Glossary
a
Accusative
Akkusativ; one of the four cases used for declension. Indicates the direct recipient of the action expressed by the verb; answers the question wen? or was?
Compare: Nominative, Dative, Genitive
Ich kenne den großen Jungen.
Action verb
Handlungsverb; describes an action that is consciously performed by the subject.
Compare: Processual verb, Stative verb
arbeiten, lesen, rennen
Active
Aktiv; a sentence in which the subject itself is "actively" doing something.
Compare: Passive
Der Mann baut ein Haus.
Adjective
Adjektiv; describing words that modify nouns or pronouns. Adjectives tell us what something is like.
See also: Adverbial adjective, Attributive adjective, Predicative adjective
gut, böse, schnell
Adverb
Adverb; adverbs describe verbs, adjectives or other adverbs; they give information about place, time, reason or manner. Adverbs are not declined.
hier, gestern, sehr, leider
Adverbial
Adverbiale Bestimmung; can consist of an adverb or a group of words and gives details about a place, time, reason or manner.
Ich warte hier.
Ich lerne jeden Tag.
Wir freuen uns auf deinen Besuch.
Er zitterte vor Kälte.
Adverbial adjective
Adverbiales Adjektiv; another word for Adverb.
See also: Adverb
schnell laufen
laut lachen
Adverbial clause
Adverbialsatz; type of subordinate clause used in place of an adverbial, usually introduced by a subjunction.
Weil ich verschlafen hatte, verpasste ich den Bus.
Adversative clause
Adversativsatz; type of adverbial clause that expresses a contrast, often introduced by wohingegenwhereas.
Er trinkt gern Milch, wohingegen ich darauf allergisch bin.
Akkusativobjekt
Article
Artikel; small word placed before a noun. Can be definite (der, die, das …) or indefinite (ein, eine …).
der Tisch
eine Blume
Attribute
Attribut; an adjective, noun, possessive, location, time, or even an entire subordinate clause that gives more details about a noun. Answers the question which or which one?
die schwarze Katze
das Fell der Katze
unsere Katze
die Katze im Bett
Die Katze, die im Bett liegt, ist schwarz.
Attributive adjective
Attributives Adjektiv; comes before a noun and is declined.
Compare: Predicative adjective
ein schneller Junge
eine laute Stimme
Attributive clause
Attributsatz; a subordinate clause that answers the question which? or which one? by giving more details about a subject or an object (usually a relative clause).
Hier ist das Buch, das du unbedingt lesen musst.
Auxiliary verb
Hilfsverb; the auxiliary verbs are: habento have, seinto be and werdento become. They form the compound tenses and the passive.
(compare: Full verb)
er hat gelacht, er ist gerannt, wir werden gehen
b
Begleiter
Bestimmter Artikel
c
Causal adverb
Kausal; causal adverbs introduce a reason or purpose.
folglich, nämlich
Causal clause
Kausalsatz; adverbial clause that states a reason, introduced by weilbecause, dasince …
Ich fahre mit dem Auto, weil ich Angst vorm Fliegen habe.
Closed question
Entscheidungsfrage; a question without a question word, can be answered with yes/no.
Kommst du mit ins Kino?
Comparative
Komparativ; when we add the ending -er to the basic form of the adjective; used in comparisons with als.
See also: Superlative
klein – kleiner – am kleinsten
Er ist kleiner als du.
Er ist ein kleinerer Junge als du.
Compound verbs
Verbalkomplex; a predicate that consists of multiple verbs, e.g. in multi-part verbs like einkaufen gehento go shopping, compound tenses, the passive voice and modal verbs.
Wir gehen einkaufen.
Er hat geschlafen.
Wir wollen uns einen Film ansehen.
Concessive clause
Konzessivsatz; adverbial clause that expresses a limitation or an idea that stands in opposition to the main clause. Often introduced by obwohlalthough.
Obwohl sie keine Lust hatte, ging sie mit ihren Eltern spazieren.
Conditional clause
Konditionalsatz, if clause; adverbial clause that expresses a condition, introduced by falls, wennif.
Wenn es regnet, bleiben wir zu Hause.
