init commit

SUMMARY.md

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+# Site Index
+
+> Crawled from https://germanforenglishspeakers.com on 2026-06-30
+
+- [Welcome - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers | A free online resource](index.md)
+- [About Us - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](about-us.md)
+- [III. ADJECTIVES - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](adjectives.md)
+- [Adjective Declensions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](adjectives/adjective-declensions.md)
+- [Comparative & Superlative Forms - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](adjectives/comparative-and-superlative-forms.md)
+- [I. BASICS - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](basics.md)
+- [Capitalization & Punctuation - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](basics/capitalization-and-punctuation.md)
+- [Loan Words in German - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](basics/loan-words.md)
+- [Pronunciation: Consonants - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](basics/pronunciation-consonants.md)
+- [Pronunciation: Vowels - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](basics/pronunciation-vowels.md)
+- [Sentence Structure & Word Order - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](basics/sentence-structure.md)
+- [The German Alphabet - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](basics/the-german-alphabet.md)
+- [Links to Other Helpful Sites - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](links-to-other-free-online-resources.md)
+- [Non-German Keyboards - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](non-german-keyboards.md)
+- [II. NOUNS & ARTICLES - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns.md)
+- [Adjective Declensions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns-articles/adjective-declensions.md)
+- [Case - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/case.md)
+- [Declension Tables - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/declension-tables.md)
+- [Diminutive Endings - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/diminutive-endings.md)
+- [Gender & Plurals - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/gender-and-plurals.md)
+- [How to Memorize Nouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/how-to-memorize-nouns.md)
+- [More on the Genitive Case - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/more-on-the-genitive-case.md)
+- [Reflexive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/reflexive-pronouns.md)
+- [Some Rules of Noun Formation - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/some-rules-of-noun-formation.md)
+- [Weak Nouns (the "N-Declension") - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](nouns/weak-nouns-the-n-declension.md)
+- [VII. OTHER TOPICS - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](other.md)
+- [Adverbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](other/adverbs.md)
+- [Conjunctions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](other/conjunctions.md)
+- [Modal Particles - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](other/modal-particles.md)
+- [Two-Part Conjunctions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](other/two-part-conjunctions.md)
+- [VI. PREPOSITIONS - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](prepositions.md)
+- [Accusative Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](prepositions/accusative-prepositions.md)
+- [Contractions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](prepositions/contractions.md)
+- [Dative Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](prepositions/dative-prepositions.md)
+- [Genitive Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](prepositions/genitive-prepositions.md)
+- [Introduction to Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](prepositions/introduction-to-prepositions.md)
+- [Two-Way Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](prepositions/two-way-prepositions.md)
+- [IV. PRONOUNS - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](pronouns.md)
+- [Interrogative Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](pronouns/interrogative-pronouns.md)
+- [Personal & Possessive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](pronouns/personal-possessive-pronouns.md)
+- [Reflexive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](pronouns/reflexive-pronouns.md)
+- [Relative Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](pronouns/relative-pronouns.md)
+- [REFERENCE MATERIALS - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](reference.md)
+- [Complete Declension Tables - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](reference/complete-declension-tables.md)
+- [Dative Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](reference/dative-verbs.md)
+- [Non-German Keyboards - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](reference/non-german-keyboards.md)
+- [Strong Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](reference/strong-verbs.md)
+- [Strong Verbs by Vowel Pattern - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](strong-verbs-by-vowel-pattern.md)
+- [V. VERBS - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs.md)
+- [Dative Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/dative-verbs.md)
+- [The Future Tenses (and Futuristic Present) - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/future-tenses.md)
+- [Past Participles - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/past-participles.md)
+- [The Perfect Tenses - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/perfect-tenses.md)
+- [Perfect vs. Preterite - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/perfect-vs-preterite.md)
+- [Prefix Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/prefix-verbs.md)
+- [The Present & Preterite Tenses - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/present-and-simple-past.md)
+- [Present Participles & Gerunds - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/present-participles-and-gerunds.md)
+- [Reflexive Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/reflexive-verbs.md)
+- [Overview of Tenses & Moods - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/tenses-and-moods.md)
+- [The Continuous/Progressive Aspect - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/the-continuous-and-progressive-aspects.md)
+- [The Imperative Mood - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/the-imperative-mood.md)
+- [The Konjunktiv Moods - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/the-konjunktiv-moods.md)
+- [The Passive Voice - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/the-passive-voice.md)
+- [Overview of Verb Types - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers](verbs/verb-types.md)

about-us.md

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+---
+title: "About Us"
+description: "About the author and editor of germanforenglishspeakers.com."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/about-us"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# About Us
+
+The author of this site is [Peter Lewis](https://www.twitter.com/plewis67). The main editor is Deborah Cohen of [Sprachwerk](http://www.sprachwerk-berlin.de), a boutique language school in Berlin.

