{"id":371,"date":"2026-11-03T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-11-03T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siplingo.com\/blog\/?p=371"},"modified":"2026-10-31T09:09:31","modified_gmt":"2026-10-31T09:09:31","slug":"da-compounds-german","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siplingo.com\/blog\/da-compounds-german\/","title":{"rendered":"Da Compounds in German (Pronominaladverbien): darauf, damit, daf\u00fcr"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The da compounds German speakers use all the time are words like <em>daf\u00fcr, damit, davon<\/em> and <em>darauf<\/em>: <em>da<\/em> + a preposition, used instead of &#8220;preposition + it\/that&#8221; when you mean a thing or an idea. Before a vowel you add -r-: <em>darauf, daran, dar\u00fcber<\/em>. Grammars call them <em>Pronominaladverbien<\/em>. For people, use preposition + pronoun: <em>auf ihn<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So <em>Ich warte darauf<\/em> means &#8220;I&#8217;m waiting for it&#8221;, and <em>Ich warte auf ihn<\/em> means &#8220;I&#8217;m waiting for him&#8221;. Learners who skip da-compounds say <em>Ich warte auf es<\/em>, which sounds wrong to native speakers.<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to build a da-compound: da- or dar-?<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The rule depends only on the first letter of the preposition.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Preposition starts with<\/th><th>Form<\/th><th>Compounds<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>a consonant<\/td><td>da + preposition<\/td><td><em>dabei, dadurch, daf\u00fcr, dagegen, dahinter, damit, danach, daneben, davon, davor, dazu, dazwischen<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>a vowel<\/td><td>dar + preposition<\/td><td><em>daran, darauf, daraus, darin, dar\u00fcber, darum, darunter<\/em><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That gives the 19 everyday compounds, one for each of these prepositions: <em>an, auf, aus, bei, durch, f\u00fcr, gegen, hinter, in, mit, nach, neben, \u00fcber, um, unter, von, vor, zu, zwischen<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Some prepositions have no da-compound: <em>ohne, seit, au\u00dfer, gegen\u00fcber, bis, ab, wegen, trotz, statt<\/em>. You say <em>ohne das<\/em> or rephrase. Words like <em>seitdem, au\u00dferdem, trotzdem<\/em> and <em>deswegen<\/em> do exist, but they are separate words with their own meanings (since then, besides, nevertheless, that&#8217;s why), not &#8220;preposition + it&#8221;.<\/p>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The spoken short forms<\/h3>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In everyday speech the <em>da-<\/em> shrinks to <em>dr-<\/em>: <em>drauf, dran, drin, dr\u00fcber, drunter, draus, drum<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><em>Ich hab nicht dran gedacht.<\/em> (I didn&#8217;t think of it.)<\/li>\n\n<li><em>Da ist nichts drin.<\/em> (There&#8217;s nothing in it.)<\/li>\n\n<li><em>Lass uns morgen dr\u00fcber reden.<\/em> (Let&#8217;s talk about it tomorrow.)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Understand these, but write the full form in exams and emails.<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Things or people: darauf or auf ihn?<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is the core rule of da compounds German learners need: <strong>da-compounds replace things, ideas and whole situations. For people, keep the preposition and use a pronoun.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>With a noun<\/th><th>Thing \u2192 da-compound<\/th><th>Person \u2192 preposition + pronoun<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><em>Ich warte auf den Bus \/ meinen Bruder.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Ich warte darauf.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Ich warte auf ihn.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Ich denke an die Pr\u00fcfung \/ meine Mutter.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Ich denke daran.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Ich denke an sie.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Sie spricht \u00fcber das Projekt \/ ihren Chef.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Sie spricht dar\u00fcber.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Sie spricht \u00fcber ihn.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Ich habe Angst vor der Spritze \/ dem Arzt.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Ich habe Angst davor.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Ich habe Angst vor ihm.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Er k\u00fcmmert sich um die Rechnung \/ die Patientin.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Er k\u00fcmmert sich darum.<\/em><\/td><td><em>Er k\u00fcmmert sich um sie.