Verbs With a Dative Object
With some verbs the person is in the dative: Ech hëllefen dir. (I help you.) Dat Buch gehéiert mir. (That book belongs to me.)
How It Works
1. Verbs with a dative person
- hëllefen (help): Ech hëllefen dir. Hëllef mer!
- äntweren (answer a person): Äntwer him! To answer a question or a letter, use op: op eng Fro äntweren.
- gratuléieren (congratulate): Mir gratuléieren dir zum Gebuertsdag.
- follegen (obey, follow advice): Hie follegt senger Mamm net.
2. Verbs where the thing is the subject
With these verbs, the thing or person that is liked, owned or missed is the subject, and the verb agrees with it. The person who feels or owns is in the dative:
- gehéieren (belong to): Dat Buch gehéiert mir.
- feelen (be missing to): Du feels mer. (I miss you. Literally: you are missing to me.) Wat feelt der? (What's wrong?)
- schmaachen (taste good to): D'Zopp schmaacht mer. With a plural subject the verb is plural: D'Äppel schmaache mer.
Gefalen works the same way: Dat gefält mer.
3. Dative forms
Use the dative pronouns mir, dir, him, hir, eis, iech, hinnen, or their short forms mer and der. With nouns, use the dative article: dem Papp, der Mamm, de Kanner. See Dative Pronouns and Dative Articles.
4. Asking
Ask with wiem: Wiem hëllefs du? Wiem gehéiert dat?
Examples (6)
- Ech hëllefen dir.
I'll help you.
Hëllefen takes the dative: dir, not dech.
- Dat Buch gehéiert mir.
That book belongs to me.
- Du feels mer.
I miss you.
The person who is missed is the subject, and mer (the short form of mir) is the one who misses them.
- D'Zopp schmaacht de Kanner net.
The children don't like the soup.
De Kanner is dative plural: den loses its n before K.
- Äntwer him, wannechgelift!
Please answer him!
- Mir gratuléieren dir zum Gebuertsdag!
We wish you a happy birthday!
Literally: we congratulate you on your birthday. Zum is zu + dem.
Common Mistakes
Using the accusative after hëllefen.
Ech hëllefen dech.Ech hëllefen dir.Hëllefen takes a dative object, so the pronoun is dir.
Building I miss you as in English.
Ech feelen dech.Du feels mer.With feelen, the person who is missed is the subject and the person who misses is in the dative.
Using the accusative after gehéieren.
Dat Buch gehéiert mech.Dat Buch gehéiert mir.The owner is in the dative: mir, dir, him, hir.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Before Verbs With a Dative Object, learn Liking With Gefalen.
Related Patterns
- mir / dir / him / hir (Dative)Dative Pronouns
The pronoun forms these verbs need.
Level 2 - dem / der / den (Dative)Dative Articles
The article forms these verbs need with nouns.
Level 2 - et ass mer kalFeeling Cold or Sick: Et Ass Mer Kal
Feelings like being cold also put the person in the dative.
Level 3 - Dative Reflexives: mir / dirDative Reflexives: Mir and Dir
Reflexive verbs whose pronoun is in the dative, such as sech eppes kafen.
Level 3 - wiem säinWhose: Wiem Säin
Wiem gehéiert dat? and wiem säin both ask about an owner.
Level 3
Learn Next
Patterns that build on this one.
Words in This Pattern
Practice Verbs With a Dative Object in Bubblegum
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