adjectives.md

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+---
+title: "III. Adjectives"
+description: "Section overview for Part III: Adjectives — covering adjective declensions and comparative/superlative forms."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/adjectives"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# III. Adjectives

adjectives/adjective-declensions.md

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+---
+title: "Adjective Declensions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/adjectives/adjective-declensions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Adjective Declensions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Adjective Declensions
+
+German adjectives work just like English ones, except that they take on case endings when they come right before a noun:
+
+_Der Hund ist **groß** und **braun**._  
+The dog is big and brown.
+
+_Der **große** **braune** Hund bellte mich an._  
+The big brown dog barked at me.
+
+To understand these endings, you need to be familiar with the "hard" endings for nouns from [Section II.3](/nouns/declension-tables.md "II.3 Declension Tables"). The rule for adjectives before a noun is this: **_when there’s no hard ending in the noun or article, add it to the adjective._** When there _is_ a hard ending in the noun or article, the adjective takes a “soft” ending as follows:
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+\-e
+
+\-e
+
+\-e
+
+\-en
+
+**Accusative**
+
+\-en
+
+\-e
+
+\-e
+
+\-en
+
+**Dative**
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+**Genitive**
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+The following tables show how this rule is applied. The hard endings are highlighted in yellow, and the “soft” adjective endings are underlined. With a definite article, the adjective ending is always soft:
+
+  **TYPE 1: Definite Articles**
+
+"The nice man / woman / child / children"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+de**r** **nette** Mann
+
+di**e** **nette** Frau
+
+da**s** **nette** Kind
+
+di**e** **netten** Kinder
+
+**Accusative**
+
+de**n** **netten** Mann
+
+di**e** **nette** Frau
+
+da**s** **nette** Kind
+
+di**e** **netten** Kinder
+
+**Dative**
+
+de**m** **netten** Mann
+
+de**r** **netten** Frau
+
+de**m** **netten** Kind
+
+de**n** **netten** Kinder**n**
+
+**Genitive**
+
+de**s** **netten** Manne**s**
+
+de**r** **netten** Frau
+
+de**s** **netten** Kinde**s**
+
+de**r** **netten** Kinder
+
+For the indefinite and possessive articles, the adjective endings are the same except for the three places where the article has no hard ending and the adjective has to take it on:
+
+  **TYPE 2: Indefinite & Possessive Articles**
+
+"My little dog / cat / bunny / birds"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+mein **kleiner** Hund
+
+meine **kleine** Katze
+
+mein **kleines** Kaninchen
+
+meine **kleinen** Vögel
+
+**Accusative**
+
+meinen **kleinen** Hund
+
+meine **kleine** Katze
+
+mein **kleines** Kaninchen
+
+meine **kleinen** Vögel
+
+**Dative**
+
+meinem **kleinen** Hund
+
+meiner **kleinen** Katze
+
+meinem **kleinen** Kaninchen
+
+meinen **kleinen** Vögeln
+
+**Genitive**
+
+meines **kleinen** Hundes
+
+meiner **kleinen** Katze
+
+meines **kleinen** Kaninchens
+
+meiner **kleinen** Vögel
+
+And with no article ("the taste of hot coffee"), the adjective always takes on the hard ending, except in the three cases where it’s still there on the noun:
+
+  **TYPE 3: No Article**
+
+"hot coffee / cold milk / fresh bread / warm rolls"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+**heißer** Kaffee
+
+**kalte** Milch
+
+**frisches** Brot
+
+**warme** Brötchen
+
+**Accusative**
+
+**heißen** Kaffee
+
+**kalte** Milch
+
+**frisches** Brot
+
+**warme** Brötchen
+
+**Dative**
+
+**heißem** Kaffee
+
+**kalter** Milch
+
+**frischem** Brot
+
+**warmen** Brötche**n**
+
+**Genitive**
+
+**heißen** Kaffee**s**
+
+**kalter** Milch
+
+**frischen Brotes**
+
+**warmer** Brötchen
+
+ 
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/adjectives/comparative-and-superlative-forms.md)

