I drive through the hectic, clamorous, spread-out city).

Ich habe die Kette f眉r dich gekauft (I bought the necklace for you).

Hast du was gegen Kopfschmerzen? (Do you have anything for headaches?)

Ohne mich kommst du gar nicht weiter! (You won鈥檛 get any further without me!)

Spring bitte nicht um den Tisch herum! (Please don鈥檛 jump around the table!)

You can see that sometimes the accusative preposition is followed directly by the noun. Other times, by a determiner. Still other times by a determiner and multiple adjectives. In other sentences, you see the preposition followed only by an accusative pronoun.

Related: Dative prepositions & Genitive prepositions.

For an in-depth look at each preposition, read my guide on accusative prepositions.

Telling Time

Adverbial phrases of time in the accusative case are used to express duration of time OR a specific point in time / period of time.

Sometimes, these ways of expressing time involve prepositions, sometimes not.

Phrases Without Prepositions

Specific Time Examples: jeden Tag, n盲chste Woche, letztes Jahr, kommenden Donnerstag, einen Augenblick, Anfang, Mitte, Ende

Ich arbeite jeden Tag (I work everyday).

Ich besuche London n盲chste Woche (I鈥檒l visit London next week).

Das Baby wurde schon letztes Jahr geboren (The baby was born last year already).

Wir sehen uns kommenden Donnerstag (We鈥檒l see each other this coming Thursday).

Warte bitte nur einen Augenblick! (Please wait just a minute!)

AnfangMai musste ich ins Krankenhaus (At the beginning at May, I had to go to the hospital).

Mitte Juni wurde ich endlich entlassen (I was finally released mid-June).

Ende Juli musste ich aber meinen Mann ins Krankenhaus bringen!(At the end of July I had to bring my husband to the hospital, though!).

Of course, using the basic form of the determiners (jed-, n盲chst-, letzt-, etc.), you put on the correct declension that then matches the gender of the noun (e.g. Tag, Woche, Jahr).

As a reminder, here is the accusative snippet of our case chart:

Duration of Time Examples: den ganzen Tag, die ganze Zeit, viele Monate, drei Jahre, den ganzen Winter —Note: any of these can be followed by lang, 眉产别谤, or hindurch for emphasis.

Ich arbeite den ganzen Tag lang (I work all day long).

Wo warst du denn die ganze Zeit? (Where were you the whole time, then?)

Wir bleiben viele Monate in Berlin (We are staying in Berlin for several months).

Wir wohnten drei Jahre in New York (We lived in NYC for three years).

Den ganzen Winter 眉产别谤 hat es t盲glich geschneit! (It snowed daily all winter long!)

Phrases With Prepositions

A few prepositions — auf, 眉产别谤, gegen and bis — can also be used in the accusative to talk about time [Note: there are other adverbial phrases of time that are in the dative case].

Note that auf is a two-way preposition (i.e. either accusative or dative; more on that soon!). When used in a time expression, auf (+ accusative) indicates a period of time that starts now:

Sie fliegt auf eine Woche in Paris(She鈥檚 flying over [now, today] to Paris for a week).

脺产别谤 is also a two-way preposition, but used in time expressions, it always takes the accusative and has the meaning of over, as in:

Wir bleiben 眉产别谤蝉 Wochenende (We鈥檙e staying over the weekend).

Note that 眉产别谤蝉 is a contraction of 眉产别谤 + das (neuter accusative)

Bis is sometimes considered an accusative preposition, but, really, it is always followed either by another preposition (e.g. zu, which is dative), which then determines the case of the noun OR bis is followed by other 鈥榯ime information鈥� that鈥檚 already in the accusative anyway (not because bis makes it take the accusative).

Wir bleiben hier bis n盲chste Woche (We鈥檙e staying until next week).

Bis jetzt habe ich nur die erste Seite geschrieben (Up until now, I鈥檝e written only the first page).

