8.1 Wortstellung in Aussagesätzen
The Nominative Case
The German language has four cases: nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive. When we use a nouns and pronouns in sentences, we also assign specific cases to the nouns and pronouns to signal their function in the sentence. So far, you have seen many examples of the nominative case where the noun/pronoun functions as the sentence subject. The following examples give a recap:
- Die Tafel ist weiß.
- Meine Partnerin heißt Karla.
- Das ist ein Buch. Es ist blau.
- Monique wohnt in Montreal.
If you want to learn more about the four cases in German, click on this link: German Cases Explained: The Simplest Guide to German Case System
Word Order in Statements
In English, the word order in a statement is usually subject – verb – complement.
| Subject | Verb | Complement |
|---|---|---|
| Lee | studies | chemistry. |
When a word or expression is added to the beginning of the sentence, the word order does not change.
| Added word | Subject | Verb | Complement |
|---|---|---|---|
| This term | Lee | studies | chemistry. |
In German, in contrast, the verb is always in second position.
| Subject (I) | Verb (II) | Complement (III) |
|---|---|---|
| Lee | studiert | Chemie. |
If the sentence starts with something other than the subject, the verb stays in second position, and the subject moves into third position. We also call this an “inverted word order.”
| Added words (I) | Verb (II) | Subject (III) | Complement (IV) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dieses Semester | studiert | Lee | Chemie. |
Here are several examples of inverted and regular word order. The position of the verb is always in second position.
- Inverted: Im Sommer studiere ich nicht. [or] Regular: Ich studiere im Sommer nicht.
- Inverted: Dieses Semester habe ich um 10 Uhr Deutsch. [or] Regular: Ich habe dieses Semester um 10 Uhr Deutsch.
- Inverted: Jeden Abend arbeite ich von 17 bis 22 Uhr. [or] Regular: Ich arbeite jeden Abend von 17 bis 22 Uhr.
Achtung!
There is no comma after the expression at the beginning of an inverted word order sentence in German.
Übung 8.1a: Let’s review!
Text Description
Slide 1: Multiple Choice Activity
Let’s review what we have learned about word order in German statements.
- In a German statement the verb is always in ________ position. (Answer options: third, second, first)
- Does this statement have proper word order? Um 13 Uhr ich habe Deutsch. (Answer options: Nein! Ja!)
- What needs to be in second position? Um 13 Uhr ich habe Deutsch. (Answer options: ich [the subject], habe [the verb])
- What sentence has the correct word order? (Answer options: Um 13 Uhr Deutsch habe ich, Um 13 Uhr ich habe Deutsch, Um 13 Uhr habe ich Deutsch)
Slide 2: Drag and Drop Activity
Now it is your turn to make correct German statements based on what you have previously read. Drag the word into the correct order.
- Am Montag ________ ________ ________, (Answer options: habe, ich, Geschichte)
- ________ ________ dieses Semester ________ (Answer options: hat, Lee, Biologie)
Slide 3: Drag and Drop Activity
Drag the words into the correct order.
- Am Mittwoch ________ ________ Politikwissenschaft.
- Maren hat ________ ________. (Answer options: Mathematik, ich, am Dienstag, habe)
Slide 4: Drag and Drop Activity
Drag the words in the correct order.
- ________ arbeite ich.
- ________ ________ an einer Universität.
- Am Freitag ________ ________ _________.
Answer options: Medienwissenschaft, studiere, hat, Ich, Sven, Um Viertel nach 2
Correct Answers:
Slide 1: 1. second, 2. Nein!, 3. habe (the verb), 4. Um 13 Uhr habe ich Deutsch.
Slide 2: 1. Am Montag habe ich Geschichte., 2. Lee hat dieses Semester Biologie.
Slide 3: 1. Am Mittwoch habe ich Politikwissenschaft., 2. Maren hat am Dienstag Mathematik.
Slide 4: 1. Um Viertel nach 2 arbeite ich., 2. Ich studiere an einer Universität., 3. Am Freitag hat Sven Medienwissenschaft.
“2.4” and “2.6” from Willkommen: Deutsch für alle by Claudia Kost and Crystal Sawatzky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.
