When to use "sondern" vs "aber" in German sentences?


asked by
Sarah published
10 months ago

Hey everyone! I keep getting confused about when to use "sondern" versus "aber" in German. I was doing my homework and came across this sentence: "Er ist nicht reich, sondern arm." My textbook uses "sondern" here, but I feel like "aber" would work too?

From what I understand, they both mean "but" in English, so I'm not really sure what the difference is. Like, could I say "Er ist nicht reich, aber arm" instead? Is one more correct than the other? Thanks in advance! 😊

1 answer
answered by
Katze published
9 months ago

yes, sondern shows the difference between the two qualities, you can use aber and no one will notice.

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