In Germany, the time between Christmas and New Year's is often referred to as zwischen den Jahren ("between the years"), which is a dative construction. As you may know, the word zwischen is a two-way preposition, which means it may be followed by either the accusative or dative case. Here you can see how the article (and adjective!) changes depending on whether something is in the process of being put or going between, or is simply stationed between:

Ganze sechs Wochen hat man an dem Rezept getüftelt. Nach amerikanischem Vorbild kommt hier nicht einfach nur Fleisch zwischen die Brötchen.

An entire six weeks were spent tinkering with the recipe. According to the American model, it's not just meat that gets put between the buns.

Captions 7-8, Berlin: Die beste Auswahl an Hamburgern

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Erst neunzehnhundertneunundachtzig wurde die Mauer zwischen den beiden Regionen wieder geöffnet.

It was not until nineteen eighty-nine that the wall between the two regions was reopened.

Captions 19-20, Bundesländer und ihre Rezepte: Bundesland Berlin

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In addition to the preposition zwischen, you may have also seen the words dazwischen and inzwischen. These words are both adverbs. The word dazwischen is often translated as "in between," though there may be instances in which other phrasings are more applicable in English. 

Also, entweder gewinnen wir oder wir fahren alle anderen kaputt. Also, dazwischen gibt's nichts.

Well, either we win or we run everyone else off the road. So there is nothing in between.

Caption 6, VW-Käfer-Cup: auf dem Hockenheimring

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Und dazwischen ist eine kleine Biene hin und her geflogen.

And in between them, a little bee flew back and forth.

Caption 22, Piggeldy und Frederick Der Apfel

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Und dazwischen ist immer wieder Zeit für eine kleine Rast und einen kleinen Ratsch.

And along the way, there's always time for a little rest and a bit of conversation.

Caption 33, Die letzten Paradiese: Die Schönheit der Alpen

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The word inzwischen has quite a different meaning, as it refers to time. It means "meanwhile," "in the meantime," or "by now."

Hier in Ulrichstein am Vogelsberg stehen inzwischen sechsundvierzig Windräder.

Here in Ulrichstein, there are meanwhile forty-six windmills.

Caption 4, Energiewende in Hessen: Windräder und Solarparks

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Claudia Schiffer ist inzwischen dreifache Mutter.

Claudia Schiffer is in the meantime mother of three.

Caption 28, Claudia Schiffer: Nach der Babypause

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Und wir haben inzwischen viele Begegnungen gehabt.

And we have had many meetings in the meantime.

Caption 6, Angela Merkel :Gemeinsame Pressekonferenz mit Barack Obama

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Further Learning
You can find many examples with these words on Yabla German. Meanwhile, enjoy your time "between the years," and stay tuned for our first lesson of 2023!

The noun der Beleg, the verb belegen and the adjective belegt have related roots, but are used differently in a variety of contexts. Let's start with the noun der Beleg.

Du brauchst einen Ort, an dem deine Belege sicher sind.

You need a place where your documents are safe.

Caption 7, Reposito - in 60 Sekunden

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Der Beleg is often translated as "evidence," "proof," "document," "documentation," "voucher," or "receipt." In everyday life in Germany, I probably hear it most often when leaving the cash register at the supermarket after having paid: Möchten Sie den Beleg haben?

Now onto the verb belegen: 

Nun muss ich meinen Teig nur noch mit den Apfelstücken belegen.

Now I just have to cover the batter with the apple pieces.

Caption 29, Apfelkuchen - mit Eva

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Unfallstudien belegen sogar, dass Autos mit hoher passiver Fußgängersicherheit

Accident studies even prove that cars with a higher passive [automatic] protection for pedestrians

für den Unfallschutz von Radfahrern kaum helfen.

barely help in the protection of cyclists from accidents.

Captions 12-13, Crashtest - Fahrradfahrer profitieren kaum vom Fußgängerschutz am Auto

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Wie man hier sieht, haben wir auch frisches Gemüse

As you see here, we also have fresh vegetables

wie Tomaten, Gurken,

like tomatoes and cucumbers

da wir frisch, äh, Sandwiches und Brötchen belegen.

since we make fresh sandwiches and rolls.

