Prädikativglieder

Prädikativglieder are sentence constituents in German grammar that complete the meaning of a verb or a predicative noun/adjective. They are closely related to the predicate and often express a state or characteristic of the subject or object.

There are two main types of Prädikativglieder: subjective Prädikativglieder and objective Prädikativglieder. Subjective Prädikativglieder relate to the subject of the sentence and typically occur with verbs that denote a state of being, becoming, or remaining, such as sein (to be), werden (to become), and bleiben (to remain). For example, in the sentence "Sie ist glücklich" (She is happy), "glücklich" is a subjective Prädikativglied modifying the subject "Sie".

Objective Prädikativglieder relate to the direct object of the sentence. They usually occur with verbs that involve a change of state or perception concerning the object, like finden (to find), nennen (to name), or halten für (to consider as). In the sentence "Er nennt ihn einen Helden" (He calls him a hero), "einen Helden" is an objective Prädikativglied referring to the direct object "ihn".

Prädikativglieder can be nouns, adjectives, pronouns, or even prepositional phrases. They are essential for conveying complete information about the subject or object and are a fundamental part of German sentence structure. Understanding their function helps in analyzing sentence meaning and construction.