adjectives/comparative-and-superlative-forms.md

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+---
+title: "Comparative & Superlative Forms - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/adjectives/comparative-and-superlative-forms"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Comparative & Superlative Forms - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Comparative & Superlative Forms
+
+The comparative forms of German adjectives work a lot like English:
+
+_Mein Auto ist **klein**._  
+My car is **small**.
+
+_Dein Auto ist **kleiner**._  
+Your car is **smaller**.
+
+_Sein Auto ist **am kleinsten**._  
+His car is **the smallest**.
+
+When these forms come before a noun, they take the [standard adjective case endings](/adjectives/adjective-declensions.md "III.1 Adjective Declensions") from the previous section:
+
+_Nimm das **größere** Stück_  
+Take the larger piece
+
+_Mein **größter** Sieg war..._  
+My greatest victory was...
+
+As illustrated above, some adjectives add an umlaut in their comparative forms. There’s no rule about this, although it happens most often with shorter and more common adjectives.
+
+As in English, there are a few common adjectives with irregular comparative forms. For example:
+
+_gut / besser / am besten_  
+good / better / best
+
+_bald / eher / am ehesten_  
+soon / sooner / soonest
+
+_hoch / höher / am höchsten_  
+high / higher / highest
+
+_viel(e) / mehr / am meisten_  
+much, many / more / the most
+
+In English, you can use “more” and “(the) most” with some adjectives instead of the –er and –est endings. You wouldn’t say “more small” or “more good” but you can say “more friendly” or “more intense” -- in fact, "intenser" would sound odd. In German you can’t do this, and “mehr \_\_\_\_” is one of the most common “Englisch-Deutsch” mistakes. Always use the "er" and "st" forms, even when you wouldn't use them on the English word.
+
+However, in cases where you’d use “more” in the sense of comparing two adjectives, you can use the German word “eher”:
+
+_Es ist **eher** langweilig als schwierig._  
+It’s **more** boring than difficult.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/pronouns/personal-possessive-pronouns.md)

basics.md

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+---
+title: "I. Basics"
+description: "Section overview for Part I: Basics — covering the German alphabet, pronunciation, loan words, capitalization, and sentence structure."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/basics"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# I. Basics

basics/capitalization-and-punctuation.md

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+---
+title: "Capitalization & Punctuation - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/basics/capitalization-and-punctuation"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Capitalization & Punctuation - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Capitalization & Punctuation
+
+*   As you may have noticed by now, _all_ nouns are capitalized in German, wherever they appear in a sentence. This is a nearly unique feature in a contemporary language, and it’s helpful in parsing sentences when there are words you don’t know. We used to do it in English, as you can see in old documents like the U.S. Constitution.
+*   _Sie_ (the formal "you") is always capitalized. This also applies to the related forms _Ihnen_ and _Ihr_, although not to the reflexive pronoun _sich_.
+*   Unlike the English _I_, the first-person singular pronoun _ich_ is _not_ capitalized unless it begins a sentence
+*   Unlike in English, adjectives describing nationality, ethnicity and religion (_the American car_) are not capitalized in German (_das amerikanische Auto_) unless they’re part of a proper noun (_Deutsche Bank_)
+*   As in the rest of continental Europe, decimal points and commas are reversed in writing numbers (e.g. a coffee might cost 1,50€ while a car costs 15.000€)
+*   Typically the format for German quotation marks is „\_\_\_“ (rather than “\_\_\_”), with the opening quote mark upside down and both of them curling outwards (see our "[non-German keyboards](/reference/non-german-keyboards.md "Non-German Keyboards")" section for how to type these)
+*   French chevron-style quotation marks («\_\_\_») are also sometimes used, although German tends to invert them (»\_\_\_«)
+*   German never uses the “[Oxford comma](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_comma)” at the end of a list
+*   Unlike in English, a comma can link two independent clauses in German
+*   _du_ and its related forms (_dich_/_dir_/_euch_) used to be capitalized like _Sie_, and some people still capitalize them, especially in correspondence. This is certainly not wrong, but's no longer standard, and you don't need to do it unless you want to.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/basics/sentence-structure.md)

basics/loan-words.md

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+---
+title: "Loan Words in German - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+description: "Loan words in German and how they're pronounced."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/basics/loan-words"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Loan Words in German - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Loan Words in German
+
+There are a growing number of foreign words in German, and they sometimes break the pronunciation rules in the previous two sections. Most of them are from English or French – but even if you know the correct French or English pronunciation, that doesn’t tell you whether German will adapt it entirely or convert it to a more German pronunciation.
+
+However, once you have a sense of how native German words sound, you’ll start to get a good feel for it. Generally if there’s a way to pronounce the foreign word according to the German rules above, that’s what happens. The words that keep the foreign pronunciation are usually ones like “das Baby” or “das Croissant,” with letters (like the terminal “y” or the “oi”) that wouldn’t have any clear pronunciation in German. To be sure, there are exceptions, but it’s a good general rule. There are also some words that fall in between – for example, _die Creme_ (cream) is pronounced with a long German _e_ in the middle rather than the short _è_ in French, but many speakers leave the second _e_ silent as in French, rather than pronouncing it as you would in German.
+
+Also, remember that loan words often narrow their meanings. For example, we use _angst_ with a more specific meaning than it has in German and _entourage_ or _milieu_ with a narrower connotation than they have in French. A _sombrero_ is a more specific style of hat in the US than in Mexico, and a _taco_ is a more specific dish. Similarly, in German, _das Notebook_ refers only to a laptop computer, not to a paper notebook, and _der Star_ is a celebrity, not a star in the sky. There are also a few English words in German that are purely German coinages, like _das Handy_ for a cell phone, _der Beamer_ for a video projector, and _der Oldtimer_ for a vintage car.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/basics/capitalization-and-punctuation.md)

