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Grammar Notes - Position of the Verb |
Statements
English has few Case endings so Word Order rigidly follows the pattern: Subject - Verb - Object.
German has Case endings which indicate Word function. This means that Word Order can be more flexible. However there are some hard and fast rules which must be observed.
What is the position of German Verbs in a Statement? Consider the examples in the table below then attempt the explanation.
Check your findings with the Solution.
I'll put the flowers in water 
Die Blumen stell' ich ins Wasser
Actually I wanted to introduce my son Eigentlich wollte ich meinen Sohn vorstellen Half an hour ago we were sitting on the patio Vor einer halben Stunde sassen wir noch auf der Terasse He works in town Er arbeitet in der Stadt We get it from France Den haben wir aus Frankreich I'll have to remember that! Das muß ich mir merken! You'll have to come again soon Sie sollten bald wieder kommen
However:
- In a Statement, the Main Verb always has to be in _______ place.
- If there are two Verbs in a Statement, the second one goes to the _______.
Solution: Verb position
However:
- In a Statement, the Main Verb always has to be in 2nd place.
- If there are two Verbs in a Statement, the second one goes to the end.
Questions and Commands
In both languages the Verb begins the Question (unless a question word is used - in which case the Verb follows as 2nd 'idea') or the Command (unless a qualifier is used, such as 'Please').
Are you going there? Gehen Sie hin? Are you from here? Sind Sie von hier? 
What's the best way to get there?
Wie fährt man dort am besten? How long does it take, approximately? Wie lange dauert das ungefähr? Fax me your order Faxen Sie mir Ihre Bestellung Improve the delivery time Verbessern Sie die Lieferzeit Let's go straight there! Gehen wir gleich hin! Enjoy it! Lassen Sie es sich schmecken!
Subordinate, Conditional and Relative Clauses
A 'Main Clause' makes sense on its own. The other Clauses do not:
- a Subordinate Clause is 'subordinate' to the main idea (in the Main Clause);
- a Conditional Clause also 'defers' to the idea in the Main Clause;
- a Relative Clause 'relates' to the idea in the Main Clause.
If you like, I'll take a photo of you later Wenn Sie wollen, mache ich später von Ihnen ein Bild. Nobody likes what they're doing with our taxes! Keinem gefällt es, was man mit unseren Steuern so treibt! It will get to the pitch that the market is saturated Es wird so weit kommen, daß der Markt gesättigt wird You'll have to excuse me if I'm getting too loud 
Sie müssen verzeihen, wenn ich zu laut werde.
As soon as you've passed Waldorf, keep right Sobald Sie an Waldorf vorbei sind, halten Sie sich rechts If I were you, I'd visit the Star Bar Wenn ich Sie wäre, würde ich die Sternenbar aufsuchen But if I had wanted that, I'd have already done it! Aber wenn ich das gewollt hätte, hätt' ich's schon getan!
- In Subordinate and Relative Clauses, the Verb is in a _______ position at the _______ of its Clause.
- If there are two Verbs, they both come at the _______.
- Where the Statement begins with Subordinate or Relative Clause, the Main Verb has to come _______ (in _______ position as always in a Statement). The pattern 'Verb,Verb' is therefore common in German.
- In Subordinate and Relative Clauses, the Verb is in a 'subordinate' position at the end of its Clause.
- If there are two Verbs, they both come at the end.
- Where the Statement begins with Subordinate or Relative Clause, the Main Verb has to come next (in 2nd position as always in a Statement).
The pattern 'Verb,Verb' is therefore common in German.
Conditional Clause without 'wenn'
If I'd only known that! Hätt' ich das nur gewußt!
Test yourself!
In respect of the above sections, try the following:
- Study the explanations and examples.
- Print out the table for the grammar point you are working on and fold it into 2 vertically.
You will then be able to check your recall of the English and German examples by folding
and unfolding the paper.
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Copyright ULTRALAB at Anglia Polytechnic University |