Ich bin dein Vater
The phrase 'I am your father' in German is Ich bin dein Vater.
Which one should you use?
While Ich bin dein Vater is used when speaking to one child, you should use euer Vater if you are speaking to multiple children.
How does it change in a sentence?
The phrase Ich bin dein Vater uses the informal possessive pronoun dein (your) for a single person.
Did you know?
- The word bin is a linguistic hybrid, combining two different ancient roots for the verb 'to be'.
- While Vater is the standard word, in modern German households it is often replaced by the more casual Papa to avoid sounding stiff or distant.
- The word Vater is used in the German term Vaterland to describe one's country, which emphasizes a patriarchal origin for the nation.
Examples in context
- Luke, ich bin dein Vater!Luke, I am your father.Tatoeba #884575 by Esperantostern, translation #857305 by pabsango
- Ich bin dein Vater, Adolf.I am your father, Adolf.Tatoeba #11809867 by Naina, translation #11804051 by Fenrir
- „Tom, ich bin dein Vater!“ – „Lass den Quatsch, Maria! Das ist nicht witzig!“"Tom, I am your father!" "Stop it, Mary. It's not funny."Tatoeba #6849806 by Pfirsichbaeumchen, translation #4828603 by Hybrid
- 2 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Lukas explains his identity to Sarah during a dramatic moment.
- LukasIch bin dein Vater.I am your father.
- SarahDas kann nicht sein!That cannot be!
- LukasEs ist die Wahrheit, Sarah.It is the truth, Sarah.
- SarahIch kann es nicht glauben.I cannot believe it.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries Ich, Vater, bin, dein, ich, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