Conjugation
Konjugation; when we change the verb to agree with the subject, tense, mood etc.
ich gehe, du gehst, …
Conjunction
Konjunktion; linking words that connect main clauses.
Word order: conjunction + subject + conjugated verb + ...
(compare: Subjunction, Infinitive conjunction, Conjunctional adverb, Satzteilkonjunktion)
aber, und, oder, sondern
Conjunctional adverb
Konjunktionaladverb; an adverb that connects two clauses.
Word order: conjunction + conjugated verb + subject + ...
also, darum, trotzdem
Er ist krank, darum ist er heute nicht gekommen.
Conjunctional clause
Konjunktionalsatz; a subordinate clause which is introduced by a subjunction.
See also: Subjunction
Er kann nicht kommen, weil er krank ist.
Consecutive clause
Konsekutivsatz; an adverbial clause that expresses a consequence, often introduced by dassthat or sodassso that.
Der Hund bellte so laut, dass alle Nachbarn wach wurden.
Consonant
Konsonant; a letter or sound that is not a vowel
(compare: Vowel)
b, c, d, f, g, h, j, k, l, m, n, p, q, r, s, t, v, w, x, y, z
d
Dative
Dativ; one of the four cases used for declension. Indicates the indirect recipient of the action expressed by the verb; answers the question wem?
Compare: Nominative, Accusative, Genitive
Der Ball gehört dem großen Jungen.
Dativobjekt
Declension
Deklination; changing the ending of a noun, article, pronoun or adjective according to the case.
See also: Nominative, Accusative, Dative, Genitive
der große Junge (nominative)
den großen Junge (accusative)
dem großen Jungen (dative)
des großen Jungens (genitive)
Definite article
Bestimmter Artikel; an article that refers to a specific noun, similar to the in English.
der, die, das
der Tisch, die Katze
Deklination
Demonstrative pronoun
Demonstrativpronomen; refers back to or emphasises something previously mentioned.
dieser, jener, das, der
Das weiß ich nicht.
Demonstrativpronomen
Dependent clause
Determiner
Begleiter; word used before a noun to identify it more specifically or assign it a quality.
Das ist mein Koffer.
Deine Katze ist niedlich.
Wir laden viele Gäste ein.
Direct object
Akkusativobjekt, direktes Objekt; is the person or thing that directly receives the action of a verb. Ask wen? or was? to determine the direct object.
See also: Accusative
Ich kenne ihn.
Ich gebe dem Bruder einen Apfel.
Direct speech
Direkte Rede; repetition of a statement in its original wording, indicated by a colon and quotation marks.
(compare: Indirect speech)
Er sagte: „Ich gehe jeden Tag joggen.“
Direkte Rede
e
Entscheidungsfrage
Ergänzungsfrage
f
Feminine
die Butter, eine Maus, sie
Final clause
Finalsatz; adverbial clause that expresses an objective or purpose, introduced by damitso that.
Ich sage das, damit du es dir merkst.
Finalsatz
Finite verb
Finites Verb; conjugated verb.
ich gehe
du bist
er hatte
Flexion
Frageadverb
Full verb
Vollverb; main verb that expresses an action, process or state and therefore carries the meaning of the sentence.
Compare: Auxiliary verb
Wir haben gearbeitet.
Es hat geschneit.
Sie hat hier gewohnt.
Future
Futur I; the future tense (werden + infinitive), used for intentions, plans, predictions, future events …
ich werde gehen
Future Perfect
Futur II; completed future (werden + Partizip II + haben/sein), expresses an action that will have been completed at a certain point in the future.
ich werde gegangen sein
g
Gegenwart
Gemischtes Verb
Gender
Genus; shows whether a noun or pronoun is masculine, feminine, or neuter.
der Mann
die Frau
das Kind
Genitive
Genitiv; one of the four cases used for declension; answers the question wessen? or weswegen?
Compare: Nominative, Accusative, Dative
des großen Jungen
Genitive object
Genitivobjekt; certain verbs and prepositions take a genitive object.
Der Kandidat enthielt sich der Stimme.
