Welcome back to the engaging and insightful Learn German with LearnningTree series. Today, we are continuing with the German verbs and conjugation 📚🇩🇪.
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Contents
The position of verbs in sentences
In German sentences, the position of the verb is extremely important. You can't choose where to put the verb in German!
The following are the three most frequent types of sentences. Observe the position of the verb in each:
1. Main clauses | Meine Schwester wohnt in Berlin. |
2. Yes/No-Questions | Hast du Kinder? |
3. W-Questions | Wo arbeitest du? |
Summary: Always put the verb in the second position and invert verb and subject to make yes/no-questions.
Example:
Make no mistake: In the sentence
Meine Schwester wohnt in Berlin.
My sister lives in Berlin
The verb is in the second position. The second position need not be the same as the second word. In the above sentence, Meine Schwester counts as one thing, or fills one position. It is the subject of the sentence.
German is a subject-verb-object (SVO) language, just like English!
Looking on the bright side, making questions in German is much easier than in English. There is no need to have extra helping words and the verb is always at the very beginning of the sentence.
Would like (to have)
If you have ever visited a German speaking country, you might have encountered this situation at some point.
Waiter: Möchten Sie etwas essen?
Would you like to eat something?
Customer: Ja, ich hätte gern die Spaghetti Bolognese.
Yes, I would like to have the Spaghetti Bolognese.
Waiter: Möchten Sie etwas trinken?
Would you like to drink something?
Customer: Ja, ich möchte gern ein Glas Wein.
Yes, I would like a glass of wine.
When it comes to making polite requests in German, such as when placing an order at a restaurant or inviting a new friend for tea, you will need to familiarize yourself with some commonly used phrases:
1. Ich hätte gern ein Glas Wasser.
I would like (to have) a glass of water.
2. Ich möchte (gern) ein Glas Wasser.
I would like a glass of water.
3. Ein Glas Wasser, bitte.
A glass of water, please.
4. Ein Glas Wasser.
A glass of water.
From one to four: First sentence is very polite, fourth sentence is the one you shouldn't really use ;)
And don't forget to conjugate the verbs!
Hätten gern (Conditional form of haben) is used for expressing desires politely or hypothetically.
Möchten gern (Subjunctive form of mögen) is also used for expressing polite desires or requests.
Ich hätte gern ein Glas Rotwein.
(I would like a glass of red wine.)
Du hättest gern ein Glas Rotwein.
(You would like a glass of red wine.)
Er/Sie/Es hätte gern ein Glas Rotwein.
(He/She/It would like a glass of red wine.)
Wir hätten gern ein Glas Rotwein.
(We would like a glass of red wine.)
Ihr hättet gern ein Glas Rotwein.
(You all would like a glass of red wine.)
Sie hätten gern ein Glas Rotwein.
(They would like a glass of red wine.)
Ich möchte (gern) eine Cola.
(I would like a cola.)
Du möchtest (gern) eine Cola.
(You would like a cola.)
Er/Sie/Es möchte (gern) eine Cola.
(He/She/It would like a cola.)
Wir möchten (gern) eine Cola.
(We would like a cola.)
Ihr möchtet (gern) eine Cola.
(You all would like a cola.)
Sie möchten (gern) eine Cola.
(They would like a cola.)
Both forms ("hätte gern" and "möchte gern") express a polite or slightly formal way of saying "I would like," but "hätte gern" is a bit more hypothetical or formal, while "möchte gern" is more commonly used in everyday requests.
Note the use of gern is optional with möchte, but it is not with hätte. If you want to know why, check out the grammar section below.
Jakob:Möchtest du etwas trinken?(Do you want something to drink?)
Antwort:Ja, gern.(Yes, I'd like that.)
Jakob:Was hättest du gern?(What would you like?)
Antwort:Mmh, hast du Schwarztee?(Hmm, do you have black tea?)
Jakob:Ja, klar.(Yes, of course.)
Perhaps you have noticed that hätte and habe are similar in meaning and in form. This is because hätte derives from the verb haben. We call this type of conjugation (or mode) "Konjunktiv 2" and we use it for hypothetical scenarios.
I don't have a bike, but if I had one,...
Ich habe kein Fahrrad, aber wenn ich eins hätte,...
That's why this form is so polite, because we humbly imply "well, hypothetically, if you don't mind, if it's possible for you,..."
And because hätte alone means "I would have/(if) I had", we cannot use it without gern to make polite requests, only for if-sentences.
The Imperative Mood
The imperative mood is used to formulate commands or make requests.
In English, the imperative forms look like this:
Come here!
Close the door, please!
Call me!
In German, they look like this:
Komm her!
Come here!
Trink ein Bier mit mir!
Drink a beer with me!
If you were questioning whether "her" was a mistake... No, it's not. There is a word in English, both in meaning and appearance, that resembles it... That word is "here". German, on the other hand, tends to be more precise and distinguishes between two different words for "here".
