In a Yabla interview filmed at a Christmas market a few years back, one couple describes their ideal Christmas:

Gemütlich, mit gutem Essen, Spielen,

Comfortably, with good food, games...

unsere Kinder sind groß,

Our children are grown up,

die brauchen keine Riesenpakete mehr.

they don't need huge presents anymore.

Captions 16-17, Weihnachtsinterviews - Diane in Karlsruhe

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BANNER PLACEHOLDER

It's true that Christmas this year in Germany took a bit of getting used to. Due to the continuing social-distancing regulations prohibiting parties and big gatherings, people stayed indoors with their focus firmly set on increased Gemütlichkeit. The word gemütlich means "comfortable" or "cozy" as an adjective and "comfortably" as an adverb.

Ganz zum Schluss werde ich noch den Kerzenständer aufstellen,

At the very end, I'll also set up the candle holders

damit wir es gemütlich haben.

so that it's cozy for us.

Captions 13-14, Tisch decken - mit Eva

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Wie verbringen Sie Silvester? -Ganz gemütlich zu Hause.

How will you spend New Year's Eve? -Very comfortably at home.

Caption 7, Silvester - Vorsätze für das neue Jahr - Linkenheim

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The current restrictions in Germany will continue through New Year's, but many people are making the most of it and simply appreciating getting to spend time at home (zu Hause) with those closest to them.

Wir haben beide gedacht, dass wir zu Hause bleiben müssen.

We both thought that we would have to stay at home.

Caption 14, Konjugation - Das Verb „denken“

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Es war sehr, sehr spannend,

It was very, very exciting

aber jetzt möchte ich lieber zu Hause bleiben, hier bei euch.

but now I'd rather stay at home, here with you.

Captions 100-101, Märchen - Sagenhaft - Der kleine Däumling

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Since restaurants and bars will be closed on New Year's Eve, the festivities will be limited and more focused on coziness and quality time than seeing lots of people. To avoid feeling too cooped up, however, it's important to get outside a bit as well. A nice stroll or hike in the few hours of daylight is always a good idea: 

Natürlich kann man auch einfach nur spazieren gehen.

Of course, one can also simply just go for a walk.

Caption 10, Berlin - Eva im Viktoriapark

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Further Learning
If you're spending extra time at home this week, use it as an opportunity to keep up your language skills with Yabla German! Take a look at our latest videos or catch up on recent lessons here. 

Wir wünschen Euch einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr!

Today we'll continue with the third and final part of separable verbs and related prepositions, taking a look at how the same words with different meanings can sometimes coexist in German sentences.

Separable verbs often start with prefixes that are identical to prepositions. Here is a partial list of separable verbs that start with prefixes that on their own are prepositions, followed by examples of one of the verbs and the preposition:

BANNER PLACEHOLDER

Preposition: nach (to, after)
Separable verbs: nachahmen (to imitate); nachdenken (to think); nacherzählen (to retell, to relate); nachfolgen (to follow, to succeed); nachgeben (to give in); nachprüfen (to double check); nachschlagen (to look up, to reference); nachtun (to follow someone’s example); nachzählen (to recount, double-check)

This example uses the separable verb nachdenken: 

Manchmal denken wir Frauen zu viel über die Liebe nach.

Sometimes we women think too much about love.

Caption 7, Konjugation - Das Verb „denken“

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Whereas this example uses the verb denken and the preposition nach:

Stuttgart, schön. OK, ich denke, ich fliege nach Stuttgart.

Stuttgart, nice. OK, I think I'll fly to Stuttgart.

Caption 9, Reiseplanung - Anruf bei einem Reisebüro

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If we were to combine the separable verb nachdenken and the preposition nach, we could make a sentence like this: 

Ich denke über eine Reise nach Stuttgart nach.
I'm thinking about a trip to Stuttgart. 

Preposition: vor (to, before)
Separable verbs: vorbereiten (to prepare); vorbestellen (to pre-order); vorhaben (to plan, to intend); vorkommen (to come up, to happen); vornehmen (to carry out); vorstellen (to introduce, to imagine); vortragen (to perform, to give a lecture)

This example uses the separable verb vorhaben: 

Und was hast du heute noch vor?

And what else are you planning for today?

Caption 53, Unterwegs mit Cettina - an der Rheinfähre

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But this example uses the verb haben and the preposition vor:

Du hast mich immer wieder vor dir selber gewarnt

You have always warned me about yourself

Caption 15, Johannes Oerding - Mein schönster Fehler

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Again, we can make another sentence using the separable verb vorhaben and the preposition vor: 

Hast du wirklich vor, schon vor dem Deutschunterricht nach Hause zu gehen?
Do you really intend to go home before German class?

You may already be attending German class from home, but keep up the good work learning with Yabla German either way!

Further Learning
See if you can come up with some other sentences that contain a separable verb and a preposition that is identical to the verb's prefix and have your teacher check your work. You can also look for more examples of separable verbs used with prepositions that are identical to their prefixes on Yabla German.