basics/pronunciation-consonants.md

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+---
+title: "Pronunciation: Consonants - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+description: "The pronunciation of consonants in German, focusing on differences with English."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/basics/pronunciation-consonants"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Pronunciation: Consonants - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Pronunciation: Consonants
+
+Many German consonants have the same pronunciation as they do in English. These are the main exceptions:
+
+*   B at the end of a syllable is softened (“devoiced”) to more of a P sound; similarily, D and G at the end of a syllable sound like T and K, respectively
+*   J is pronounced like the English “Y” (so “jung” has the same initial sound as its English cognate “young”)
+*   In the combinations “kn,” “pf,” and "ps," both letters are pronounced. This is not as hard as it sounds, although it takes some getting used to. You may already know the _kn_ sound from the Yiddish word "knish." In the case of _pf_ (as in _Pferd_, a horse) and _ps_ (as in _Psychologie_), just get ready to say a p, with your lips closed, and say the second letter instead, letting it force them open a bit.
+*   V is like the English (and German) “F” in words of Germanic origin (so “Vater” has the same initial sound as “father”), but in words of foreign origin it's usually pronounced like the English V / German W (below)
+*   W is very similar to the English “V” (and our W sound doesn’t exist in German)
+*   Z is pronounced like “ts”
+*   Qu is pronounced like “kv” (as opposed to the “kw” sound in English). We have this in the Yiddish word "kvetch" (to complain) in English, which comes from the German _quetschen_ (to crush or squeeze).
+*   a single S is usually pronounced like an English Z, with a few exceptions:
+    *   Before another consonant, it’s a normal soft ("voiceless") S as in English (so "Skulptur" has the same initial sound as the English "Sculpture")
+    *   Sp- and St- at the beginning of a syllable are pronounced Shp- and Sht- (ex. "Spaten," a spade/shovel)
+    *   To differentiate it from “sechs” (the number six), the S in “Sex” is soft
+    *   (and a double S or ß is soft just like in English, e.g. “assassin”)
+
+The above sounds are relatively easy to pronounce, as long as you can remember the rules. For most English speakers, the most difficult sounds in German are _R_ and _CH_. They come in multiple varieties:
+
+*   _R at the end of a word or syllable_: this is not always given in textbooks or dictionary pronunciations, but most native speakers pronounce a terminal _r_ very weakly; it’s more of an "uh" sound that sometimes draws out the preceding vowel. For example, _der_ usually sounds more like _day-uh_. This is a particular problem for North Americans: if you ask a German (or anyone really) to imitate a standard American accent, the first thing they’ll do is lean on those terminal Rs. Irish accents have pretty strong _R_s too.
+*   _R at the beginning of a word or syllable_, as in _rot_ (red), is pronounced at the back of the throat with a bit of a scratch, although in parts of southern Germany (notably Franconia) it can also be rolled in the manner of a Spanish R.
+*   _Hard CH:_ A _ch_ is pronounced “hard” when it comes after _a, o, u_ or _au_, as in _auch_ (also), _doch_ (but), or the exclamation _ach!_ It sounds like a harsh or throaty "kh", as in the beginning of the Yiddish word "chutzpah" (when it is correctly pronounced!)
+*   _Soft CH:_ A “ch” after any other vowel (as in the pronouns _ich_ and _dich_), or at the beginning of a few words (_China_, _Chemie_) is pronounced “softly.” Many foreign speakers, and even some young native speakers, pronounce this as an English _sh_ sound (as in "shy"); this is understandable but incorrect. The correct pronunciation is very close to the sound of a cat hissing, with the corners of your mouth pulled apart and the air being pressed out laterally between the top of your tongue and the roof of your mouth
+*   _Greek CH:_ There is a third, less common "ch" sound that is identical to a K. We have this one in English too. It comes from the Greek letter chi (χ) and appears most often in Greek-derived words (_Chaos_, _Charakter_), but it also appears in a few Germanic words, like the aforementioned _sechs_ (the number six)
+*   _Foreign CH:_ There are many loan words in German that keep their original CH sounds, e.g. from French (Chef, Chauffeur), English (Cheeseburger, Chips) or Spanish (Chile, Chihuahua)
+
+There are some other minor differences in the pronunciation of consonants, but they’re really too subtle to be learned this way, and they’re not as important for being understood. If you can remember everything above (even if you’re not perfect on the R and CH sounds), you’ll be well ahead of most foreign speakers.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/basics/pronunciation-vowels.md)

