Prepositions of Time in German

Overview

Talking about when things happen is one of the most practical skills at the A1 level, and German uses a set of specific prepositions for time expressions. The most important ones are um (at, for clock times), am (on, for days and parts of the day), im (in, for months and seasons), von...bis (from...to), seit (since/for), vor (ago/before), and nach (after).

Each of these prepositions pairs with a specific type of time word, and learning which preposition goes with which type of time expression is largely a matter of memorization. The good news is that the patterns are consistent: clock times always use um, days always use am, and months/seasons always use im.

These time expressions frequently appear in Position 1 of a German sentence, triggering the inversion you learned in word order: Am Montag habe ich frei (On Monday I have a day off).

How It Works

Preposition	Used for	Example
um	Clock times	um 8 Uhr (at 8 o'clock)
am	Days of the week, parts of day	am Montag (on Monday), am Abend (in the evening)
im	Months, seasons	im Januar (in January), im Sommer (in summer)
von...bis	Time ranges	von 9 bis 17 Uhr (from 9 to 5)
seit	Duration (still ongoing)	seit zwei Jahren (for two years)
vor	Ago, before	vor einer Stunde (an hour ago)
nach	After	nach dem Essen (after the meal)

Key points:

• am is a contraction of an dem (dative)
• im is a contraction of in dem (dative)
• seit indicates something that started in the past and continues now — German uses the present tense with seit: Ich wohne seit drei Jahren hier (I have been living here for three years)
• No preposition is needed with heute (today), morgen (tomorrow), gestern (yesterday)

Days, parts of day, and their prepositions:

Time expression	Preposition	Example
Days: Montag, Dienstag...	am	am Freitag
Parts of day: Morgen, Nachmittag, Abend	am	am Morgen
Exception: Nacht	in der	in der Nacht
Months: Januar, Februar...	im	im März
Seasons: Frühling, Sommer...	im	im Winter

Examples in Context

German	English	Note
Ich komme um acht Uhr.	I come at eight o'clock.	Clock time
Am Montag habe ich frei.	On Monday I have a day off.	Day of the week
Im Sommer fahren wir weg.	In summer we go away.	Season
Von Montag bis Freitag arbeite ich.	I work from Monday to Friday.	Range
Seit einem Jahr lerne ich Deutsch.	I have been learning German for a year.	Ongoing duration
Vor zwei Wochen war ich in Berlin.	Two weeks ago I was in Berlin.	Ago
Nach dem Frühstück gehe ich joggen.	After breakfast I go jogging.	After
Am Abend sehe ich fern.	In the evening I watch TV.	Part of day
Im Dezember ist Weihnachten.	Christmas is in December.	Month
Um wie viel Uhr beginnt der Film?	What time does the movie start?	Asking for time

Common Mistakes

Using "in" instead of "im" for months and seasons

• Wrong: In Januar ist es kalt.
• Right: Im Januar ist es kalt.
• Why: Months and seasons require the contraction im (= in dem). The dative article is mandatory.

Using "an" instead of "am" for days

• Wrong: An Montag arbeite ich.
• Right: Am Montag arbeite ich.
• Why: Days of the week require the contraction am (= an dem). Always use the contracted form.

Using past tense with "seit"

• Wrong: Seit zwei Jahren habe ich Deutsch gelernt. (implies you stopped)
• Right: Seit zwei Jahren lerne ich Deutsch. (present tense — still ongoing)
• Why: German uses the present tense with seit for actions that started in the past and continue now. English uses "have been ...ing," but German keeps it in the present.

Practice Tips

1. Daily schedule: Write out your daily schedule using time prepositions: "Um 7 Uhr stehe ich auf. Am Vormittag arbeite ich. Von 12 bis 13 Uhr esse ich."
2. Calendar practice: Go through a calendar and describe events: "Am Dienstag habe ich einen Termin. Im März fahre ich nach Berlin."
3. seit sentences: Think of things you have been doing for a while and express them with seit: "Seit drei Monaten lerne ich Gitarre. Seit fünf Jahren wohne ich hier."

Related Concepts

• Parent: Accusative Case (Articles) — the case system that prepositions interact with