Quick Answer: German prepositions of place (in, auf, an, unter, über, vor, hinter, neben, zwischen) are “two-way” – they take accusative for movement (wohin?) and dative for location (wo?). “Ich gehe in das Haus” (into – accusative) vs “Ich bin in dem Haus” (in – dative). Remember: motion = accusative, location = dative.
Place prepositions in German: What are place prepositions? Why is the same preposition used according to different rules? How not to get confused? Let’s look closer! Where did you come from? Where do we go today? Where can I find this book? To answer these questions, you need the prepositions of place – Lokale Präpositionen.
I have prepared information on the most common place prepositions in German, such as “in,” “an,” “auf,” and others, to help you master German grammar and improve your German language skills. Understanding spatial prepositions is key to navigating German locations and describing positions accurately. The prepositions “über,” “unter,” “neben,” and “zwischen” are also essential in German.
These interrogative words are not an accidental. Prepositions of place are used in sentences and phrases that ask a question or contain an answer to questions that start with words (by the way, these interrogative words are called Fragewörter):
Wo? – Where?
Woher? – Where from?
Wohin? – Where to?
For example, one of the first questions you will encounter when you start learning German:
There can be an infinite number of questions with the word Wo:
Questions that start with Wohin also look different:
So, we got acquainted with the question words Wo, Wohin and Woher and now we can move on to the prepositions themselves.
Remember that the function of prepositions is to connect words in a sentence with each other. Prepositions of place in German can be divided into three groups by meaning:
Here is a list of prepositions to help explain where an item is located, an event occurs, your friend lives, and so on:
And here are examples of sentences where these prepositions are used:
Another preposition from the group, which is used only with living persons or as a designation of a place of work – bei. Bei translates as “at, in”. An example will make it clearer:
Understanding when to use accusative or dative case with two-way prepositions is essential. Here is a comprehensive comparison:
| Preposition | Accusative (Wohin? – Movement) | Dative (Wo? – Location) |
|---|---|---|
| in (in/into) | Ich gehe in das Haus (I go into the house) | Ich bin in dem Haus (I am in the house) |
| an (at/to) | Er hängt das Bild an die Wand (He hangs the picture on the wall) | Das Bild hängt an der Wand (The picture hangs on the wall) |
| auf (on/onto) | Sie legt das Buch auf den Tisch (She puts the book on the table) | Das Buch liegt auf dem Tisch (The book is on the table) |
| unter (under) | Die Katze kriecht unter das Bett (The cat crawls under the bed) | Die Katze schläft unter dem Bett (The cat sleeps under the bed) |
| über (over/above) | Sie hängt die Lampe über den Tisch (She hangs the lamp over the table) | Die Lampe hängt über dem Tisch (The lamp hangs over the table) |
| vor (in front of) | Er stellt das Auto vor das Haus (He parks the car in front of the house) | Das Auto steht vor dem Haus (The car is in front of the house) |
| hinter (behind) | Sie geht hinter das Gebäude (She goes behind the building) | Sie steht hinter dem Gebäude (She stands behind the building) |
| neben (next to) | Er setzt sich neben die Frau (He sits down next to the woman) | Er sitzt neben der Frau (He sits next to the woman) |
| zwischen (between) | Sie stellt die Vase zwischen die Bücher (She puts the vase between the books) | Die Vase steht zwischen den Büchern (The vase stands between the books) |
For a deeper understanding of the German dative case, check out our comprehensive guide.
Wechselpräpositionen at first glance may seem like a tricky and confusing topic. Fortunately, this an Irrtum (delusion).
Wechselpräpositionen – the same 9 prepositions that we discussed above with the Wo question, but with two differences:
The preposition will help to determine the case of the parts of speech that are used after the preposition. And the article on der, die and das will help you determine the gender of nouns and choose the desired article .
Below is a table of 8 verbs that will clear the use of place prepositions:
| Wohin + Akkusativ | Wo + Dativ |
|---|---|
| Stellen (to put) | Stehen (to stand) |
| Legen (to lay down) | Liegen (to lie down) |
| Hängen (to hang) | Hängen (to hang) |
| Setzen (to plant) | Sitzen (sit) |
Let’s look at examples of how the already familiar prepositions with the question Wohin and Akkusativ are used:
Ich fahre nach Berlin – I’m driving to Berlin
Most often the preposition nach is used in sentences that talk about moving to somewhere: to a village, city, country. But here there is also a nuance: with countries whose names are used with a definite article, the preposition in will be used. In all other cases – nach .
Zu – also used to mean “towards“. The difference from nach is that zu is not used with geographic objects.
Dativ is used after the prepositions nach and zu.
Note the difference in prepositions in the following cases.
If you (or your friend) are at home and want to report it, use the preposition zu:
Ich bin zu Hause – I’m at home
If you are going to go home and you need to tell me about it, use nach :
Ich gehe nach Hause – I’m going home
After the preposition durch, Akkusativ is used.
Akkusativ is used after the preposition um.
The two main prepositions used in sentences with the question Woher? (Where?): Aus and von .
Aus – used to denote “origin” (“from”) from any geographical point. Typically used with cities, countries, continents.
Ich komme aus Deutschland – I am from Germany
Von – also translated as “from”. A nuance of use: this preposition emphasizes the starting point of departure, the first point from which a movement or story began. This is the difference from aus.
As you can see, there is nothing difficult in the prepositions of place, the main thing is to remember the rules by which they are used, and to practice a lot of exercises from textbooks or exercises. And very soon you will be able to confidently talk about where you came from, where you want to go, and where your favorite McDonalds is located!
Ask yourself: Is there movement into a new location, or is someone/something already there? If there’s movement or direction (answering “wohin?”), use accusative: Ich gehe in das Zimmer (I go into the room). If describing a static location (answering “wo?”), use dative: Ich bin in dem Zimmer (I am in the room). This rule applies to all nine two-way prepositions. Learn more about distinguishing between cases.
German commonly contracts prepositions with articles for smoother speech. The most important contractions are: im = in dem (dative), ins = in das (accusative), am = an dem (dative), ans = an das (accusative), aufs = auf das (accusative), beim = bei dem (dative), zum = zu dem (dative), zur = zu der (dative). These contractions are standard in everyday German and should be used naturally.
Yes! Several common prepositions always require the dative case, regardless of movement: aus (from/out of), bei (at/near), mit (with), nach (to/after), seit (since), von (from), zu (to). A helpful mnemonic is “aus bei mit nach seit von zu” – these never change. Similarly, durch, für, gegen, ohne, and um always take accusative.
Nach is used for geographic destinations (cities, countries, continents) without articles: Ich fahre nach Berlin, Wir fliegen nach Japan. Zu is used for people, buildings, and specific places: Ich gehe zum Arzt (to the doctor), Sie fährt zur Schule (to school). Exception: Countries with articles use “in”: Ich reise in die Schweiz (to Switzerland).
The nine two-way prepositions (Wechselpräpositionen) can be memorized with this phrase: “An, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor, zwischen” – some learners use the mnemonic “An Auf Hinter In Neben Über Unter Vor Zwischen” or create a visual story placing objects around a box. Remember: only these nine change case based on motion vs. location. All other prepositions have a fixed case.
Continue your German grammar journey with these helpful guides:
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