Captions 21-23, Berlin - Judith und die „Brezel Bar“

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In most cases, belegen is usually translated as to "to cover," "to prove," or "to document." In the last example, however, an open-faced sandwich is a belegtes Brot in German. Thus when you literally "cover" sandwiches and bread rolls, you are in fact "making" them. Again, understanding properly all depends upon the context!

The verb belegen can also be translated as "to occupy" or "to take," at least in the sense that you "occupy" a position in a race or "take" a university course: 

Nürnberg belegt jetzt Platz fünfzehn...

Nuremberg is now in fifteenth place...

Caption 46, FC Bayern München - in einer eigenen Liga

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Na ja, in der Justizvollzugsanstalt Fuhlsbüttel kannst du ja einen Kursus belegen als Alleinunterhalter.

Well, at Fuhlsbüttel Penitentiary you can take a class to become a solo entertainer.

Caption 66, Großstadtrevier - St. Pauli rettet HSV

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Last but not least, let's take a look at belegt as an adjective: 

Die besten Plätze sind schnell belegt.

The best places are quickly occupied.

Caption 43, Abenteuer Nordsee - Unter Riesenhaien und Tintenfischen

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Drei Damen vom Grill, die eine belegte Schrippe mit 'ner Bulette gefüllt haben [Inhaber]

Three ladies from the grill who have filled an open-faced roll with a meatball [owner]

und das Hamburger genannt haben.

and called that a hamburger.

Captions 14-15, Berlin - Die beste Auswahl an Hamburgern

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Further Learning
See if you can find other examples of der Beleg, belegen, and belegt on Yabla German and find a tandem partner to take turns making up and checking your own sentences using these words.

Whether we are referring to our stuff on a nearby chair or a serious matter that needs to be discussed, there are several words in German that can be helpful. Most of them can be used in a number of contexts, but there are a few things to be aware of.

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Sachen is a very versatile word, and can be used to refer to physical items but also matters and topics. Of course, das Thema is a more common word for "the topic."

Und ja, ich räume meine Sachen nicht immer sofort weg.

And yes, I don't always clean up my stuff away right away.

Caption 29, Die Wohngemeinschaft - Probleme

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Hier gibt es viele verschiedene Sachen für die Familie und für die Kinder zu sehen.

Here there are many different things for the family and for the children to see.

Caption 8, Berlin - Domäne Dahlem

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Fazit: In Sachen Hamburger hat die Hauptstadt auf jeden Fall mehr zu bieten.

Conclusion: When it comes to hamburgers, the capital city definitely has more to offer.

Caption 25, Berlin - Die beste Auswahl an Hamburgern

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Der Gegenstand is used to refer to a physical object or item, but also a topic of conversation or debate. And, of course, there is also the word das Objekt. In shopping, der Artikel ("the item") and die Ware are more likely to be used.

Auch hier handelt es sich um einen runden Gegenstand.

Also here it is about a round object.

Caption 34, Eva zeigt uns - Formen

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Slang terms for "stuff" or "odds and ends" are der Kram and das Zeug.

So viele Spinnweben und so viel Kram

So many cobwebs and so much stuff

Caption 11, Silbermond - Leichtes Gepäck

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Diese Box wird für Bücher, dieser Karton wird für das Zeug aus der Küche sein.

This box will be for books, this carton will be for stuff from the kitchen.

Caption 14, Drei Leute - beim Kofferpacken

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The word das Ding is, of course, also commonly used, and not just for objects.

Wir testen die Dinger jetzt schon seit Monaten.

We've been testing the things for months already.

Caption 30, Die Stunde der Offiziere - Dokudrama über den 20. Juli 1944

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Ich habe entschieden, die Dinge selbst in die Hände [sic, Hand] zu nehmen.

I have decided to take matters into my own hands.

Caption 6, Berufsleben - Probleme mit Mitarbeitern

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The plural forms die Dinger and die Dinge are both used. Generally, die Dinger refers to multiple things of the same kind, whereas die Dinge refers to multiple things of different kinds. 

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Further Learning
Das Thema, die Sache, das Objekt, der Artikel, die Ware, der Gegenstand, der Kram, das Zeug, and das Ding: Yabla German has many examples of all of these words, as they are commonly used. Go through them and make sure you know which are only used for non-physical ideas, topics, and matters, which are exclusively for physical objects, and which are applicable in both contexts. Making a venn diagram may be a good strategy!