Reading · B2 · Text 15
Zahnrad
Je nachdem, welchen Gang er wählt, kann er unterschiedlich schnell fahren.
Depending on which gear he selects, he can drive at different speeds.
Je höher der Gang, desto schneller kann er fahren.
The higher the gear, the faster he can drive.
Er braucht aber auch mehr Kraft als in einem niedrigen Gang.
But he also needs more power than in a lower gear.
Grammar in this text
Correlative conjunction 'je...desto'
Je höher der Gang, desto schneller kann er fahren.
This structure expresses a proportional relationship: the more/less of one thing, the more/less of another. It consists of two clauses: the first with 'je' + comparative, the second with 'desto' + comparative. Note that the verb in the second clause often comes right after 'desto'.
Subordinate clause with 'je nachdem'
Je nachdem, welchen Gang er wählt, kann er unterschiedlich schnell fahren.
'Je nachdem' introduces a dependent clause that means 'depending on (what/which)'. It is often followed by a question word (here 'welchen') and the verb at the end of the clause. The main clause follows after a comma.
Modal verb 'kann' with infinitive
kann er unterschiedlich schnell fahren
The modal verb 'können' (here 'kann') expresses ability or possibility. It is conjugated in second position, and the main verb appears in its infinitive form at the end of the sentence.
Comparative forms of adjectives
Je höher der Gang, desto schneller kann er fahren.
The adjectives 'hoch' and 'schnell' appear in their comparative forms 'höher' and 'schneller' to compare levels. In the 'je...desto' construction, comparatives are used to show that an increase in one quality leads to an increase in another.
Keep going
Text from Zahnrad — Klexikon, used under CC BY-SA 4.0. See sources.
Translation, glossary and grammar notes are machine-generated and inherit the same licence.