Da-Compounds and Wo-Compounds
Learn how German replaces preposition plus thing with compact words like darauf and davon, and how it asks about things with worauf and worüber — while people keep the ordinary pronoun.
Things get a compound, people keep the pronoun
At A2 you collected verbs with fixed prepositions: warten auf, sich freuen über, denken an, zufrieden sein mit. When the object of such a preposition is a person, you already know what to do — replace the noun with a pronoun: Ich warte auf meine Kollegin becomes Ich warte auf sie.
With things and ideas, German refuses that pattern. Nobody says auf es or über es. Instead the preposition fuses with da- into a single word: auf + es becomes darauf, von + ihm (a thing) becomes davon. Ich warte auf den Bus? Second mention: Ich warte darauf.
This one distinction — person versus thing — governs the whole lesson. Whenever a fixed preposition points back to a thing, an event or a whole situation, reach for the da-compound. Whenever it points at a human being, keep the preposition and a normal pronoun.
Wartest du auf den Bus? — Ja, ich warte schon zwanzig Minuten darauf.
Are you waiting for the bus? — Yes, I have already been waiting for it for twenty minutes.
The bus is a thing, so auf + ihn is replaced by darauf.
Wartest du auf deine Kollegin? — Ja, ich warte auf sie.
Are you waiting for your colleague? — Yes, I am waiting for her.
A person keeps the ordinary pronoun: auf sie, never darauf.
Hast du von dem neuen Gesetz gehört? — Ja, in den Nachrichten wurde viel darüber berichtet.
Have you heard about the new law? — Yes, a lot was reported about it in the news.
Ich habe mir ein neues Handy gekauft und bin sehr zufrieden damit.
I bought myself a new mobile phone and I am very satisfied with it.
How da-compounds are built
The recipe is short: da + preposition. From mit comes damit, from für comes dafür, from gegen comes dagegen, from von comes davon, from zu comes dazu, from nach comes danach. If the preposition begins with a vowel, an -r- slips in to keep the word speakable: darauf, darüber, darunter, darin, daran.
The compound stands exactly where the full prepositional phrase would stand, and the verb does not change its behaviour at all. Was hältst du von meinem Plan? — Was hältst du davon? The case question disappears too: darauf serves for auf with accusative and with dative alike, which makes these words pleasantly low-maintenance.
A da-compound only works when the thing is already on the table — mentioned in the previous sentence or obvious from the situation. It is a pointing word, like English thereof or therewith in old contracts, but in German the pattern is alive and completely neutral in tone.
Hier ist mein Vorschlag. Was hältst du davon?
Here is my suggestion. What do you think of it?
Die Stadt plant eine neue Umgehungsstraße. Viele Anwohner sind dagegen.
The city is planning a new bypass road. Many residents are against it.
Ich habe einen neuen Laptop und arbeite jeden Tag damit.
I have a new laptop and work with it every day.
Er sprach lange über seine Schulzeit, aber ich erinnere mich kaum daran.
He spoke for a long time about his school days, but I hardly remember it.
Before a vowel the compound takes an -r-: an becomes daran.
Asking with wo-compounds
Questions follow the same logic. To ask about a thing after a fixed preposition, German fuses wo + preposition: worauf, worüber, womit, wofür, wovon, woran — again with -r- before a vowel. Worauf wartest du? asks what you are waiting for; Worüber ärgerst du dich? asks what you are annoyed about.
For people, the question keeps the preposition and uses wen or wem, depending on the case the preposition demands: Auf wen wartest du? An wen denkst du? Mit wem fährst du? The pairing is strict — a wo-compound aimed at a person sounds as wrong as darauf aimed at your colleague.
These question words are everywhere in offices and forms. An official who asks Worum geht es? wants to know what your visit is about; you will hear worauf, wofür and womit in every consultation. Learning them as whole words, with the verb they belong to, pays off immediately.
Worauf wartest du? — Auf den Bescheid vom Amt.
What are you waiting for? — For the decision letter from the office.
Worüber habt ihr in der Sitzung gesprochen?
What did you talk about in the meeting?
Auf wen wartest du? — Auf meinen Anwalt.
Who are you waiting for? — For my lawyer.
A person takes preposition + wen or wem, never a wo-compound.
Wofür interessieren Sie sich am meisten?
What are you most interested in?
Da-compounds that point forward
So far the compounds have pointed backwards, at something already mentioned. They can also point forwards — at a whole clause that is about to come. The pattern: verb with fixed preposition, then the da-compound, then a comma and a dass-clause or an indirect question. Ich freue mich darauf, dass ihr kommt — the darauf announces the clause the way a colon announces a list.
This construction is the natural way to attach an opinion, a fear or a hope to a full statement, and it appears constantly in B1 writing tasks: Ich ärgere mich darüber, dass ...; Wir sprechen darüber, ob ... In careful writing the da-compound is expected; leaving it out often sounds clipped.
Notice that the person versus thing rule still holds. The following clause is an idea, not a person — which is exactly why the da-compound is the right bridge to it.
Ich freue mich darauf, dass meine Eltern uns im Sommer besuchen.
I am looking forward to my parents visiting us in the summer.
darauf announces the dass-clause that follows.
Sie ärgert sich darüber, dass der Zug schon wieder Verspätung hat.
She is annoyed that the train is delayed yet again.
Wir haben lange darüber gesprochen, ob ein Handyverbot an Schulen sinnvoll wäre.
We talked for a long time about whether a mobile phone ban at schools would make sense.
The da-compound can also introduce an indirect question with ob.
Check yourself
Quick checks on this lesson. Get at least three quarters right to mark it as completed.
Der Bus kommt nicht. Ich warte schon lange ... — how does the sentence continue correctly?
Practise what you learned