Deutsch — Concessive clauses
German expresses concession — "although / in spite of" — in three ways: the subordinating conjunctions obwohl / obgleich push the verb to the end, the adverbs trotzdem / dennoch keep normal main-clause order, and the preposition trotz takes the genitive.
How it works
obwohl introduces a subordinate clause and sends the conjugated verb to the final position: Obwohl es regnet, gehen wir spazieren. The adverb trotzdem stands inside a full main clause and, if placed first, triggers verb-second: Es regnet. Trotzdem gehen wir spazieren. The preposition trotz needs no clause at all, only a genitive noun phrase: Trotz des Regens gehen wir spazieren.
Examples
| Example | Word class & structure |
|---|---|
| Obwohl es regnet, gehen wir spazieren. | conjunction — verb at the end of the clause |
| Obgleich er müde war, arbeitete er weiter. | conjunction (formal) — same verb-final order |
| Es regnet. Trotzdem gehen wir spazieren. | adverb — in first position, verb comes second |
| Er war müde, dennoch arbeitete er weiter. | adverb (formal) — links two main clauses |
| Trotz des Regens gehen wir spazieren. | preposition — + genitive noun phrase, no verb |
| Trotz des schlechten Wetters kamen alle. | preposition — genitive triggers -en on adjective & article |
Good to know
Don't confuse the pieces. obwohl is a conjunction (verb-final), while trotzdem is an adverb — never write "Trotzdem es regnet" or put obwohl with verb-second. Also keep trotz (preposition + noun) apart from trotzdem (adverb + clause): Trotz des Regens needs a noun, Trotzdem needs a full clause.