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The pronoun form follows the case of the preposition (<em>auf ihn<\/em> accusative, <em>vor ihm<\/em> dative). If you need a refresher on <em>ihn\/ihm<\/em>, see <a href=\"\/blog\/german-personal-pronouns\/\">German personal pronouns<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For pets, Germans usually use the pronoun like for a person: <em>Ich k\u00fcmmere mich um ihn<\/em> (the dog).<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Da-compounds also work for a physical place: <em>Der Stuhl ist frei, du kannst deine Tasche darauf legen.<\/em> (The chair is free, you can put your bag on it.)<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Asking questions: wo-compounds (Worauf? Womit?)<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Questions about things follow the same pattern, with <em>wo-<\/em> instead of <em>da-<\/em>, and <em>wor-<\/em> before a vowel.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>da-compound<\/th><th>wo-compound<\/th><th>Example question<\/th><th>Answer<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>daf\u00fcr<\/td><td>wof\u00fcr<\/td><td><em>Wof\u00fcr interessierst du dich?<\/em><\/td><td><em>F\u00fcr Musik.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>damit<\/td><td>womit<\/td><td><em>Womit f\u00e4hrst du zur Arbeit?<\/em><\/td><td><em>Mit dem Fahrrad.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>davon<\/td><td>wovon<\/td><td><em>Wovon tr\u00e4umst du?<\/em><\/td><td><em>Von einem Haus am See.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>dazu<\/td><td>wozu<\/td><td><em>Wozu brauchst du das?<\/em><\/td><td><em>F\u00fcr meine Bewerbung.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>darauf<\/td><td>worauf<\/td><td><em>Worauf wartest du?<\/em><\/td><td><em>Auf den Bus.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>daran<\/td><td>woran<\/td><td><em>Woran denkst du?<\/em><\/td><td><em>An meinen Urlaub.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>dar\u00fcber<\/td><td>wor\u00fcber<\/td><td><em>Wor\u00fcber sprecht ihr?<\/em><\/td><td><em>\u00dcber die Schichtplanung.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>darum<\/td><td>worum<\/td><td><em>Worum geht es?<\/em><\/td><td><em>Um den neuen Vertrag.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a person, use preposition + <em>wen<\/em> or <em>wem<\/em>: <em>Auf wen wartest du?<\/em> (accusative), <em>Mit wem sprichst du?<\/em> (dative). More on question words in <a href=\"\/blog\/german-question-words-w-fragen\/\">German W-Fragen<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In casual speech you will hear <em>Auf was wartest du?<\/em> or <em>Mit was f\u00e4hrst du?<\/em>. It is common, but in an exam or a formal email use <em>Worauf? Womit?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wo-compounds also start relative clauses about things: <em>Das ist etwas, wor\u00fcber ich nachdenken muss.<\/em> That use is covered in <a href=\"\/blog\/german-relative-clauses\/\">German relative clauses<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Da-compounds as placeholders for a whole clause<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A da-compound often points forward to a <em>dass<\/em>-clause or an infinitive with <em>zu<\/em>. The compound stands in the main clause; the content follows after the comma.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Example<\/th><th>Translation<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><em>Ich freue mich darauf, dass du kommst.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;m looking forward to you coming.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Ich freue mich darauf, dich zu sehen.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;m looking forward to seeing you.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Es h\u00e4ngt davon ab, ob wir Zeit haben.<\/em><\/td><td>It depends on whether we have time.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Es geht darum, dass alle p\u00fcnktlich sind.<\/em><\/td><td>The point is that everyone is on time.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Ich bin daf\u00fcr, dass wir fr\u00fcher anfangen.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;m in favour of starting earlier.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Denk daran, die T\u00fcr abzuschlie\u00dfen.<\/em><\/td><td>Remember to lock the door.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Ich habe mich daran gew\u00f6hnt, fr\u00fch aufzustehen.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;ve got used to getting up early.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Sie hat sich dar\u00fcber beschwert, dass das Essen kalt war.<\/em><\/td><td>She complained that the food was cold.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Er hat mich davon \u00fcberzeugt, den Kurs zu machen.