Prepositions connect words and groups of words together. They express the relation between living beings, things or contexts. Prepositions that describe spatial relations, like placement, or directional relations, are called location prepositions or prepositions of location.
"in" is one of the most common location prepositions. It is used in the context of movement within a closed space, building or a region.
Example:
Ich gehe in das Kino.
It usually answers the question "Wohin?" (to where/where to).
Example:
Wohin gehst du? - In das Kino.
In such cases, the accusative case always follows.
If "in" is followed by the neuter definite article "das", then it can often be contracted to form the article "ins":
| Preposition + article | Contraction | Example | ||
| in + das (accusative) | ins | Ich gehe ins Kino. Ich gehe ins Fitness-Studio. |
"in", "zu" or "nach"?
It's not always easy to decide when to use which preposition, so you're better off learning them in context. But for a loose general rule, you can follow these pointers:
| Wohin? (where to?) | Destination of the movement | |
| Ich gehe ins Kino. Ich fliege in die USA. |
enclosed spaces/buildings geographical locations with an article |
|
| Ich fahre nach Berlin. Ich fliege nach Brasilien. |
cities geographical locations without an article |
|
| Das Taxi fährt zum Bahnhof. Ich fliege zu meiner Familie. |
places (except for geographical locations) people |