German Verbs and Word Order: Tenses, Modals and Sentence Structure
German word order is different from English, and the verb is the key to most of it. This guide explains the main tenses and the sentence patterns they create.
Verb second in main clauses
In a main statement the conjugated verb is always in second position, whatever comes first. "Morgen fahre ich nach Berlin" and "Ich fahre morgen nach Berlin" both work. See verb position in statements.
Verb at the end in subordinate clauses
After weil, dass, wenn, ob and obwohl the conjugated verb moves to the end: "Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich krank bin." Start with weil and dass.
The perfect tense
In everyday speech, the perfect tense is the usual past. Form it with haben or sein plus a past participle: "Ich habe Pizza gegessen", "Ich bin nach Hause gegangen". Most verbs take haben; verbs of motion and change take sein. See perfect with haben and perfect with sein.
The simple past
The simple past (Präteritum) is common in writing and with sein, haben and modal verbs in speech: "Ich war müde", "Ich konnte nicht schlafen". Learn sein and haben and the modals first.
Modal verbs
Modal verbs such as können, müssen and wollen send the main verb to the end as an infinitive: "Ich kann gut schwimmen." See modal verbs and their full conjugation.
Separable verbs
Verbs such as aufstehen and anrufen split in main clauses: "Ich stehe um sieben auf." Learn the verb with its prefix. See separable verbs.
Future and conditional
The present tense with a time word usually expresses the future. Use werden for promises and predictions. For wishes and polite requests, use the Konjunktiv II.
Practice
Take a sentence you know and change one element at a time: move the time phrase to the front, then turn it into a subordinate clause. Check your work against the grammar topics and the level tests.