<\/em><\/td><td>He convinced me to take the course.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><em>Das Problem besteht darin, dass wir zu wenig Personal haben.<\/em><\/td><td>The problem is that we are short-staffed.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Is the da-compound required? With some verbs, yes: <em>Es h\u00e4ngt davon ab, ob &#8230;<\/em> and <em>Es geht darum, dass &#8230;<\/em> do not work without it. With others it is often left out (<em>Ich erinnere mich, dass &#8230;<\/em>). Be careful with <em>sich freuen<\/em>: <em>Ich freue mich darauf, dich zu sehen<\/em> means you are looking forward to it, while <em>Ich freue mich, dich zu sehen<\/em> means you are happy to see someone now.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Which preposition goes into the compound is decided by the verb (<em>sich freuen auf \u2192 darauf<\/em>, <em>abh\u00e4ngen von \u2192 davon<\/em>). That is why the verb list matters: see <a href=\"\/blog\/german-verbs-with-prepositions\/\">German verbs with prepositions<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">damit: &#8220;with it&#8221; or &#8220;so that&#8221;?<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Damit<\/em> has two jobs, and word order tells them apart.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Type<\/th><th>Meaning<\/th><th>Example<\/th><th>Verb position<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>da-compound<\/td><td>with it \/ with that<\/td><td><em>Was machst du damit?<\/em><\/td><td>normal (verb second)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>da-compound<\/td><td>with it \/ with that<\/td><td><em>Damit bin ich einverstanden.<\/em><\/td><td>verb second<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>conjunction<\/td><td>so that<\/td><td><em>Ich spreche langsam, damit du mich verstehst.<\/em><\/td><td>verb at the end<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>conjunction<\/td><td>so that<\/td><td><em>Sie schreibt alles auf, damit sie nichts vergisst.<\/em><\/td><td>verb at the end<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Quick test: if you can replace it with <em>mit + das<\/em>, it is the da-compound. If it means &#8220;so that&#8221; and starts a clause after a comma, it is the conjunction and the verb goes to the end. When to choose <em>damit<\/em> or <em>um &#8230; zu<\/em> for purpose is explained in <a href=\"\/blog\/um-zu-vs-damit\/\">um zu vs damit<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Other da-compounds with a second meaning<\/h3>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Word<\/th><th>As &#8220;preposition + it&#8221;<\/th><th>Other common meaning<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>daf\u00fcr<\/td><td>for it<\/td><td>in return, on the other hand: <em>Die Wohnung ist klein, daf\u00fcr ist sie billig.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>darum<\/td><td>about it \/ around it<\/td><td>that&#8217;s why: <em>Darum bin ich zu sp\u00e4t.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>dabei<\/td><td>with it \/ at it<\/td><td>on you, with you: <em>Hast du deinen Ausweis dabei?<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>danach<\/td><td>for it \/ about it<\/td><td>afterwards: <em>Danach gehen wir essen.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>dagegen<\/td><td>against it<\/td><td>by contrast: <em>Er ist ruhig, sie dagegen redet viel.<\/em><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">20 common da-compounds with their typical verbs<\/h2>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>#<\/th><th>Compound<\/th><th>Typical verb<\/th><th>Example<\/th><th>Translation<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>1<\/td><td>darauf<\/td><td>warten auf<\/td><td><em>Ich warte schon lange darauf.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;ve been waiting for it for a long time.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>2<\/td><td>daran<\/td><td>denken an<\/td><td><em>Denk bitte daran!<\/em><\/td><td>Please remember (it)!<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>3<\/td><td>dar\u00fcber<\/td><td>sprechen \u00fcber<\/td><td><em>Lass uns morgen dar\u00fcber sprechen.<\/em><\/td><td>Let&#8217;s talk about it tomorrow.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>4<\/td><td>davon<\/td><td>tr\u00e4umen von<\/td><td><em>Ich tr\u00e4ume davon, in Wien zu leben.<\/em><\/td><td>I dream of living in Vienna.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>5<\/td><td>daf\u00fcr<\/td><td>sich interessieren f\u00fcr<\/td><td><em>Interessierst du dich daf\u00fcr?<\/em><\/td><td>Are you interested in it?<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>6<\/td><td>damit<\/td><td>anfangen mit<\/td><td><em>Wann fangen wir damit an?<\/em><\/td><td>When do we start (on it)?<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>7<\/td><td>dazu<\/td><td>passen zu<\/td><td><em>Der Wein passt gut dazu.