How a Conjunction Affects Sentence Structure The question word takes position 1 and the subject takes position 3. If we want to form a question with a question word (such as why, who, what) the conjugated verb goes back to it’s favourite spot in position 2. If we are using two verbs in the question, we use the same structure as previously learned for 2 verbs, except the verb and subject follow the new question sentence structure rule 5. The rules for forming the perfect tense are quite simple:Ĭonjugated Verb (pos. In order to form the past tense (known as the perfect tense) we need to use an auxiliary verb, either haben or sein, plus the past tense of the main verb. Instead we conjugate the modal verb and put it in position 2, and the unconjugated, unseparated separable verb goes to the end: Subject In the case of separable verbs, these are not separated when used with a modal verb. We also encounter this when using the future tense, since we’ll use the verb werden plus the main verb. The Time Manner Place rule 2, is still followed, it is grouped with ‘Other Info’ and goes after ‘Position 2’ and before ‘The End’. But the important thing is we are following rules 1 and 3. You can see that we’re getting a bit further away from English sentence structure. Let’s take a look at an example sentence to make this clear: Subject Sometimes these are two ordinary verbs, but we’ll also encounter this when we use a modal verb, which always requires a second verb. It’s very common to find two verbs in a sentence. So now we have the basic German sentence structure sorted, let’s see what happens when we introduce a second verb. If a separable verb is used, the prefix is separated and goes to the end of the sentence. The take away for this part is that the conjugated verb stays in position 2, no matter what. Subject (position 1) + Verb (position 2) + Other Info + Prefix If we are using a separable verb such as ankommen (to arrive) the prefix, an-, is always separated and goes to the very end of the sentence. Subject (position 1) + Verb (position 2) + Indirect Object + Direct Object If we want to introduce 2 more objects (1 direct object and 1 indirect object) to the sentence, we stick with the usual subject in position 1, verb in position 2 rule. Time (position 1) + Verb (position 2) + Subject + Manner + Place So now we have the following structure, with the verb still correctly in position 2: This means we end up with a slightly different word order to what we have in English. In German however we must always refer back to rule 1: The conjugated verb always goes in position 2. We can say ‘I go to the gym on Wednesdays’ or ‘On Wednesdays I go to the gym’. German sentence structure is very flexible, so sometimes you will see the time element moved to the beginning of the sentence. Subject (position 1) + Verb (position 2) + Time + Manner + Place Hopefully you can see from these examples that not all 3 elements of Time Manner and Place need to be present for the sentence to make sense. Let’s look at some example sentences using both rule 1 and rule 2: Subject Subject + Verb + The Rest Subject (Position 1) In fact, this basic structure is used whenever only one verb is present. Let’s take a look at an example sentence: Subject Both languages use the ‘subject verb object’ (SVO) structure. In German, the basic sentence structure is the same as in English. There’s a lot to get through, so let’s get started, auf geht’s! Basic German Sentence Structure In this post we will start from the very beginning, then gradually add elements which change the basic structure. This can be a complicated subject for beginners, but believe me that once you learn the rules, you’ll be able to form sentences like a pro. You will learn the rules for German sentence structure, how to form a sentence using the past tense, how to structure questions and what happens to the sentence structure when we introduce certain conjunctions such as weil (because) or dass (that). In this post we will cover everything you need to know about German sentence structure.
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