The difference of in and zu
for example:
Ich gehe zur Bank
Ich gehe in die Bank
zum kino
ins kino

Question

The difference of in and zu
for example: 
Ich gehe zur Bank
Ich gehe in die Bank
zum kino
ins kino

Answer

Hey Jeremias!

"Ich gehe zur Bank / zum Kino" means, you go TO the bank / TO the cinema.
"Ich gehe in die Bank / ins Kino " means, you go INTO the bank / INTO the cinema.

Answer

When talking about a building, "zu" means "to the building", but not necessarily inside, while "in" means that you enter the building. So you can say: 
"Ich gehe zum Haus" - "I go to the house (and wait outside)".
"Ich gehe ins Haus" - "I go into the house".

Then you can talk about institutions such as a school, a bank, a court etc. When you interact with such an institution, you use "zu". As in: 
"Ich gehe zur Schule" - "I attend school" (no matter where it is located). 
"Ich gehe zur Arbeit" - "I go to work"

And then there are words that can mean both a building and an institution. In these case, the usage of "zu" is a bit ambiguous. So "Ich gehe zur Bank" can mean "I go to the bank building (and meet somebody outside)" or "I go to the bank counter (inside the building) and talk to a clerk". In these cases, only the context will tell you which meaning is intended.

Answers · 2

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