<\/em><\/td><td>The wine goes well with it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>8<\/td><td>darum<\/td><td>sich k\u00fcmmern um<\/td><td><em>Ich k\u00fcmmere mich darum.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;ll take care of it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>9<\/td><td>davor<\/td><td>Angst haben vor<\/td><td><em>Ich habe keine Angst davor.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;m not afraid of it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>10<\/td><td>danach<\/td><td>fragen nach<\/td><td><em>Die \u00c4rztin hat danach gefragt.<\/em><\/td><td>The doctor asked about it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>11<\/td><td>dagegen<\/td><td>sein gegen<\/td><td><em>Ich bin dagegen.<\/em><\/td><td>I&#8217;m against it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>12<\/td><td>dabei<\/td><td>helfen bei<\/td><td><em>Kannst du mir dabei helfen?<\/em><\/td><td>Can you help me with it?<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>13<\/td><td>dadurch<\/td><td>(cause or means)<\/td><td><em>Dadurch hat sich die Lage verbessert.<\/em><\/td><td>That improved the situation.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>14<\/td><td>daraus<\/td><td>lernen aus<\/td><td><em>Daraus habe ich viel gelernt.<\/em><\/td><td>I learned a lot from it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>15<\/td><td>darin<\/td><td>bestehen in<\/td><td><em>Der Vorteil besteht darin, dass es schnell geht.<\/em><\/td><td>The advantage is that it&#8217;s quick.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>16<\/td><td>darunter<\/td><td>leiden unter<\/td><td><em>Sie leidet sehr darunter.<\/em><\/td><td>She suffers a lot from it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>17<\/td><td>dahinter<\/td><td>stecken hinter<\/td><td><em>Was steckt dahinter?<\/em><\/td><td>What&#8217;s behind it?<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>18<\/td><td>daneben<\/td><td>(place)<\/td><td><em>Die Apotheke ist gleich daneben.<\/em><\/td><td>The pharmacy is right next to it.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>19<\/td><td>dazwischen<\/td><td>(place or time)<\/td><td><em>Dazwischen liegen zwei Wochen.<\/em><\/td><td>There are two weeks in between.<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>20<\/td><td>dran (spoken)<\/td><td>denken an<\/td><td><em>Ich hab nicht dran gedacht.<\/em><\/td><td>I didn&#8217;t think of it.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Learning German with real conversations makes these words automatic, because they appear in almost every reply: <em>Ich k\u00fcmmere mich darum. Ich bin daf\u00fcr.<\/em> In SipLingo you answer questions like <em>Worauf freust du dich?<\/em> out loud, and if you say <em>Ich freue mich auf es<\/em>, you get the corrected sentence and a short explanation in your own language. <a href=\"https:\/\/siplingo.com\/download?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=post&amp;utm_campaign=da-compounds-german&amp;utm_content=inline\">Practise da-compounds in conversation<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"siplingo-store-badges\" style=\"display:flex;flex-wrap:wrap;justify-content:center;align-items:center;gap:12px;margin:24px 0;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/apps.apple.com\/app\/id6783970183\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/siplingo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/app_store.png\" alt=\"Download SipLingo on the App Store\" style=\"height:52px;width:auto;\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/apps\/details?id=ch.zgdevelopment.siplingo&amp;referrer=utm_source%3Dblog%26utm_medium%3Dpost%26utm_campaign%3Dda-compounds-german%26utm_content%3Dbadge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/siplingo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/play_store.png\" alt=\"Get SipLingo on Google Play\" style=\"height:52px;width:auto;\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Common mistakes<\/h2>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><thead><tr><th>Mistake<\/th><th>Correct<\/th><th>Why<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td>~~Ich warte auf es.~~<\/td><td><em>Ich warte darauf.<\/em><\/td><td>Preposition + <em>es<\/em> is replaced by a da-compound<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>~~Ich warte darauf.~~ (meaning your brother)<\/td><td><em>Ich warte auf ihn.<\/em><\/td><td>People take preposition + pronoun<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>~~Ich freue mich auf das, dass du kommst.~~<\/td><td><em>Ich freue mich darauf, dass du kommst.<\/em><\/td><td>The placeholder is a da-compound<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>~~daauf, da\u00fcber~~<\/td><td><em>darauf, dar\u00fcber<\/em><\/td><td>dar- before a vowel<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>~~F\u00fcr was interessierst du dich?