FormHauptsatz, indem + Subjekt … Verb (Ende)
Meaning and usage
indem gives the means: how something is done. English uses by + -ing, and German has no such form, so it needs a full clause: indem, a subject, and the verb at the end. Man verbessert sein Deutsch, indem man liest (you improve your German by reading). Sie löste das Problem, indem sie den Anbieter wechselte.
The subject is usually the same in both clauses, but it must be repeated: …, indem sie …. A preposition with a verb, as in bei lesen, is not German. The shorter alternative is a noun with durch: durch Lesen, durch einen Wechsel des Anbieters. indem answers the question wie?
Examples 5
Man verbessert sein Deutsch, indem man liest.
You improve your German by reading.
Sie löste das Problem, indem sie den Anbieter wechselte.
She solved the problem by switching providers.
Kinder lernen, indem sie beobachten, was die Erwachsenen um sie herum tun.
Children learn by watching what adults around them do.
Man kann das Fleisch auftauen, indem man es über Nacht in den Kühlschrank legt.
The meat can be thawed by leaving it in the fridge overnight.
Er verriet uns, indem er dem Feind erzählte, wo wir waren.
He betrayed us by telling the enemy where we were.
Test yourself
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1 Sprachbausteine
Er hat viel Geld gespart, er mit dem Fahrrad zur Arbeit gefahren ist.
Show answer
Correct answer: indem
The second clause says how he saved: by cycling to work. The means is indem, with the verb at the end.
- damit gives a purpose, but cycling was not the goal of saving.
- obwohl gives a contrast, but cycling does not work against saving money.
- sodass gives a result, but cycling did not result from saving.
In this topic: Advanced connectors
- …, indem man liest indem: by doing something
- dadurch, dass … dadurch, dass: by, through the fact that
- …, wobei … wobei: though, or and in doing so
- …, zumal … zumal: especially as, all the more so because
- insofern …, als … insofern …, als: in that, to the extent that
- Soweit ich weiß, … soweit / soviel ich weiß: as far as I know
- …, geschweige denn … geschweige denn: let alone, much less
- während / wohingegen (Gegensatz) während, wohingegen: whereas, comparing two sides
- zu …, als dass … zu …, als dass: too … for something to happen
Example sentences from Tatoeba, used under CC BY 2.0 FR. See sources.