FormZeitangabe (Position 1) + Verb (Position 2) + Subjekt + …
Meaning and usage
In a German statement the conjugated verb is in position 2. If you start with something other than the subject, such as heute or morgen, the verb still stays in position 2 and the subject moves behind it: Heute lerne ich Deutsch means Today I am learning German.
English speakers often keep the English order and put the subject straight after the time word: Heute ich lerne Deutsch. That is not German. The verb must come second, so the subject follows it.
Examples 5
Heute arbeite ich von zu Hause aus.
Today I'm working at home.
Manchmal sehe ich ihn auf der Straße.
I sometimes see him on the street.
Gestern habe ich den ganzen Tag geschlafen.
I slept all day yesterday.
Morgen werde ich ihr das Buch geben.
I will give her the book tomorrow.
Im Moment fühle ich mich wirklich großartig.
I really do feel phenomenal now.
Test yourself
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1 Sprachbausteine
Heute ich zu Hause.
Show answer
Correct answer: bleibe
The subject is ich, so the verb needs the ending -e. The verb must be in position 2, right after Heute.
- bleibst is the form for du.
- bleibt is the form for er, sie, es or ihr.
- bleiben is the infinitive or the form for wir and sie (plural).
In this topic: Word order
- Verb an Position 2 The conjugated verb comes second in a statement
- Heute lerne ich … Time first, then verb, then subject
- Ich will morgen … fahren. Two verb parts, one second, one last
- und, aber, oder, denn und, aber, oder, denn: verb stays in position 2
- morgen nach Berlin time before place in the middle of a sentence
Example sentences from Tatoeba, used under CC BY 2.0 FR. See sources.