Genus
Geschlecht
Grammatical number
Numerus; whether a noun or subject is singular or plural.
der Hund – die Hunde
ich gehe – wir gehen
Grundform
h
Handlungsverb
Hauptsatz
Hilfsverb
Hinweisendes Fürwort
Honorific
i
If clause
Imperative
Imperativ; expresses commands, orders and requests. Can be used with du, ihr, Sie, wir.
Warte!
Lauft!
Bleiben Sie!
Gehen wir!
Imperfekt
Indefinite article
Unbestimmter Artikel; an article which refers to an unspecified noun, similar to a or an in English.
See also: Definite article
ein, eine, einen …
ein Tisch, eine Katze
Independent clause
Hauptsatz; a clause that can stand by itself without additional clauses.
Der Junge lacht.
Indicative
Indikativ; the default mood for verbs; presents information as fact in a neutral manner.
Compare: Subjunctive
er geht — er ging — er ist gegangen
Indikativ
Indirect object
Indirektes Objekt, Dativobjekt; certain verbs and prepositions take an indirect object. Ask wem? to determine the indirect object.
In sentences with multiple objects, the indirect object is usually the person for whom the action is intended.
See also: Dative
Ich vertraue ihm.
Ich gebe deinem Bruder einen Apfel.
Indirect question
Indirekte Frage; a question that appears as a subordinate clause introduced by ob or a question word. No question mark is used.
Er fragt, ob du tanzen willst.
Sie möchte wissen, wie du heißt.
Indirect speech
Reported speech, indirekte Rede; when we report what someone has said without repeating their exact words. No quotation marks are used and the verb is usually in the subjunctive.
Compare: Direct speech
Er sagte, er gehe jeden Tag joggen.
Indirekte Frage
Infinitive
Infinitiv; the basic, unconjugated form of the verb. Most German infinitives end in -en.
gehen, haben, lernen
Infinitive clause
Infinitivsatz; subordinate clause that uses an infinitive with zu.
Es freut mich, Sie kennenzulernen.
Infinitive conjunction
Infinitivkonjunktion; linking word that takes the infinitive.
ohne zu, statt zu, um zu
Infinitivkonjunktion
Infinitivsatz
Inflection
Flexion; when the ending of a verb, article, noun, pronoun or adjective changes as a result of conjugation or declension.
Compare: Declension, Conjugation
ich gehe, du gehst
dem großen Jungen
meine neue Tasche
Interrogative adverb
Interrogativadverb; question words that ask about place, time, direction, manner, reason …
Compare: Adverb
wo, wohin, wann, warum, weshalb, wie
Wo wohnst du?
Interrogative pronoun
Interrogativpronomen; question words that ask about the subject or object.
wer, was, wem, wen, wessen
Wer hat das gesagt?
Intransitive verb
Intransitives Verb; verb that does not take a direct object.
Compare: Transitive verb
lachen → Er lacht.
k
Kausalsatz
Konditionalsatz
Konjunktionaladverb
Konjunktionalsatz
Konjunktiv
Konzessivsatz
l
Locative adverb
Lokaladverb; adverb of a place; indicates wo? or wohin?
da, hierher, links, oben, weg
Locative clause
Lokalsatz; adverbial clause that refers to a place or location; introduced by wo?, wohin? or woher?
Wo er wohnt, ist es sehr schön.
Lokaladverb
Lokalsatz
m
Main Clause
Masculine
Maskulin, männlich; grammatical gender for articles, nouns and pronouns.
der Baum, ein Hund, er
Mixed verb
Gemischtes Verb; irregular verb that changes its stem and forms its past participle with ge...t.
Compare: Weak verb, Strong verb
denken – dachte – gedacht
rennen – rannte – gerannt
Modal adverb
Modaladverb; adverb of manner; answers the question wie?, wie sehr? or wie viel?
anders, gern, sehr
Modal clause
Modalsatz; adverbial clause that expresses manner, often introduced by indemby
In Deutschland begrüßt man sich, indem man sich die Hand reicht.
Modal verb
Modalverb; a verb that changes the meaning of another verb to expresses ability, wishes, permission, etc. Always followed by an infinitive.