~~ (in an exam)<\/td><td><em>Wof\u00fcr interessierst du dich?<\/em><\/td><td>Standard question form<\/td><\/tr><tr><td>~~Wof\u00fcr wartest du?~~<\/td><td><em>Worauf wartest du?<\/em><\/td><td>The preposition comes from the verb: <em>warten auf<\/em><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>~~&#8230;, damit ich bestehe die Pr\u00fcfung.~~<\/td><td><em>&#8230;, damit ich die Pr\u00fcfung bestehe.<\/em><\/td><td>Conjunction <em>damit<\/em>: verb at the end<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Exercise: da-compound, wo-compound or pronoun?<\/h2>\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Wartest du auf den Bus? \u2013 Ja, ich warte ___.<\/li>\n\n<li>Wartest du auf Anna? \u2013 Ja, ich warte ___.<\/li>\n\n<li>___ denkst du? \u2013 An meinen Urlaub.<\/li>\n\n<li>___ sprichst du? \u2013 Mit meiner Chefin.<\/li>\n\n<li>Ich freue mich ___, dass du kommst.<\/li>\n\n<li>Hast du Angst vor der Pr\u00fcfung? \u2013 Nein, ich habe keine Angst ___.<\/li>\n\n<li>Es h\u00e4ngt ___ ab, ob es morgen regnet.<\/li>\n\n<li>___ interessierst du dich? \u2013 F\u00fcr Fotografie.<\/li>\n\n<li>Ich erkl\u00e4re es langsam, ___ du es verstehst.<\/li>\n\n<li>K\u00fcmmerst du dich um die Rechnung? \u2013 Ja, ich k\u00fcmmere mich ___.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Answers:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>darauf<\/li>\n\n<li>auf sie<\/li>\n\n<li>Woran<\/li>\n\n<li>Mit wem<\/li>\n\n<li>darauf<\/li>\n\n<li>davor<\/li>\n\n<li>davon<\/li>\n\n<li>Wof\u00fcr<\/li>\n\n<li>damit (conjunction, verb at the end)<\/li>\n\n<li>darum<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Official sources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the official details and the latest updates, see:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.duden.de\/sprachwissen\/fuer-lernende\/wortarten-pr%C3%A4positionen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Duden: Duden for learners: prepositions and case<\/a> \u2013 Which prepositions take Akkusativ or Dativ; Wo? vs Wohin?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Frequently asked questions<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>What are da-compounds in German (Was sind Pronominaladverbien)?<\/strong><br\/>\nThey are <em>da<\/em> + a preposition, such as <em>daf\u00fcr, damit, davon<\/em>, with <em>dar-<\/em> before a vowel (<em>darauf, dar\u00fcber<\/em>). They replace &#8220;preposition + it\/that&#8221; for things and ideas, not for people.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>What is darauf in German?<\/strong><br\/><em>Darauf<\/em> means &#8220;on it&#8221;, &#8220;for it&#8221; or &#8220;to it&#8221;, depending on the verb: <em>Ich warte darauf<\/em> (I&#8217;m waiting for it), <em>Ich freue mich darauf<\/em> (I&#8217;m looking forward to it).<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>When do you use damit in German?<\/strong><br\/>\nUse <em>damit<\/em> as &#8220;with it&#8221; when it replaces <em>mit + das<\/em> (<em>Was machst du damit?<\/em>). Use it as &#8220;so that&#8221; to start a clause with the verb at the end (<em>&#8230;, damit du mich verstehst<\/em>).<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>What does damit mean?<\/strong><br\/>\nIt means either &#8220;with it \/ with that&#8221; (a da-compound) or &#8220;so that&#8221; (a conjunction). Word order and context tell you which one you are reading.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>How do you form wo-compounds?<\/strong><br\/>\nPut <em>wo-<\/em> before the preposition, or <em>wor-<\/em> before a vowel: <em>wof\u00fcr, womit, worauf, woran, wor\u00fcber<\/em>. Use them to ask about things; for people use <em>auf wen, mit wem<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Say &#8220;darauf&#8221; instead of &#8220;auf es&#8221; without stopping to think.<\/strong> Practise the da compounds German speakers use daily, in real spoken conversations.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/siplingo.com\/download?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=post&amp;utm_campaign=da-compounds-german&amp;utm_content=footer\">Start free \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Da-compounds are da + preposition (daf\u00fcr, damit) or dar- before a vowel (darauf). Use them for things, not people. Tables, wo-compounds, exercise.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1006,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-371","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-german-grammar"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Da Compounds in German: darauf, damit, daf\u00fcr Explained<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Da-compounds are da + preposition (daf\u00fcr, damit) or dar- before a vowel (darauf). 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