basics/pronunciation-vowels.md

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+---
+title: "Pronunciation: Vowels - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+description: "German pronunciation, with direct comparisons to English."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/basics/pronunciation-vowels"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Pronunciation: Vowels - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Pronunciation: Vowels
+
+These are eight standard German vowels – the same five as in English plus the three umlaut vowels ä, ö and ü – and they each have a “long” and a “short” variant. These terms refer first to how long the sound is held or drawn out, but there are sometimes also differences in the sound itself between the long and short variants of a vowel. Short vowels in German are very short and clipped compared to English, and long vowels are held a bit longer.
+
+**In general, a vowel is long when followed by a single consonant and short when followed by a combination of consonants**. There are some exceptions to this rule, but they mainly involve unstressed syllables and short grammatical words (e.g. _in_, _das_, _von_). The following table gives some examples of these sounds and how to pronounce them.
+
+Also keep in mind that most German syllables that begin with a vowel are led off by a glottal stop. An example of a glottal stop is the break in the middle of “uh-oh” – or, for British readers, the way Cockney speakers swallow their Ts. This is what makes German speech sound choppier than English and makes native Germans sound so distinctive when speaking English – just ask any German with a noticeable accent to read the words “each other” and notice how they put a stop between the words where no native English speaker would).
+
+**Long**
+
+**Short**
+
+**a**
+
+Similar to the "a" in the English “father.”
+
+Same sound as the long version, just a bit shorter, like the vowel in "mop."
+
+**ä**
+
+Like the sound in the British pronunciation of "hair." No direct equivalent in American English, but imagine saying "aaah" at the doctor's, with a tongue depressor pushing your tongue down.
+
+Same sound but shorter, perhaps verging closer to a short "e" (below) but still a distinct sound.
+
+**e**
+
+Like the long A in English ("day") but "flatter," without the same rounding into an eee sound at the end. Keep the corners of your mouth pulled far apart.
+
+The short _e_ is identical to that in English (though perhaps a tad shorter), so German “nett” is just like English “net”, “denn” like “den,” etc.
+
+**i**
+
+Rather like the “ee” sound in English (“team”, ”meet”), but the tip of the tongue is actually positioned a little higher in German.
+
+Very close to the English short _i_, so German and English “in” and “Mist” sound alike, except that the German vowel is slightly shorter.
+
+**o**
+
+Like the O in "no" without the w sound at the end.
+
+Like the sound in “clots” in British English, or “bought” in American English if spoken quickly.
+
+**ö**
+
+Similar to the English vowel sound in "worst" or "worry," but even closer to the sound in French words like “bleu" or "coeur." Your lips should be tense and rounded, with a hole the size and shape of a small olive.
+
+Akin to the long version, short _ö_ is like short _e_ with rounded lips, though the rounding is more slight and not as tense.
+
+**u**
+
+Rather like the English “oo” sound, as in “tube” and “moon,” but the lip rounding has more tension in German, like when  blowing out a candle.
+
+This is just like a clipped version of the English short _u_ in words like “put” and “should” (NOT “but”!).
+
+**ü**
+
+For those who speak French, this is pronounced just like French _u_ (as in “tu”). Your lips should be very tense, with the lower lip retracted and the air coming out downwards as if you're blowing into a flute.
+
+This vowel is the result of many English speakers’ attempts to pronounce long _ü_: The tongue tip and lips are more relaxed (and its duration is much less, of course).
+
+In some instances, vowels are marked as long by being doubled, like in _Staat_ (state), or by adding an _h_ after a vowel, like in _Stahl_ (steel).
+
+The other basic vowels sounds are as follows:
+
+*   _y_ appears as a vowel in some words of Greek origin, and it’s pronounced like a long _ü_. One common example is “typisch” (typical).
+*   _e_ appearing at the end of a word, as in _bitte_ (please), is an unstressed “uh” like a terminal  _–a_ in English (_manna_, _mania_) though the tongue is in a more neutral (central) position in the mouth – like the second “e” in “celebration” when spoken quickly.
+*   _ie_ is pronounced like a German long _i_, except at the end of some nouns where it can be an unstressed “-yeh” sound (e.g. _Familie_)
+*   _au_ is pronounced like the English _ow_ in _cow_
+*   _äu_ and _eu_ are pronounced like the English _oy_ in _toy_
+*   _ei_, _ey_, and _ai_ (as well as the _ay_ in _Bayern_, the word for Bavaria) are all pronounced like an _English_ long i (“fight”)
+
+Now, let's come back to the question of when to use _ss_ and when to use _ß_. The rules for this have changed in recent years, but the current practice is to use _ss_ after short vowels, and _ß_ after long vowels and diphthongs (vowel combinations). This may sound circular, since we just said that the length of a vowel is determined by the number of letters after it -- but in practice, you're usually either trying to spell a word that you've heard (in which case you should recognize whether the vowel is long or short) or you're trying to pronounce a word that you've seen (in which case you'll already know whether it's _ss_ or _ß_).
+
+**_A little more about umlauts_**
+
+Many books define _ä_, _ö_ and _ü_ as full-fledged letters, but they aren’t quite; for example, they're not in the alphabet song that German children learn, and they don’t have their own sections in a dictionary. And they are closely related to their non-umlaut counterparts: most words with an _ä_ are derived from “root” forms with an _a_.
+
+The original purpose of a Germanic umlaut was to shift from a "back vowel" to a "front vowel" (these terms refer to the position of the tongue in the mouth) to make a derivative form of a word easier to pronounce, usually because it was adding another syllable. For example, _alt_ (old) --> _älter_ (older). But they now appear in many words where this process is no longer apparent – usually because the extra syllable has been dropped (as in many noun plurals) or because the root form has fallen out of use. It can also happen because they’re being used to approximate a foreign pronunciation (_militär_), or for more complex reasons (e.g. _für_ comes from _vor_, but even native speakers don’t usually think of them as related).
+
+You certainly don’t need to think about this every time you read or hear an umlaut vowel, but it’s useful to have it in the back of your mind when learning vocabulary. The more you can visualize the umlaut forms of a word as “shifted” rather than as a whole separate word, the easier it will be to remember them.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/basics/loan-words.md)

