Prepositions dictate the case of nouns in the prepositional phrase. Some always indicate one case and others two.
Mneumonic device: sing the list to the tune of Raindrops Keep Fallin' on My Head: "durch, für, gegen, ohne, um..."
| durch | through | |
| für | for | |
| gegen | against | |
| ohne | without | |
| um | around, at* |
Mneumonic device: sing the list to the tune of Blue Danube plus remember gegenüber.
| aus | out of | |||
| ausser | besides, except for | |||
| bei (beim) | next to, at | |||
| mit | with | |||
| nach | after, to, Fr. selon | Ich gehe nach Hause. (go home) Ich bin zu Hause. (at home) | ||
| seit | since, Fr. depuis | |||
| von (vom) | from, of, by (agency) | |||
| zu (zum, zur) | to, at | |||
| gegenüber | across from |
Mneumonic device: sing the list to the tune of La cucaracha.
| ab | from (time) | |
| an (am) | on (veritcally) | |
| auf | on (horizontally) | |
| hinter | behind | |
| in (im) | in | |
| neben | next to, beside | |
| über | above, over, about | |
| unter | under, among, Fr. parmi | |
| vor | before, in front of, Fr. devant | |
| zwischen | between |
| Hemut schwimmt durch den Bach mit seiner Schwester, Gudrun. | Helmut swims through the river with his sister, Gudrun. | |
| Helmut hat den Kuhli gegen die Wand genommen. | Helmut took the pen [leaning] against the wall | |
| Ohne Helmut hätte die Rockets den Spiel nicht gewonnen. | Without Helmut, the Rockets would not have won the game. | |
| Helmut ist um das Turm gereist. | Helmut travelled around the tower. | |
| Diese Parti ist für Günter. | This party is for Guenter. | |
| Ich bin ab Montag auf Erlaub. | I have been on vacation since Monday. |
| [an]statt | instead of | |
| trotz | in spite of, despite | |
| wärhend | during | |
| anhand | with the use of | |
| aufgrund | on the basis of | |
| ausserhalb | outside of | |
| bezüglich | inrelation to, regarding | |
| dank | thanks to | |
| infolge | as a result of | |
| innerhalb | inside of | |
| laut | according to | |
| ungeachtet | regardless of | |
| wegen | because of | |
| zugunsten | for the benefit of |