The modal verbs are: dürfento be allowed to, können to be able to, möchten, mögento like, müssen must/have to, sollenshould/be supposed to, wollento want
ich kann lesen
er will schlafen
wir müssen lernen
Modalsatz
Mood
Modus; the mood reflects the speaker’s intention or attitude towards the information being presented.
German has three moods; the indicative (standard mood), the subjunctive (shows doubt, wishes, subjectivity, impossibility …), and the imperative (commands and orders).
See also: Indicative, Subjunctive and Imperative
Ich komme zur Party. (indicative)
Ich käme zur Party, wenn ich Zeit hätte. (subjunctive)
Komm doch zur Party! (imperative)
n
Nachsilbe
Nebensatz
Neuter
Neutral, sächlich; grammatical gender of articles, nouns and pronouns.
das Geld, ein Haus, es
Nicht trennbares Verb
Nominative
Nominativ, one of the four cases used to decline articles, nouns, pronouns and adjectives. Indicates wer? or was? in a sentence.
See also: Accusative, Dative, Genitive
Der große Junge spielt Basketball.
Non-separable verb
Nicht trennbares Verb; a verb that contains a prefix which cannot be removed (be-, ent-, er-, ge-, etc.)
Compare: Separable verb
ich bestehe
ich habe bestanden
Noun
Nomen, Substantiv; a naming word. German nouns are declined and usually preceded by an article.
das Haus, der Mond, die Luft, die Leute
Numerus
o
Object
Objekt; the recipient of the action expressed by the verb. The object is a pronoun or a noun (together with any accompanying articles or adjectives) and appears in the accusative, dative or genitive.
Ich gebe dem Jungen einen großen Apfel.
Der Kandidat enthielt sich der Stimme.
Object clause
Objektsatz; subordinate clause that acts as an object.
Ich verstehe, was er meint.
Open question
Ergänzungsfrage; a question with a question word.
Wann ist sie gegangen?
p
Participle clause
Partizipialsatz; subordinate clause that contains the present or the past participle.
Vor Vergnügen quietschend, sprang das Kind in den Pool.
Partizip I
Partizip II
Partizipsatz
Partly reflexive verb
Teilreflexives Verb; a verb that has a different meaning depending on whether it is reflexive or non-reflexive.
sich ärgern → to get annoyed/upset
jemanden ärgern → to annoy someone
Passive
Passiv; the focus of the sentence is the recipient of the action (the object); the person or thing performing the action (the subject) is unimportant, unknown, or obvious.
Compare: Processual passive, Statal passive
Das Haus wird gebaut.
Past participle
Partizip II; the third form of the verb, used to form compound past tenses as well as the passive.
ich habe gelernt
ihr seid gefahren
Das Haus wird gebaut.
Past perfect
Plusquamperfekt; expresses an action that took place prior to a certain point or second action in the past.
Ich kam erst an als er schon gegangen war.
Past tense
Perfekt
Personal pronouns
Personalpronomen; the pronouns ich, du, er, sie, es, wir, ihr, sie and their declined forms mich, mir, dich, dir etc.
ich, du, uns, euch
Personalpronomen
Plural
expresses a multitude of something; nouns, articles, adjectives, verbs and pronouns can be used in the plural.
Compare: Singular
Die großen Geschenke sind für uns.
Plusquamperfekt
Polite form
Höflichkeitsform, honorific; the name given to the Sie conjugation. Use this in formal contexts and with strangers.
Wie heißen Sie?
Wie geht es Ihnen?
Positive form
Positive Form; the basic form of an adjective, often used in comparisons with (genau)so ... wie(just) as ... as.
ein kleiner Junge
Der Junge ist klein.
Er ist nicht so klein wie du.
Possessive article
Possessivartikel; stands in front of a noun and indicates possession/belonging. When used in place of a noun, it is technically a Possessive pronoun.
mein Tisch, eure Katze
Possessive pronoun
Possessivpronomen; pronoun indicating possession that is used in place of a noun. When used together with a noun, it is technically a Possessive article.
Mein Handy ist kaputt. Kann ich mit deinem telefonieren?
Prädikat
Präfix
Präposition
Präsens
Präteritum
Predicate
Prädikat; the verb component of a sentence; can consist of one or more verbs, e.g. compound tenses, the passive, modal verbs or compound verbs.