basics/sentence-structure.md

@@ -0,0 +1,66 @@
+---
+title: "Sentence Structure & Word Order - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+description: "A guide to German sentence structure and word order, with direct comparisons to English."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/basics/sentence-structure"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Sentence Structure & Word Order - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Sentence Structure & Word Order
+
+A simple main clause in German can be written with the same word order as English:
+
+_Ich gab dem Jungen einen Ball._  
+I gave the boy a ball.
+
+However, unlike in English, the word order in a main clause can also be rearranged to emphasize something other than the subject by putting it first – so long as the conjugated verb remains in the second position:
+
+_Einen Ball gab ich dem Jungen._  
+I gave the boy a **ball.** (as opposed to giving him something else)
+
+_Dem Jungen gab ich einen Ball._  
+I gave the **boy** a ball. (as opposed to giving it to someone else)
+
+With a compound verb (consisting of a main verb and a helping verb), English usually keeps the two parts together. In German the conjugated verb must be in the second position, while the other verb almost always goes at the end of the phrase:
+
+_Ich **werde** das Buch bald **lesen.**_  
+I **will read** the book soon.
+
+In a subordinate clause, the verbs all go at the end of the phrase. If there’s more than one, the conjugated verb comes last:
+
+_Ich trinke, weil du mich **verlassen hast**._  
+I’m drinking because you **left** me.
+
+This is also true of any other dependent clauses, like relative or infinitive constructions:
+
+_Da ist der Mann, den wir **suchen**!_  
+There’s the man who(m) we’re looking for!
+
+_Ich finde es schwer, über mich selbst **zu reden**._  
+I find it hard **to talk** about myself.
+
+However, with a few common conjunctions (and/or/but), the standard main-clause word order is kept in both clauses:
+
+_Die Sonne scheint **und** die Vögel singen._  
+The sun is shining **and** the birds are singing.
+
+These are called ‘coordinating conjunctions,’ and the ones that introduce a subordinate clause (like _because_) are called ‘subordinating conjunctions.’ When we cover all the German conjunctions in VII.2, we’ll present them in these two groups. So don’t worry if you’re not exactly clear on what a subordinate clause is – you’ll just learn to tell from the conjunction whether the verb goes at the end or not.
+
+In questions, the conjugated verb is again in the second position:
+
+_Was **hast** du **gemacht**?_  
+What **have** you **done**?
+
+_Warum **sagst** du das?_  
+Why do you **say** that?
+
+In an imperative statement (a direct order), the conjugated verb comes first, just like in English:
+
+_**Sei** still!_  
+**Be** quiet!
+
+_**Gib** mir das!_  
+**Give** me that!
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/gender-and-plurals.md)