Du darfst bis 15 Uhr spielen (You may play until 3 o鈥檆lock).

Gegen is always an accusative preposition and, in time expressions, can mean either just before / toward a certain time or simply around a certain time (less common).

Wir kommen gegen 2 Uhr an (We鈥檒l arrive shortly before / around 2).

Ich fahre gegen Mittag los (I鈥檓 taking off around noon).

Gegen Monatsende muss ich einen neuen Job finden!(Toward the end of the month, I need to find a new job).

Some prepositions (+ accusative) are also used in idiomatic phrases (e.g. I鈥檓 waiting FOR you in German is Ich warte AUF dich. Auf should NOT be translated as 鈥榝or鈥�, but it is the correct preposition in this idiomatic situation). For more on this topic, keep reading!

Measurement & Other Values

We use the accusative to cost about how much something weighs, how long/wide/deep it is, how much it costs, etc. Sometimes the accusative case is obvious; other times, not.

Der Korb voller 脛pfel kostet 20 Euro(The basket of apples costs 20 Euros).

Das Baby wiegt schon 10 Kilo(The baby weighs 10 Kilos already!).

Das ist mir keinen Cent wert (That鈥檚 not worth a cent to me).

Ich bin erst 10 Jahre alt (I鈥檓 just 10 years old).

Die Stadt ist einen Kilometer breit (The city is a kilometer wide).

Direction & Movement

German distinguishes between the process of something/someone getting from A to B and the state of being there.

When the movement to somewhere is emphasized, the accusative case is used: auf den Tisch (on the table) as in Ich setze das Buch auf den Tisch (I鈥檓 setting the book on the table).

When the position of a person or object is emphasized the dative case is used instead: auf DEMTisch (on the table), as in Das Buch liegt auf dem Tisch (The book is lying on the table).

Did you notice the same translation of 鈥榦n the table鈥� despite the 2 different German versions of auf den/dem Tisch?

Exactly! We don鈥檛 have an English equivalent for distinction that German makes, so it鈥檚 a topic that deserves extra attention.

So much attention, actually, that I鈥檝e written a whole other guide all about accusative vs. dative as concerns movement vs. position. Heads up: this is where two-way prepositions (e.g. auf) come into play!

Greetings & Wishes

Most greetings and wishes are put in the accusative case because the subject is implied. It鈥檚 not always a most perfect fit (e.g. with Vielen Dank), but just imagine a Ich w眉nsche Ihnen/dir (I wish you) in front of each of these:

Guten Morgen (good morning)

Guten Tag (good day)

Guten Abend (good evening)

Gute Nacht (good night)

Gute Besserung (get well)

Vielen Dank (many thanks)

Herzlichen Gl眉ckwunsch (congratulations)

Guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr (Happy New Year!)

Frohe Weihnachten (Merry Christmas!)

Special Exceptions

Double Accusative Verbs

In addition to verbs that either require or optionally take a direct object, there are even a handful of verbs that take two accusative objects.

This is rare (usually there鈥檇 be an accusative and then a dative object in German), which is why we鈥檙e talking about it here in the special exceptions section!

The most common double accusative verbs are kosten (to cost), fragen (to ask), bitten (to request), lehren (to teach).

Es (nom) + kostet + mich (acc) + mein ganzes Geld (acc). (It [will] cost me all my money).

Ich (nom) + frage + ihn (acc) + etwas Privates (acc). (I鈥檓 asking him something private).

Ich (nom) + bitte + dich (acc) + darum (acc). (I鈥檓 asking you for that/it).

Sie (nom) + lehrt + mich (acc) + meine erste Fremdsprache (acc). (She鈥檚 teaching me my first foreign language).

NERD ALERT: Remember that the same present tense in German is used where in English we have three options, e.g. I ask, I am asking, I do ask. Furthermore, the present tense can be used in German even to refer to the future. These points account for the nuances in the English translations where you see the German versions unchanged.

