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New
Year 9

At school: word order in sentences with two objects

Learning outcomes

I can correctly apply word order rules when there are two object nouns in a sentence.

I can correctly pronounce final [d] and final [b].

New
New
Year 9

At school: word order in sentences with two objects

Learning outcomes

I can correctly apply word order rules when there are two object nouns in a sentence.

I can correctly pronounce final [d] and final [b].

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. Final [d] (a [d] at the end of a word) sounds like [t]. Final [b] (a [b] at the end of a word) sounds like [p].
  2. Pronouns replace nouns. Their form changes depending on whether the noun is the subject or object in the sentence.
  3. Direct objects are directly affected by the action of the verb and are in the accusative, e.g., 'Ich sehe den Mann'.
  4. Indirect objects are indirectly affected by the action of the verb and are in the dative case, e.g., 'Ich antworte dir'.
  5. When two object nouns are in a sentence, the indirect object (in dative) precedes the direct object (in accusative).

Keywords

  • Final [d] - pronounced as in 'und', the same sound as [t]

  • Final [b] - pronounced as in 'halb', the same sound as [p]

  • Pronoun - word that takes the place of a noun, like 'it', 'you', 'she'

  • Direct object - a noun in the accusative case, directly affected by the action of the verb

  • Indirect object - a noun in the dative case, indirectly affected by the action of the verb

Common misconception

When two object nouns are in a sentence, the word order is the same as English: direct object - indirect object.

When two object nouns are in a sentence, the indirect object (in dative) precedes the direct object (in accusative). This is different from English.


To help you plan your year 9 German lesson on: At school: word order in sentences with two objects, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

When practising word order with two object nouns, encourage students to translate their sentences into English so that the differences in word order between languages is clear.
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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which pairs of sound-symbol correspondences (SSCs) sound the same as each other?

Correct answer: final [d], [t]
[s], [z]
[o], [ö]
Correct answer: final [b], [p]
Correct answer: [eu], [äu]

Q2.
What does a subject pronoun replace in a sentence?

the noun that is directly affected by the action of the verb in the sentence
Correct answer: the noun that is doing the action of the verb in the sentence
the noun that is indirectly affected by the action of the verb in the sentence

Q3.
Match the subject pronouns and their German meanings.

Correct Answer:I,ich

ich

Correct Answer:you (singular),du

du

Correct Answer:she,sie

sie

Correct Answer:he,er

er

Correct Answer:we,wir

wir

Correct Answer:you (plural),ihr

ihr

Q4.
Match the German and the English.

Correct Answer:Kunst (f),art

art

Correct Answer:gewinnen,to win, winning

to win, winning

Correct Answer:Form (f),shape

shape

Correct Answer:Noten (fpl),grades, marks

grades, marks

Correct Answer:Nachricht (f),message

message

Correct Answer:gewonnen,won

won

Q5.
Order the words to form a sentence.

1 - er
2 - isst
3 - den
4 - Apfel

Q6.
Translate into German: 'He is learning German.'

Correct Answer: Er lernt Deutsch

Assessment exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
In which words does [d] sound like [t]?

Correct answer: Geld (nt)
denken
Correct answer: und
Strände (mpl)
windig

Q2.
In which words does [b] sound like [p]?

beginnen
Beispiel (nt)
Fieber (m)
Correct answer: halb
Correct answer: gelb

Q3.
What is the direct object in the following sentence? 'Ich bringe dem Mann das Buch.'

ich
bringe
dem Mann
Correct answer: das Buch

Q4.
What is the indirect object in the following sentence? 'Du gibst der Frau die Blumen.'

du
gibst
Correct answer: der Frau
die Blumen

Q5.
Order the words to form a sentence.

1 - wir
2 - kaufen
3 - dir
4 - ein
5 - Handy

Q6.
Translate into German: 'I give the ball to the dog.'

Correct Answer: Ich gebe dem Hund den Ball

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