basics/the-german-alphabet.md

@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+---
+title: "The German Alphabet"
+description: "An introduction to the German alphabet, including the four extra characters (ä, ö, ü, ß) and when to use ss vs. ß."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/basics/the-german-alphabet"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The German Alphabet
+
+German uses the same 26 letters as English, with four extra characters: ä, ö, ü, and ß.
+
+The first three are alternate pronunciations or "shifts" of the vowels a, o and u. The ¨ mark is called an "umlaut" (rhymes with "zoom out"). They can appear capitalized too -- Ä, Ö, Ü -- but you won't see that too often, because they don't occur at the beginning of many common words.
+
+The ß ("sharp S") is not a real letter, just a [ligature](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typographic_ligature) for (or stylized way of writing) a double lowercase s. We'll discuss a little later when to write ss and when to use ß – we have to cover the vowels first – but if you're ever in doubt, write ss. It's more acceptable to replace a ß with a double s than the other way around. There is no difference in how they're pronounced. In Switzerland the ß is not used at all.
+
+If you're using a keyboard without these symbols, you can type ae, oe and ue instead of ä, ö and ü, and of course ss instead of ß. Or click [here](/non-german-keyboards.md "Non-German Keyboards") for our full guide to typing German characters on non-German keyboards.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/basics/pronunciation-consonants.md)

index.md

@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+---
+title: "Welcome"
+description: "A free, ad-free overview of the German language for English-speaking students. Covers basics, nouns, adjectives, pronouns, verbs, prepositions, and more."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Welcome
+
+This site contains a basic overview of the German language for English-speaking students. Unlike most similar content on the Web, everything here is original, ad-free, cleanly formatted and easy to print. We've tried to write in plain English and keep German terminology and linguistic jargon to a minimum.
+
+We hope it will be useful as:
+
+*   a supplement to German-only classes and textbooks
+*   a guide for working with a tutor or tandem partner
+*   a way to brush up if you've studied German in the past
+*   a framework for self-study
+
+Use the menu on the left to navigate, or [click here](/basics/the-german-alphabet.md) to start at the beginning. And please email us at [contact@germanforenglishspeakers.com](mailto:contact@germanforenglishspeakers.com) with comments, corrections, requests or anything else.

links-to-other-free-online-resources.md

@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+---
+title: "Links to Other Helpful Sites"
+description: "Recommendations for free online German learning resources, dictionaries, and grammar references."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/links-to-other-free-online-resources"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Links to Other Helpful Sites
+
+Searching for content like this can be a frustrating experience, which is the main reason we created this site. Some of what you'll find is pure web spam. For example, here's a screenshot from one site that ranks very high in Google searches:
+
+![](https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/german-silent-letters.jpg "german-silent-letters")
+
+Actually, there are no silent letters in German. It looks like they've taken a description of silent letters in _Spanish_ and done a simple find-and-replace to change the word "Spanish" to "German." In this case it's relatively obvious, but in many others it wouldn't be. It's scary to think of how far a beginner could be set back by reading this kind of garbage. (Also notice how they've repeated the word "German" all over the top of the page, which is a [sleazy trick to fool search engines](http://www.searchenginesbook.com/keyword-repetition.html).)
+
+The next step up from this is "curated" ad farms like About.com. There's actually some good content on these sites, but they deliberately make it difficult to print or navigate (and bury it in distracting auto-generated links to "related" pages) because they want to maximize the number of times you click. Still, if you're looking for something specific, your patience will often be rewarded. For example, [this list](http://german.about.com/library/blvoc_avoidWARN.htm) of German obscenities and slang seems to be pretty well done.
+
+(By the way, the former German language guide at About.com has since created his own site at [AboutGerman.net](http://www.aboutgerman.net), featuring similar content in a much cleaner format.)
+
+The best free sites are the ones where college professors have uploaded some of their own curricula and teaching materials. They often have their own formatting issues, but they're always ad-free and the content is very high quality. Our favorites are [this site](http://www.dartmouth.edu/~german/Grammatik/Grammatik.html) from the German department at Dartmouth, and [this one](http://www.lsa.umich.edu/german/hmr/index.html) from the University of Michigan. If you want something a bit more detailed than our materials, or just a lot more examples of usage, those are two good places to start. But be careful of academic pages like [this one](http://www2.mcdaniel.edu/german/prepos.html) that are just sections of out-of-date textbooks.
+
+The most popular **German-English online dictionaries**, like [Leo.org](http://www.leo.org) or [dict.cc](http://www.dict.cc), share a basic problem: they collect definitions based on user submissions, and those definitions are not ordered. So if you enter a common German word, you might get twenty or more English equivalents, like so:
+
+![](https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/leo-screenshot1.png "leo screenshot")
+
+If you already know the word somewhat and you're trying to interpret it in a particular context, this can be exactly what you need. But if you don't know it at all, it can be hard to tell which of those English words represent the main meaning and which are less common and/or figurative.
+
+[Linguee.com](http://www.linguee.com) tries to address this problem by including little frequency pie charts next to the different English definitions, which definitely helps. But we've noticed a recent falloff in quality in their results in general. They seem to operate by scraping the web for human-translated sites and aggregating definitions from there, which is a clever idea -- but, ironically, they may be picking up too many sites that were auto-translated with tools like Linguee in the first place, leading to a negative feedback loop.
+
+The best professionally edited, ordered-definition, free online language dictionary that we've found is the one at [PONS.eu](http://www.pons.eu), and that's what we would recommend as a first stop. But those others are still great tools, and very useful for certain purposes. For example, dict.cc is good for looking up idiomatic phrases, and leo.org has helpful bulletin boards where users discuss words that are particularly tricky to translate.
+
+If you want to look up different forms of a word, like verb tenses or noun case endings, the best resource is [Canoonet](http://www.canoo.net/index_en.html). And if you're ready for a German-only dictionary, try [Duden](http://www.duden.de) or [DWDS](http://www.dwds.de/).
+
+Finally, if you're looking for recommendations for offline language schools and tutors in Germany, or general discussion about living in Germany as a foreigner, start with the forums at [Toytown Germany](http://www.toytowngermany.com/).

