Genitive preposition 'statt' (instead of)

statt (also anstatt, "instead of") marks an alternative or replacement and governs the genitive.

After statt, the article becomes des/der and masculine/neuter nouns add -s/-es.

Examples:

• Ich trinke statt des Kaffees einen Tee. - I drink a tea instead of the coffee.
• Statt eines Autos kaufte sie ein Fahrrad. - Instead of a car she bought a bicycle.
• Anstatt des Films schauen wir eine Serie. - Instead of the film we watch a series.

statt and anstatt are interchangeable; anstatt is slightly more formal. Both relate to the infinitive construction (an)statt ... zu (e.g. statt zu arbeiten, schläft er).

Register note: As with the other genitive prepositions, the dative appears in casual speech (statt dem Kaffee), but the genitive is the standard form.

Common mistakes: Using the dative in writing; forgetting the masculine/neuter genitive ending.

'statt' (instead of) marks an alternative and takes the genitive.

Marks a replacement (instead of something); 'statt' + genitive.

'statt' nennt einen Ersatz und steht mit dem Genitiv.