Learning how German prepositions work with cases can feel overwhelming, but there are reliable methods to make the process easier. German prepositions dictate which case follows them, and for many prepositions, the case is fixed. Some always take the dative case, others the accusative, and a few require the genitive. In addition, certain prepositions, known as two-way prepositions, can take either accusative or dative depending on the context, specifically whether there is motion involved.
One of the most effective tools for learning the dative prepositions is a well-known mnemonic used in many German classes. This group of prepositions—aus, bei, mit, nach, seit, von, zu—always takes the dative case, no exceptions. Many learners memorize them as a short chant: aus, bei, mit, nach, seit, von, zu. Repeating this phrase as a little rap or rhyme helps reinforce the pattern and makes it automatic to switch to the dative case whenever one of these prepositions appears. For example, in the sentence Ich fahre mit dem Bus (“I’m traveling by bus”), the preposition mit signals that Bus needs to be in the dative case. The same happens with aus, as in Ich komme aus der Stadt (“I come from the city”), where Stadt also appears in the dative.
Accusative prepositions work in a similar way, with a small group that always triggers the accusative case. These include für, durch, gegen, ohne, um. These can also be memorized as a short sequence, which some learners turn into the acronym DOGFU 🐶🦴 to help keep them together. Just like the dative set, these accusative prepositions follow the same rule every time, so once the group is learned, there’s no need to question the case.
German also uses a set of two-way prepositions that require more attention. These are the prepositions in,auf, an, unter, hinter, über, vor, zwischen, and neben. What makes these different is that the case they take depends on whether the sentence describes movement or position. The way to decide is by using the pair of questions wo? and wohin?. If the situation is about location, the question wo? (“where?”) applies, and the preposition takes the dative case. If the situation involves movement toward a place, the question wohin? (“where to?”) applies, and the preposition takes the accusative case. For example, Ich bin in der Stadt (“I am in the city”) uses dative because the verb describes position, while Ich gehe in die Stadt** (“I am going into the city”) uses accusative because it describes movement toward a destination. This pattern works consistently with all two-way prepositions and gives a clear method to determine the correct case by analyzing the action in the sentence.