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Third sentence of Vorschlag der AWO : Mit einem "Erwerbsbooster" gegen die Armut, tagesschau.de, 19 August 2026. Quoted for study. The words are the publisher's; the analysis is ours.
Meaning
'It is said to be 'too complex, too bureaucratic, its services are inadequately coordinated with one another – and it does not protect sufficiently against poverty and social exclusion.' His verdict: the welfare state finds itself in a crisis of legitimacy.'
Word for word: 'That be 'too complex, too bureaucratic, its services are insufficiently onto-each-other tuned – and it protects not sufficiently before poverty and societal exclusion.' His judgement: the welfare state find itself in a legitimacy-crisis.'
A text, likely journalistic or academic, summarises someone's critical assessment of the German welfare state and then states their conclusion: it is losing legitimacy.
This is reported speech using Konjunktiv I (sei, befinde) to signal that the speaker is not asserting these claims as their own. The first sentence is a quotation with several coordinated clauses; abgestimmt is the past participle of the separable verb ab|stimmen in a fixed passive-like construction with sein. The second sentence has a nominal frame (Sein Urteil:) followed by a main clause with the verb in second position.
Rules at work(9)
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sei ... befinde
Both verbs are Konjunktiv I forms signalling reported speech: the author attributes the claims to another party without vouching for them.
Reported speech in journalism and formal writing. It is built from the infinitive stem, and where its form would be identical to the ordinary present, Konjunktiv II is used instead to keep the reporting visible.
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Sein Urteil: Der Sozialstaat befinde sich
After the introductory nominal frame, the finite verb occupies the second position of the main clause.
In a German main clause the finite verb is always the second element. The first element can be the subject, but it can just as easily be a time expression, an object or a whole subordinate clause; whatever it is, it counts as one element and the verb follows it. This is why putting something other than the subject first pushes the subject after the verb.
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seine Leistungen sind ... er schützt
The plural subject Leistungen takes sind while the singular er takes schützt.
The finite verb takes an ending that matches its subject in person and number. The endings for regular verbs in the present are e, st, t, en, t, en.
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abgestimmt
The participle of ab|stimmen shows ge- inserted between prefix and stem: abge-stimmt.
Some verbs carry a prefix that detaches in a main clause and moves to the very end: aufstehen becomes Ich stehe um sieben auf. The prefix is stressed, which is what tells a separable prefix from an inseparable one. In a subordinate clause and in the infinitive the verb stays whole.
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vor Armut ... in einer Legitimitätskrise
Both vor and in take dative here because they express states rather than direction.
An, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor and zwischen take the accusative when the phrase answers where to, and the dative when it answers where. The distinction is movement across a boundary against position, not motion against stillness.
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seine Leistungen ... Sein Urteil
The possessive determiner sein- inflects to agree with the following noun's case, number and gender.
Mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer and Ihr take their stem from the owner and their ending from the thing owned, which is why seine Mutter and ihr Vater are the way they are.
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schützt nicht ausreichend
Nicht negates the verb phrase and stands directly before the element being limited.
Nicht negates a verb, an adjective or a whole clause. It stands at the end of the middle field, before a separable prefix, a participle, an infinitive or a predicate adjective, but after most objects and time expressions.
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Sozialstaat ... Legitimitätskrise
Both nouns are compounds whose gender comes from the final element (Staat, Krise).
German builds long nouns by joining shorter ones. The last part carries the gender and the plural, and everything before it modifies what follows, so a compound is read from the right.
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und er schützt
Und links clauses without changing word order.
Und, aber, oder, denn and sondern join two main clauses and do not count as an element, so the word order after them is unchanged and the verb stays in second position.
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Words(26)
- der
the
determinerA1definite
Appears twice: dative feminine 'der Wirtschaft' and nominative plural 'die Beschlüsse'.
- sein
to be
verbA1sein, war, ist gewesenmit seinirregular
Copula here linking subject to predicate noun.
- zu
too (excessively)
adverbA1degree
- komplex
complex
adjectiveB2komplexer, am komplexesten
- bürokratisch
bureaucratic
adjectiveB2bürokratischer, am bürokratischsten
- sein
his, its
determinerA1possessive
Endings agree with the thing possessed, not the owner: seinem Sondervermögen is dative neuter because Sondervermögen is das; here it means 'its' (the Bund's).
- die Leistung
achievement, performance, service
nounB1pl. Leistungengen. Leistungmixed declension
- unzureichend
insufficient, inadequate
adjectiveC1unzureichender, am unzureichendsten
- aufeinander
with each other, onto each other
adverbB2modal
Pronominal adverb used reciprocally; often with verbs like abstimmen, achten, treffen.
- abstimmen
coordinate, vote
verbB2stimmen ab, stimmte ab, hat abgestimmtmit habenseparableweakmit + dative / aufeinander
sich aufeinander abstimmen = coordinate with each other; also means 'to vote'.
- und
and
conjunctionA1coordinating
- er
he
pronounA1personal
- schützen
to protect
verbB1schützen, schützte, hat geschütztmit habenweakvor + dative
- nicht
not
adverbA1negation
Negates single words or phrases directly before them; sentence negation places it later.
- ausreichend
sufficiently, adequately
adverbB1degree
- vor
before, in front of, ago
prepositionA1governs dative
With clock time ('vor 7 Uhr') it means 'before' and takes no visible case change.
- die Armut
poverty
nounB1pl. Armut (no common plural)gen. Armutstrong declension
- gesellschaftlich
social, societal, as a society
adjectiveB1gesellschaftlicher, am gesellschaftlichsten
- der Ausschluss
exclusion, expulsion
nounB2pl. Ausschlüssegen. Ausschlussesstrong declension
- das Urteil
judgement, verdict, ruling
nounB1pl. Urteilegen. Urteilsstrong declension
- der Sozialstaat
welfare state
nounC1pl. Sozialstaatengen. Sozialstaatesstrong declension
- befinden
to be situated, to find oneself
verbB1befinden, befand, hat befundenmit habenmixed
Almost always used reflexively: sich befinden = 'to be located / to be in (a state)'.
- sich
himself/herself/themselves, itself
pronounA2reflexive
Always refers back to the subject; here it is fixed to the verb 'sich mehren'.
- in
in, into
prepositionA1governs accusative or dative
Dative for location, accusative for direction.
- ein
a, an, one
determinerA1indefinite
The form einer here is dative feminine singular, not the pronoun meaning 'one'.
- die Legitimitätskrise
crisis of legitimacy, legitimacy crisis
nounC2pl. Legitimitätskrisengen. Legitimitätskrisestrong declension