von

/fɔn/
prepositionBeginner
general

Indicates origin, possession, or source (equivalent to 'from' or 'by' in English).

Das Auto ist von meinem Vater.

The car is from my father.

Das Lied wurde von Beethoven komponiert.

The song was composed by Beethoven.

💡

In German, 'von' is used for both possession and origin, unlike English which uses 'from' for origin and 'by' for possession in some contexts.

Collocations

von jemandemfrom someonevon etwasfrom somethingvon zu Hausefrom home

Synonyms

Antonyms

Related Phrases

von ... zu ...phrase
from ... to ...
von wegenidiom
not at all, nonsense

💡Pro Tip

Possession vs. Origin

Remember that 'von' can mean both 'from' (origin) and 'by' (possession) in English, depending on context.

Gold Rule

Capitalization

In German, 'von' is always lowercase, even when it appears at the beginning of a sentence or in a title.

📖Word Origin

Derived from Old High German 'fona', meaning 'from' or 'away from'.

📝Usage Notes

'Von' is a versatile preposition in German, often used to indicate possession, origin, or source. It can also be used in expressions of time and distance.

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