Genitive Prepositions: trotz, während, wegen, statt
Genitive Prepositions: trotz, während, wegen, statt
A small group of prepositions takes the genitive case instead of dative or accusative — a formal, written-register standard, though everyday spoken German is increasingly loosening this rule.
Grammar Comparison
व्याकरण तुलना
trotz, während, wegen, statt all take the genitive — like Hindi's के बावजूद/के कारण/के दौरान/के बजाय
trotz des Regens; wegen der Arbeit; während des Urlaubs; statt eines Autos
बारिश के बावजूद; काम के कारण; छुट्टी के दौरान; एक गाड़ी के बजाय
Where Hindi just adds a postposition ('काम के कारण'), German marks the noun itself with a genitive ending: the article changes (der/das → des, die → der) and masculine/neuter nouns usually add -s or -es (der Regen → des Regens). Hindi's postpositions 'के बावजूद', 'के कारण', 'के दौरान', 'के बजाय' already map directly onto the meanings of these four German prepositions — just remember that in German this information sits on the case ending rather than the postposition.
Spoken German increasingly uses the dative instead
trotz dem Regen (colloquial) vs. trotz des Regens (standard)
बारिश के बावजूद
In everyday speech, trotz, wegen, and während are often heard with the dative case instead of the genitive, especially with pronouns or when the genitive form feels clunky. This is well established in speech but still considered non-standard in careful writing — for formal writing, exams, and this course, stick with the genitive, but don't be surprised to hear native speakers use the dative in conversation.
während also has a second life as a subordinating conjunction meaning 'while'
während des Urlaubs (preposition: during the vacation) vs. Während ich arbeite, hört sie Musik. (conjunction: while I work, she listens to music)
छुट्टी के दौरान बनाम जब मैं काम करता हूँ, वह संगीत सुनती है।
As a preposition, während takes a genitive noun phrase and means 'during'. As a subordinating conjunction, während opens a full verb-final clause and means 'while/whereas' (simultaneity), completely outside the genitive rule. Context easily distinguishes the two uses — a noun phrase after während signals the preposition, a full clause with its own verb signals the conjunction.
Vocabulary
शब्दावली
| German | Pronunciation | Hindi | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| trotz | trots | के बावजूदke bāvjūd | despite/in spite of |
| wegen | VAY-gen | के कारणke kāraṇ | because of |
| während | VAIR-ent | के दौरानke daurān | during |
| statt | shtaht | के बजायke bajāy | instead of |
| anstatt | ahn-SHTAHT | के बजाय (पूरा रूप)ke bajāy (pūrā rūp) | instead of (fuller form) |
| trotz des Regens | trots des RAY-gens | बारिश के बावजूदbāriś ke bāvjūd | despite the rain |
| wegen der Arbeit | VAY-gen dair AHR-byt | काम के कारणkām ke kāraṇ | because of the work |
| statt eines Autos | shtaht Y-nes OW-tohs | एक गाड़ी के बजायek gāṛī ke bajāy | instead of a car |
| außerhalb | OW-ser-hahlp | के बाहरke bāhar | outside of |
| innerhalb | IN-er-hahlp | के अंदरke andar | within/inside of |
| aufgrund | owf-GROONT | के आधार परke ādhār par | due to/on the basis of |