Accusative Adjectives

We鈥檝e talked about defaulting to using the accusative next, after the nominative 鈥榮lot鈥� is filled. For example, with a transitive verb that requires an object: we default to putting that object into the accusative (not the dative).

We鈥檝e seen even how certain prepositions are always paired with the accusative — if we see one of those prepositions, we can know that an object in the accusative case is coming!

Similarly, there are certain adjectives (words that describe nouns) that get paired with the accusative case.

BUT, this is a special exception because accusative adjectives are rare.

Most adjectives get paired with the dative case, so it makes sense to memorize these few accusative adjectives and then default the rest to the dative!

etwas/jemanden los sein/werden (to be/get rid of something/someone)

Endlich bin ich ihn los! (I鈥檓 finally rid of him!)

Erst gestern wurde ich die Kopfschmerzen los (I got rid of my headache just yesterday).

etwas/jemanden satt sein/haben (to be sick of something/someone)

Ich habe dich aber wirklich satt! (I am so sick of you!)

Ich bin dein ewiges N枚rgelei echt satt! (I am so sick of your endless nagging!)

etwas wert sein (to be worth something)

Das ist deine Zeit gar nicht wert. (It鈥檚 not at all worth your time.)

Das Konzert ist den Eintrittspreis leider nicht wert. (The concert is unfortunately not worth the cost of admission).

NERD ALERT: I鈥檓 intentionally leaving out accusative adjectives used only in formal registers (e.g. high art literature, legal jargon, etc.). Note, too, that etwas wert sein is actually a genitive adjective (but we see this only in formal registers; common, spoken German uses the accusative as listed here).

Main Takeaways

1. English sometimes uses what is technically the accusative case; but most of the time, the line between accusative & dative is non-existent. In German, however, the accusative and dative are always very distinct cases with different declensions on their determiners & adjectives (and sometimes even nouns).
2. There are 鈥榮trong鈥� and 鈥榳eak鈥� declensions on the modifiers [determiners & adjectives] of singular nouns (masculine, feminine, neuter) and of plural nouns.
   
   There is even one instance (neuter accusative) in which any ein-word determiner takes no declension (and then any subsequent adjectives [optional!] take the strong declension.
3. The accusative case is used to mark accusative objects (vs. dative or genitive objects).
   1. There is a simple German sentencing-building principle to keep in mind: after you鈥檝e named your subject (nominative case) and paired a verb with it, the next 鈥榮lot鈥� to fill in defaults to being in the accusative case. There is a relatively short list of exceptions to memorize!
   2. IF a noun is preceded by a preposition, you need to know whether it鈥檚 an accusative, dative, or two-way preposition. An accusative preposition (durch, f眉r, gegen, ohne, um) will always take a noun put in the accusative case after it.
4. The accusative case is also used to talk about movement. Two-way prepositions (an, auf, hinter, in, neben, 眉产别谤, unter, vor, zwischen, entlang) put in the accusative case are used to denote movement from A to B, a concept that doesn鈥檛 exist in English. [Contrast this with using the two-way prepositions put in the dative case to talk about location.]
5. We use the accusative case also to talk about time, measurement, and value.
6. There are set greetings, wishes, and idiomatic expressions (a.k.a. collocations or prepositional phrases as verbal complements) that are all in the accusative case.

Study Tips

1. [Nominative case set aside,] Memorize verbs that are paired with dative & genitive objects; everything else (and this is the much longer list) defaults to being put into the accusative case.
2. Memorize the handful of accusative adjectives (and default the rest to the dative case)
3. Memorize all prepositions according to their groups: accusative, dative, or two-way.
4. After all that memorization, practice your new knowledge by writing simple sentences!
5. Imagine yourself in different scenarios in which you鈥檇 use the various greetings and wishes. The vivid visualization (or, you can even role play & act out scenarios) is a powerful tool for helping you remember the German phrases!