German grammar

German Separable Verbs

Many German verbs have prefixes that separate in main clauses.

Examples

Lara fängt heute an.

Lara starts today.

an moves to the end.

Wir hören jetzt auf.

We stop now.

auf separates from hören.

Ich mache die Tür auf.

I open the door.

auf carries part of the meaning.

Common mistake

Keeping the prefix beside the verb in a main clause hides the split.