49 German Prepositions + How to Use Them Correctly

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Präpositionen (prepositions) are as important in German as they are in English. These little words are used to show how two or more different words stand in relation to each other. For this reason, prepositions are also called Verhältniswörter (relation words) in German.

A lot of German prepositions can be translated directly from English, but there are some finer details as to how and when to use each one that sometimes differs from English. You can train yourself to get a feeling for these details with Rosetta Stone’s Dynamic Immersion Method. It helps you to pick  up a new language the same way you did when you were a child as you are surrounded by your target language from the very beginning.

List of the most important German prepositions

Are you learning German and wondering “Where can prepositions go in German?” You can find out here! We’ve compiled a list of the most important German pronouns for you, split up by the different types of prepositions and with example sentences for each section. 

Note that every German preposition has one or two of four German cases (nominative, accusative, dative, genitive) associated with it. This means that the pronoun/article/noun following the preposition needs to be declinated (or have the endings change like der to des) into that case.

German Lokale Präpositionen (local prepositions)

Lokale Präpositionen are used to show the location of a stationary noun or its destination if the noun is moving or acting. They clarify the questions of wo (where) and wohin (to where).

A lot of local prepositions in German are associated with both the dative and accusative cases. If the word after the preposition is in dative form, it means that the question answered is wo (where). If the word after it is in its accusative declension, the question is wohin (to where).

• Dative: Das Essen steht auf dem Tisch. = The food is on the table. 
• Accusative: Ich stelle das Essen auf den Tisch. = I’m putting the food onto the table. 

Using nach, zu, and in

Note that both nach and zu can mean “to.” The difference between them is that nach is used for places and directions, and zu is used if it is followed by a pronoun.

• Wir fahren zu seinen Eltern. = We’re driving to his parents.
• Wir gehen zu einer Party. = We’re going to a party.  
• Die Katze schaut zu dem Vogel. = The cat is looking at the bird. 

The third example above translates to “at” instead of “to” in English. This is an example of how preposition use can vary between English and German. But knowing the rules can help you get a better feeling of when to use which word. 

Nach also indicates movements towards a place or direction, similar to the ending “-ward” in English.

• Wir fahren nach Berlin. = We’re driving to Berlin.
• Die Katze schaut nach oben. = The cat is looking upwards.
• Die Vögel fliegen nach Süden. = The birds are flying southwards.

As you can see, it doesn’t matter what kind of pronoun is used—any of the German pronouns require the use of zu instead of nach when talking about places and directions. 

However, in is used instead of nach when the destination is a place with a pronoun, such as the United States. There are some special cases with country names where English and German differ. For example the German name for “Switzerland” is die Schweiz while “the Czech republic” is Tschechien. 

• Wir fliegen in die Vereinigten Staaten. = We’re flying into the United States.
• Das Boot fährt in die Karibik. = The boat is going into the caribbean.
• Er fährt in die Alpen. = He’s driving into the alps. 

German Temporale Präpositionen (temporal prepositions)

Temporale Präpositionen answer the questions of wann (when) and wie lange (how long). They’re used for telling the time, indicating the start and end of things, and for telling events that happened alongside others. Like in English, they are among the most commonly used prepositions in the German language.

There are some notable differences between English and German temporal prepositions.

• Um is a special temporal preposition. It’s only used when naming a specific time.
  • Um 18 Uhr treffe ich meine Eltern. = At 6 p.m., I’m meeting my parents.
• Vor is the German equivalent of “ago.” You place it before the time specification in German, not after.
  • Ich habe meinen Mann vor drei Jahren getroffen. = I met my husband three years ago.
• Ab is the short and direct way to say “from…on” or “starting” in German.
  • Ab nächster Woche bin ich im Urlaub. = Starting next week I’ll be on vacation. 
  • Ab dem Zeitpunkt bin ich immer Bus gefahren. = From that moment on I always took the bus.

One major difference here is that a sentence with ab is written in present tense if it indicates an event in the future. 

German Modale Präpositionen (Modal prepositions) 

Modale Präpositionen tell you the wie (how.) They’re used to explain processes and connections. 

There are some prepositions that differ from their English counterparts in this section. 

• Aus is a short German preposition that you can use to say what something is made out of.
  • Der Tisch ist aus Holz. = The table is made from wood.
• Bei describes the way something is done or if something else is done during another activity.
  • Ich bin immer konzentriert bei der Arbeit. = I’m always concentrated while working. (Literally, I’m always concentrated by the work.)
• Nach can function as a modal preposition that’s mostly used with recipes and other protocols.
  • Ich backe diesen Kuchen nach dem Rezept meiner Großmutter. = I’m baking this cake according to my grandma’s recipe. 

German Kausale Präpositionen (causal prepositions)

Kausale Präpositionen answer the question of wieso (why). As the name implies, they’re used to explain causal relations between words. 

You can see that a lot of these prepositions combine multiple English words.

• Aufgrund and wegen both mean “because of.” They are used interchangeably with wegen being the more casual option. Aufgrund can often be heard in the news, for example.
  • Er geht wegen des Regens nicht raus. = He’s not going outside because of the rain. 
• Trotz means “despite,” but it is also the root of the word trotzdem. This word means “despite of that” when translated literally. It’s also a favorite among stubborn children as it can be used as a one-word reply to any argument.
  • Trotz des Regens geht er raus. = Despite the rain he’s going outside. 
  • Er ist trotzdem rausgegangen. = He went outside despite that./He still went outside.
  • Trotzdem. = But still. 

• Mangels combines “due to a lack of” into one word. While you can also say wegen einem Mangel an in German—which means the same thing—this is a handy preposition to know.
  • Die Pflanzen sind mangels Wasser sehr trocken. = The plants are very dry due to a lack of water. 

Accusative prepositions in the German language

The accusative case is used for the direct object of a sentence. Accusative prepositions In combination with local prepositions indicate movement. 

The German articles that often follow accusative prepositions are:

• Er stellt das Buch in den Schrank. = He’s putting the book into the bookcase.