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Third sentence of Forderung nach Grundgesetzänderung: SPD-Ministerinnen legen bei Klimaplänen nach, tagesschau.de, 19 August 2026. Quoted for study. The words are the publisher's; the analysis is ours.
Meaning
The SPD cabinet members want to anchor climate and heat protection firmly in the Basic Law as a joint task of the federal government, the states and the municipalities.
Word for word: The SPD-cabinet-members want climate- and heat-protection as community-task of federal-government, states and municipalities firmly in-the basic-law to-anchor.
A political statement saying that SPD members of the cabinet intend to write climate protection and protection against heat into the German constitution (Grundgesetz) as a responsibility shared between federal level, Länder and local authorities.
A main clause with verb-second word order: the plural subject 'Die SPD-Kabinettsmitglieder' fills the first position, so the finite modal verb 'wollen' stands second and pushes the lexical infinitive 'verankern' to the end of the clause. The direct object is the coordinated noun phrase 'Klima- und Hitzeschutz' in the accusative, sharing one article-like first element 'Klima-' before 'und'. The preposition 'von' governs the dative and introduces a coordinated list of three nouns. 'als Gemeinschaftsaufgabe' is an equative complement in the accusative agreeing with the object, and 'fest' is an adverb modifying 'verankern'.
Rules at work(8)
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Die SPD-Kabinettsmitglieder wollen
The subject occupies the first position, so the finite verb 'wollen' must stand second in this declarative 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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wollen ... verankern
The modal 'wollen' is conjugated while the lexical verb 'verankern' stays a bare infinitive at the end of the clause.
The six modals können, müssen, dürfen, sollen, wollen and mögen say something about the main verb rather than naming an action. The modal is the finite verb in second position and the main verb goes to the end of the clause as an infinitive.
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Klima- und Hitzeschutz ... als Gemeinschaftsaufgabe
The direct object of 'verankern' and the complement after 'als' are both in the accusative.
The accusative marks the direct object: the thing the action is done to. Only the masculine changes visibly, from der to den and from ein to einen, which is why the masculine is where accusative errors show.
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Klima- und Hitzeschutz
'und' coordinates the two compounds, letting them share the elliptical first element 'Klima-'.
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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von Bund, Ländern und Gemeinden
'von' always governs the dative, hence 'Ländern' and 'Gemeinden' show dative plural marking.
Aus, außer, bei, mit, nach, seit, von and zu always take the dative. Several of them contract with the article: von dem becomes vom, zu der becomes zur.
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im Grundgesetz
'in' takes the dative here because it describes a static location rather than movement.
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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SPD-Kabinettsmitglieder, Hitzeschutz, Gemeinschaftsaufgabe, Grundgesetz
German routinely builds single-word compounds; the linking element -s- appears in 'Kabinettsmitglieder' and 'Gemeinschaftsaufgabe'.
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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Die SPD-Kabinettsmitglieder wollen
The plural subject requires the plural modal form 'wollen'.
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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Words(16)
- die
the
determinerA1definite
- der SPD-Kabinettsmitglied
member of the SPD cabinet
nounC2pl. SPD-Kabinettsmitgliedergen. SPD-Kabinettsmitgliedsweak declension
- wollen
to want, to want to
verbA1wollen, wollte, hat gewolltmit habenmodal
Wollen has no umlaut in its conjugation: ich will, wir wollen.
- der Klimaschutz
climate protection, climate action
nounB1pl. Klimaschutzegen. Klimaschutzesstrong declension
- und
and
conjunctionA1coordinating
- der Hitzeschutz
heat protection
nounB2pl. Hitzeschutzegen. Hitzeschutzesstrong declension
- als
as, than, when (past)
prepositionA2governs accusative
In comparisons of equality or role ('als X') it behaves like a preposition; in comparatives it means 'than'.
- die Gemeinschaftsaufgabe
joint task, shared responsibility (of federal and state governments)
nounC1pl. Gemeinschaftsaufgabengen. Gemeinschaftsaufgabemixed declension
- von
from, of, by
prepositionA1governs dative
Used here to mark authorship, like 'by' in English credits.
- der Bund
federation, the federal state (Germany)
nounB1pl. Bündegen. Bundesmixed declension
In German politics 'der Bund' means the federal level of government.
- das Land
country, land, state
nounA1pl. Ländergen. Landesstrong declension
Here 'the country/region' in the sense of its economy.
- die Gemeinde
municipality, local community, parish
nounB1pl. Gemeindengen. Gemeindestrong declension
- fest
firmly, fixed, solid
adverbA2modal
Also exists as an adjective and as the prefix of separable verbs like 'festlegen'; here it is simply an adverb.
- in
in, into
prepositionA1governs accusative or dative
Dative for location, accusative for direction.
- das Grundgesetz
Basic Law, German constitution
nounB2pl. Grundgesetzegen. Grundgesetzesstrong declension
- verankern
to anchor, to entrench (in law)
verbC1verankern, verankerte, verankert hatmit habenweak
Figurative: fix something firmly in a document or system.