Er lernt Deutsch.
Er wird Auto fahren.
Das Haus wird gebaut.
Ich gehe einkaufen.
Predicative adjective
Prädikatives Adjektiv; comes after the verbs seinto be, werdento become and bleibento remain and is not declined.
Compare: Attributive adjective
Das Wetter ist/wird/bleibt gut/schlecht.
Prefix
Präfix; a syllable that is added to the beginning of a word to change its meaning.
fahren → erfahren
Fall → Überfall
treu → untreu
Preposition
Präposition; small words that link nouns and pronouns to other words. The give information about time, place, manner, etc.
Ich wohne seit einem Jahr in einem Haus außerhalb der Stadt.
Present participle
Partizip I; verb form where the letter -d is added onto the infinitive; used as an adjective or in place of a clause.
schlafend, lesend, lachend
das fahrende Auto
Pfeifend ging er davon.
Present perfect
Perfekt; the past tense (haben/sein + past participle), used when focusing on the result of a completed past action.
ich habe gelernt
er ist gefahren
Present tense
Präsens; expresses present and future actions.
Ich lerne gerade.
Er fährt morgen nach Spanien.
Preterite
Processual passive
Vorgangspassiv; a passive sentence that expresses an action.
Compare: Statal passive
Das Haus wurde gebaut.
Processual verb
Vorgangsverb; describes a process that is not consciously carried out; the subject has no active control over the action.
Compare: Action verb, Stative verb
schlafen, schneien, wachsen
Pronomen
Pronoun
Pronomen; replaces an already known or previously mentioned noun and thus avoids repetition. Pronouns are declined and agree with the noun they replace in terms of gender and number.
Er sagt, dass sie uns hilft.
Mein Handy ist defekt. Kann ich deins haben?
r
Reciprocal verb
Reziprokes Verb; uses the reflexive pronoun with the meaning einander (each other).
Wir sehen uns am Kino.
Reflexive pronoun
Reflexivpronomen (sich); is used with reflexive and reciprocal verbs.
ich freue mich
Reflexive verb
Reflexives Verb; a verb where the subject and the object are one and the same. Always used with a reflexive pronoun (sich) in the sense of myself, yourself, etc.
See also: Partly reflexive verb, Unreal reflexive verb, Reciprocal verb
Er zieht sich an.
Reflexivpronomen
Relative clause
Relativsatz; a clause that provides additional information about a noun from the previous clause. Always introduced by a relative pronoun and placed between commas.
Das ist der Mann, den ich gesehen habe.
Relative pronoun
Relativpronomen; a pronoun that introduces a relative clause; usually der/die/das… or welcher/welche/welches…
Kennst du den Mann, der dort steht?
Relativsatz
Reported speech
Reziprokes Verb
s
Sächlich
Satzteilkonjunktion
conjunction that introduces an adjective in a comparison.
so groß wie du
schneller als ich
desto/umso besser
Schwaches Verb
Separable verb
Trennbares Verb; a verb with a prefix that is mobile; the prefix is separated from the main verb in certain conjugated forms.
Compare: Non-separable verb
anstehen – ich stehe an – ich habe angestanden
Simple past
Präteritum; past tense; mostly used in writing but also with modal verbs and certain others in everyday language.
ich lernte, er fuhr
ich hatte, ich musste
Singular
expresses one item; nouns, articles, adjectives, verbs and pronouns can appear in the singular.
Compare: Plural
der Tisch
Das große Geschenk ist für mich.
Starkes Verb
Statal passive
Zustandspassiv; a passive form that describes a state or result that occurs following a completed action.
Compare: Processual passive
Das Haus ist gebaut.
Stative verb
Zustandsverb; a verb that expresses a state.
Compare: Action verb, Processual verb
besitzen, wohnen
Strong verb
Starkes Verb; irregular verb whose past participle is constructed with ge...en. Strong verbs often experience a vowel change in the present tense.
Compare: Mixed verb, Weak verb
fahren – fuhr – gefahren
ich fahre, du fährst
Subject
Subjekt; the person or thing that performs the action of the verb. Appears in the nominative and is most often a noun (and its accompanying article and adjective).
