Prepositions with Fixed Cases
तयशुदा कारक वाले Prepositions
Hindi postpositions (के लिए, से, के बिना) put the preceding noun/pronoun into the oblique form (मेरे लिए, not मैं के लिए) — German prepositions demand a fixed case from their object in exactly the same spirit.
Grammar Comparison
व्याकरण तुलना
Accusative prepositions: always trigger accusative — the same feel as a postposition
für dich, ohne mich, durch den Park (for you, without me, through the park)
तुम्हारे लिए, मेरे बिना, पार्क के आर-पार
durch, für, gegen, ohne, um always take the accusative case on their object, no matter what — the acronym 'FUDGO' (für, um, durch, gegen, ohne) is a common memory aid. Hindi postpositions do the same kind of thing, shifting the noun/pronoun into a fixed (oblique) form (मैं → मेरे before के लिए) — the difference is that in German, this shows up on every noun/pronoun, always as the accusative case, with these five words specifically.
Dative prepositions: always trigger dative
mit dir, von mir, nach der Schule, seit einem Jahr (with you, from me, after school, for a year)
तुम्हारे साथ, मुझसे, स्कूल के बाद, एक साल से
aus, bei, mit, nach, seit, von, zu always take the dative case. Some learners try to guess by meaning (as if physical 'through'-motion were accusative and static 'at'-location were dative), but German sorts these by a memorized list, not by meaning — seit meaning 'since/for (duration)' often trips people up, since Hindi's से is used in many places, but in German it's always dative.
Common contractions of preposition + article
zum (zu + dem), zur (zu + der), beim (bei + dem), vom (von + dem)
की तरफ़, की तरफ़, के पास, से
When a dative preposition combines with the dative article dem or der, everyday speech contracts them into one word: zum, zur, beim, vom, im (in + dem), am (an + dem). Hindi has no direct equivalent — the postposition always stays separate. These contractions are so common that the uncontracted form (zu dem) can sound oddly formal or emphatic.
Vocabulary
शब्दावली
| German | Pronunciation | Hindi | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| durch | doorkh | के आर-पार सेke ār-pār se | through |
| für | fuer | के लिएke lie | for |
| gegen | GAY-gen | के खिलाफ़ke khilāf | against |
| ohne | OH-neh | के बिनाke binā | without |
| um | oom | के आसपास / बजेke āspās / baje | around / at (time) |
| aus | ows | से / में सेse / meñ se | from / out of |
| bei | by | के पास (किसी की जगह)ke pās | at / near (someone's place) |
| mit | mit | के साथke sāth | with |
| nach | nahkh | के बाद / की ओरke bād / kī or | after / to (a place) |
| seit | zyt | से / के लिए (समय)se / ke lie | since / for (time) |
| von | fon | से / काse / kā | from / of |
| zu | tsoo | की ओर / कोkī or / ko | to |
| zum / zur | tsoom / tsoor | की ओर (zu dem / zu der का संक्षिप्त रूप)kī or | to the (contractions of zu dem / zu der) |
| beim | bym | के पास (bei dem का संक्षिप्त रूप)ke pās | at the (contraction of bei dem) |