German Dative Prepositions: Listening Practice

Ten German prepositions always take the dative, and this lesson teaches them with a short story. Before the explanation you get a listening challenge: listen to a story, and write down every preposition that only uses the dative. The lesson is in German only (the task is explained in English), so it is great listening practice for the end of A2.

The Challenge

You need a piece of paper and a pen. In the video you hear a short story of about ten sentences, and it contains all of the prepositions that only use the dative case. Your task is to write down as many of them as you can find. Then the video explains them one by one. If you do not want to do the challenge, you can skip ahead to the explanation.

The Story

Here is the story from the video:

Das ist Anna. Sie kommt ursprünglich aus der Schweiz, aber seit einem Jahr lebt sie in München. Sie hat dort einen guten Job bei einem Autohersteller gefunden. Hier telefoniert sie mit einem Arbeitskollegen. Er heißt Jonas. Außer ihm kennt sie in München niemanden. Die beiden möchten ab nächstem Montag zusammen Sport machen. Zum Glück gibt es gegenüber ihrem Büro ein Fitnessstudio. Vom Büro zum Fitnessstudio sind es nur 10 Meter. Deshalb gehen Anna und Jonas fast jeden Tag nach der Arbeit trainieren.

The 10 Dative Prepositions

Notes on the Examples

• seit: Jahr is neuter, and ein Jahr looks the same in the nominative and the accusative, but seit always uses the dative: seit einem Jahr.
• bei and mit: Autohersteller and Arbeitskollege are masculine, so the dative is bei einem Autohersteller and mit einem Arbeitskollegen.
• außer: Jonas is a man, so the personal pronoun is er, and in the dative it becomes ihm: außer ihm.
• ab: Montag is masculine, and here there is no article, so the adjective shows the dative ending -em: ab nächstem Montag. This is the zero article, see German Adjective Endings in the Dative Case.
• gegenüber: das Büro becomes gegenüber ihrem Büro.
• von and zu: von dem Büro becomes vom Büro, and zu dem Fitnessstudio becomes zum Fitnessstudio.
• nach: die Arbeit is feminine: nach der Arbeit.

Tip: When in Doubt, Use the Dative

In certain, very rare situations, some of the prepositions on this list can use other cases. But do not worry: the video recommends that you just use the dative. With these prepositions, the dative is always correct.

What to Learn Next

For a longer explanation of each preposition, see Master German Prepositions: Top 10 Dative Prepositions. Then learn the other group in German Accusative Prepositions: Listening Practice, and the mixed group in ALL German A1 Level Prepositions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which prepositions always take the dative?

The video teaches ten: aus, seit, bei, mit, außer, ab, gegenüber, von, zu and nach.

What does ab nächstem Montag mean?

From next Monday. Ab takes the dative, and without an article the adjective ends in -em in the masculine: ab nächstem Montag.

What is vom and zum?

Vom is von dem and zum is zu dem. Both are used with masculine and neuter nouns: vom Büro zum Fitnessstudio.

Can these prepositions ever take another case?

In very rare situations, yes. But the video advises you to always use the dative with them, because it is always correct.

How can I practise these prepositions?

Listen to the story and write down every preposition you hear. Then check your list against the ten prepositions in the table.

Want to practise prepositions until they feel natural? Our A2 German course has clear lessons and exercises for this.