See also: Nominative
Der alte Mann steht an der Ecke.
Ich fahre Rad.
Subject clause
Subjektsatz; subordinate clause acting as the subject of a sentence.
Wer fleißig lernt, wird belohnt.
Subjunction
Subjunktion; linking word that introduces a subordinate clause.
Note: after a subjunction the verb comes at the very end of the phrase: subjunction + subject + ... + verb
als, da, nachdem, seit
Es war schon spät, als wir nach Hause kamen.
Subjunctive
Konjunktiv; grammatical mood that presents information with an element of fantasy, impossibility, doubt or subjectivity. Used in conditional clauses and indirect speech.
er gehe, er ginge,
er sei gegangen
Subjunctive I
Konjunktiv I; the less common of the two subjunctive forms; used in idiomatic expressions and indirect speech.
Dein Wille geschehe.
Man sagt, er sei reich.
Subjunctive II
Konjunktiv II; the more common subjunctive form; used for wishes, unreal conditional clauses and polite questions or statements.
Compare: Would-form
Er wünschte, er hätte Zeit.
Das wäre toll.
Subordinate clause
Nebensatz; a clause whose meaning is incomplete without a main clause. Note: the verb comes at the end of subordinate clauses when they are introduced by a subjunction (weil, als, dass …).
Der Junge lacht, weil er fröhlich ist.
Substantiv
Suffix
Nachsilbe; a syllable added to the end of a word to change its meaning.
Herz → herzlich
Freund → Freundschaft
Telefon → telefonieren
Superlative
Superlativ; compares one person or thing with all others in the same group/category; expresses the highest degree of a certain characteristic or quality. Usually introduced by am or the definite article.
Compare: Comparative
klein – kleiner – am kleinsten
Er ist am kleinsten.
Er ist der kleinste Junge.
Syllable
Silbe; singular unit of pronunciation; one unbroken sound usually made up of a vowel and surrounding consonants.
Au-to-mo-bil
t
Teilreflexives Verb
Temporal clause
Temporalsatz; adverbial clause that expresses time; introduced by subjunctions like bevorbefore, nachdemafter, seitsince…
Seit ich einen Hund habe, gehe ich viel spazieren.
Temporalsatz
Transitive verb
Transitives Verb; a verb that takes an accusative object; without this direct object its meaning is incomplete. Transitive verbs can be used in the passive.
Compare: Intransitive verb
Er beantwortet die Frage.
Die Frage wird beantwortet.
Trennbares Verb
Two-way Prepositions
Wechselpräpositionen; prepositions of movement and place that take the accusative when they express a direction but the dative when they express a location.
an, auf, in, über, unter, hinter, neben, vor, zwischen
Wir gehen heute Abend in die Oper. (accusative)
Wir haben deine Eltern in der Oper getroffen. (dative)
u
Umlaut
Umlaut; the letters ä, ö, and ü.
ä, ö, ü
Unbestimmter Artikel
Unechtes reflexives Verb
Unreal reflexive verb
Unechtes reflexives Verb; a verb that has the same meaning in both its reflexive and non-reflexive forms.
Compare: Partly reflexive verb
Ich kaufe (mir) ein Eis.
v
Verb
doing words; verbs express actions, processes and states. They are conjugated and used in different tenses.
lernen, fahren, machen
Verbalkomplex
Vergangenheit
Vollverb
Vorgangspassiv
Vorgangsverb
w
Weak verb
Schwaches Verb; regular verb, the past participle is constructed with ge...t.
Compare: Mixed verb, Strong verb
lernen – lernte – gelernt
arbeiten – arbeitete – gearbeitet
Wechselpräpositionen
Weiblich
Word stem
Wortstamm; the root of the verb; find the stem by removing all endings and prefixes. We conjugate verbs and decline nouns by adding different endings to the word stem.
lauf- → laufen, läuft, gelaufen, laufend …
Wortstamm
Would-form
Würde-Form; in everyday language, würde + infinitive is more commonly used than the Subjunctive II (the meaning is the same).
Compare: Subjunctive II
ich würde gehen