TOPIC · Verbs (Verben)

Position of the verb in the sentence

A1A2

After this lesson you can place the German verb correctly in simple main clauses, questions, and basic subordinate clauses with the common patterns.

In this lesson you learn where the verb stands in a German sentence. In German, the position of the finites Verb (conjugated verb) is crucial for the sentence type and the meaning.

1Basic pattern: Verb in position 2

In Aussagesätze (statements) and W-Fragen (questions with a question word), the finite verb is normally in position 2. "Position 2" means after the first Satzglied (sentence unit), not necessarily after the first word.

1.1 Statement with normal word order

Sentence type	Position 1	Position 2 (finites Verb)	Middle field	Sentence end
Aussagesatz	Ich	esse	ein Stück Kuchen
Aussagesatz	Heute	esse	ich ein Stück Kuchen

"Ich" and "Heute" are each one Satzglied. The verb esse stays in position 2.

1.2 W-questions

Sentence type	Position 1 (W-word)	Position 2 (finites Verb)	Middle field	Sentence end
W-Frage	Was	isst	du heute Abend
W-Frage	Wann	kommst	du nach Hause

The W-word comes first, the finite verb is still in position 2.

1.3 Separable verbs (trennbare Verben)

With trennbare Verben, the verb stem stays in position 2, the prefix goes to the end of the sentence.

Sentence type	Position 1	Position 2 (stem)	Middle field	Sentence end (prefix)
Aussagesatz	Er	steht	jeden Morgen früh auf	auf
W-Frage	Wann	stehst	du normalerweise auf	auf

1.4 Modalverben

With Modalverben, the modal verb is the finite verb in position 2, the main verb (Infinitiv) stands at the end.

Sentence type	Position 1	Position 2 (Modalverb)	Middle field	Sentence end (Infinitiv)
Aussagesatz	Sie	kann	sehr gut	schwimmen
W-Frage	Was	möchtest	du heute	machen

1.5 Hilfsverben (Perfekt, Futur etc.)

With Hilfsverben (auxiliaries), the Hilfsverb is in position 2, the Partizip II or Infinitiv at the end.

Sentence type	Position 1	Position 2 (Hilfsverb)	Middle field	Sentence end
Perfekt	Ihr	habt	das Buch zusammen	gelesen
Futur	Morgen	wirst	du nach Berlin	fahren

2Verb in position 1

In Ja/Nein-Fragen and in the Imperativ, the finite verb stands in position 1.

2.1 Ja/Nein-Fragen

Sentence type	Position 1 (finites Verb)	Middle field	Sentence end
Ja/Nein-Frage	Wohnst	du in Berlin
Ja/Nein-Frage	Hast	du das Buch schon gelesen

With Modalverb or trennbares Verb:

Sentence type	Position 1 (finites Verb)	Middle field	Sentence end
Ja/Nein-Frage	Kann	er gut	schwimmen
Ja/Nein-Frage	Steht	sie morgen früh	auf

2.2 Imperativ

In the Imperativ, the verb normally stands alone at the beginning.

Sentence type	Position 1 (Imperativ)	Middle field	Sentence end
Imperativsatz	Komm	bitte sofort	her
Imperativsatz	Steh	morgen früh	auf

3Verb at the end in Nebensätze (preview)

Already at A1/A2 you should know: in many Nebensätze with "weil" or "dass", the finite verb goes to the end:

Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich krank bin. (I stay at home because I am ill.)
Er sagt, dass er heute keine Zeit hat. (He says that he has no time today.)

Important: in the Hauptsatz the verb is in position 2, in the Nebensatz it is at the end.