- use hier when you talk about a fixed location
- use her when you talk about destination
Here are some examples of the imperative in German:
kommen → komm!
sagen → sag!
trinken → trink!
But: Irregular verbs will remain irregular in the imperative form!
sprechen → sprich!
sehen → sieh!
For irregular verbs, these two steps will help you:
1. CONJUGATE: sehen → du siehst
2. REMOVE: du siehst → Sieh!
Giving orders or commands using the imperative can sound a little harsh in German. Also, using bitte can sound a bit rude, even passive aggressive.
The solution lies in the magical word "doch." Its meaning cannot be translated, so don't even try to ask!
Komm her! → Komm doch her!
Why don't you come over here?
Just like there are three different words in German to say you, (du, ihr and Sie), there are also three different forms for the imperative.
Here are some examples:
du | ihr | Sie |
essen → iss! | essen → esst! | essen → essen Sie! |
trinken → trink! | trinken → trinkt! | trinken → trinken Sie! |
warten → warte! | warten → wartet! | warten → warten Sie! |
gehen → geh! | gehen → geht! | gehen → gehen Sie! |
Observe how the two steps are applicable to both informal forms, while the formal Sie stays the same.
Now you have the ability to ask others to perform tasks on your behalf!
Separable verbs
German is known for its compound words, both with nouns and verbs. These compound words are made by combining smaller words (often with prefixes, suffixes, or other verbs) to create a more specific or detailed meaning. The good news is that once you get the hang of the patterns, you can often guess the meaning of new compound words.
Rechtsschutzversicherungsgesellschaft is a famous example, and it literally breaks down as:
Recht (law, right)
Schutz (protection)
Versicherung (insurance)
Gesellschaft (company, society)
So, Rechtsschutzversicherungsgesellschaft is a "legal protection insurance company."
Let's look one more example:
stehen | stand |
auf | up |
aufstehen | get up |
Verbs that are made up of a verb and a prefix are called trennbare verben (separable verbs). There are quite a few trennbare verben in German!
How do separable verbs work in a sentence?
In German, separable verbs consist of a base verb and a prefix. The key feature is that in the present tense, the prefix is separated from the base verb and placed at the end of the sentence, especially in statements or questions.
For example:
Seperable verb: aufstehen (to get up) → stehe... auf in the sentence.
Ich stehe jeden Morgen um 7 Uhr auf.
(I get up every morning at 7.)
In this sentence, the prefix "auf" is moved to the end, while "stehe" stays in the second position.
Question example:
Wann stehst du jeden Morgen auf?
(When do you get up every morning?)
Here, "auf" is still at the end, and the verb "stehst" stays in the second position.
Incorrect sentences:
Ich aufstehe um 7 Uhr.
(This is incorrect because the prefix "auf" should be placed at the end of the sentence, not after the subject.)
Wann aufstehst du?
(This is incorrect because in a question, the verb "aufstehst" should come right after the question word "wann," and the prefix "auf" should be placed at the end.)
In short, for separable verbs in the present tense:
The base verb (e.g., stehe, stehst) stays in the second position.
The prefix (e.g., auf) moves to the end of the sentence.
Common separable prefixes and their meanings
It is a very good idea to know the meanings of common prefixes to help you learn separable verbs quicker.
auf | → | up |
aufräumen | → | to clean up, to tidy up |
aufstehen | → | to get up, to stand up |
aus | → | out, off |
ausgehen | → | to go out |
ausmachen | → | to switch off |
zurück | → | back |
zurückgeben | → | to give back |
zurückkommen | → | to come back |
zusammen | → | together |
zusammenkommen | → | to come together |
zusammenziehen | → | to move in together |
Because of the way they are constructed, it is possible that you might be able to guess words and say something that is actually a word! It doesn’t quite always work though. For example, ausgeben, doesn’t mean “to give out”, it means “to spend”.
Inseparable verbs
German verbs with prefixes can be separated when conjugated, but not all verbs with prefixes are separable. Let's examine a few examples to understand this distinction.
separable | inseparable |
aufstehen : to get up | verstehen: to understand |
einkaufen: to shop (for food) | erklären: to explain |
A good way to distinguish whether a verb is separable or inseparable is to pay attention to where the stress in the infinitive is placed.
separable | inseparable |
AUFstehen | verSTEhen |
EINkaufen | erKLÄren |
REMEMBER!
Separable verbs are stressed in the first syllable, just like the word "separable", inseparable verbs are stressed in the second syllable, just like the word "inseparable".
It can definitely feel overwhelming at first, but don’t worry about it too much right now. Learning a new language is a gradual process, and you don’t need to memorize everything all at once. Take it step by step.
Stay tuned! we’ll be back to break it all down step by step as you go along. One thing at a time, and you'll see how everything fits together. Keep practicing, and before you know it, these concepts will start to feel much more manageable!
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