Sentence anatomy: subject, verb, object
FoundationsfreeEvery sentence has roles, like a tiny play: someone acts, something happens, someone or something is affected. These roles have names — and German marks them differently from English or Portuguese. So: first the roles, then the marking.
Subject — who acts
The subject is the person or thing doing something. Question: who or what does it? “Der Hund bellt.” (The dog barks.) — Who barks? The dog.
Verb — what happens
You know the verb already. Note for German: in a normal statement the conjugated verb always stands in second position — no matter what comes first.
Object — who/what is affected
The object receives the action. There are two kinds. The direct object (accusative object) is what is directly handled: “Ich lese die Zeitung.” (I read the newspaper.) The indirect object (dative object) is the receiver or beneficiary: “Ich gebe dem Mann die Zeitung.” (I give the man the newspaper.) — the newspaper is given (direct), the man receives it (indirect).
How German marks the roles
English shows the roles through word order: “The dog bites the man” ≠ “The man bites the dog”. German shows the roles through endings and article forms — the system is called case and gets its own unit. Preview: “Den Mann beißt der Hund” still means *the dog bites the man* — because “den” marks the object, no matter where it stands.
Many gaps resolve through the role question: “Er gibt sein__ Bruder das Buch.” — To *whom* does he give it? The brother → indirect object → seinem. Ask the question, identify the role, choose the ending.
“Der Lehrer erklärt den Schülern die Aufgabe.” (The teacher explains the task to the pupils.) — What is the subject?
Where does the conjugated verb stand in a German statement?
“Ich schreibe meiner Schwester eine E-Mail.” (I write my sister an email.) — What is the direct object (what is written)?