non-german-keyboards.md

@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+---
+title: "Non-German Keyboards - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/non-german-keyboards"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Non-German Keyboards - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Non-German Keyboards
+
+Here's how to type the "extra" German characters on a non-German keyboard, with a few more notes below for Windows users:
+
+ 
+
+Mac
+
+Windows  
+(all versions)
+
+Windows 7  
+(sometimes)
+
+Ä/ä
+
+Option-U, then A or a
+
+Alt-0196 (capital)  
+or -0228 (lowercase)
+
+Control-colon (control+shift+;),  
+then A or a
+
+Ö/ö
+
+Option-U, then O or o
+
+Alt-0214  
+or -0246
+
+Control-colon,  
+then O or o
+
+Ü/ü
+
+Option-U, then U or u
+
+Alt-0220  
+or -0252
+
+Control-colon,  
+then U or u
+
+ß
+
+Option-S
+
+Alt-0223
+
+Control-&  
+(control-shift-7)
+
+German quotes,  
+single (‚‘)
+
+Alt-8218 (open),  
+or -8216 (close)
+
+German quotes,  
+double („“)
+
+Alt-8222 (open),  
+or -8220 (close)
+
+"Chevron"  
+quotes, single  
+(‹›,›‹)
+
+Alt-8249  
+and -8250
+
+"Chevron"  
+quotes, double  
+(«»,»«)
+
+Shift-Alt-3  
+and -4
+
+Alt-0171  
+and -0187
+
+Those Windows shortcuts in the middle column usually have to be entered on the numeric keypad, and sometimes it has to be the left Alt key, not the right one. As for the Windows 7 shortcuts, we put "sometimes" because they're unpredictable -- they tend to work only in certain installations of Windows, or in Word but not a web form, etc.
+
+To be honest, the whole process on Windows is so annoying that most users who have to type any serious amount of German text will be better off just switching their keyboard layout. This may interfere with a few other keyboard shortcuts (especially the ones with the right-hand Alt key) but it's usually worth it. [Click here](http://support.microsoft.com/kb/258824) for instructions on how to switch your keyboard layout in Windows.
+
+Of the default layouts, the "US-International" one is a good alternative to "German," because it keeps most of the letters and basic punctuation in the same places and uses alt-key combos for the umlaut vowels.

nouns-articles/adjective-declensions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,233 @@
+---
+title: "Adjective Declensions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns-articles/adjective-declensions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Adjective Declensions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Adjective Declensions
+
+German adjectives work just like English ones, except that they take on case endings when they come right before a noun:
+
+_Der Hund ist **groß** und **braun**._  
+The dog is big and brown.
+
+_Der **große** **braune** Hund bellte mich an._  
+The big brown dog barked at me.
+
+To understand these endings, you need to be familiar with the "hard" endings for nouns from [Section II.3](/nouns/declension-tables.md "II.3 Declension Tables"). The rule for adjectives before a noun is this: **_when there’s no hard ending in the noun or article, add it to the adjective._** When there _is_ a hard ending in the noun or article, the adjective takes a “soft” ending as follows:
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+\-e
+
+\-e
+
+\-e
+
+\-en
+
+**Accusative**
+
+\-en
+
+\-e
+
+\-e
+
+\-en
+
+**Dative**
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+**Genitive**
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+\-en
+
+The following tables show how this rule is applied. The hard endings are highlighted in yellow, and the “soft” adjective endings are underlined. With a definite article, the adjective ending is always soft:
+
+  **TYPE 1: Definite Articles**
+
+"The nice man / woman / child / children"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+de**r** **nette** Mann
+
+di**e** **nette** Frau
+
+da**s** **nette** Kind
+
+di**e** **netten** Kinder
+
+**Accusative**
+
+de**n** **netten** Mann
+
+di**e** **nette** Frau
+
+da**s** **nette** Kind
+
+di**e** **netten** Kinder
+
+**Dative**
+
+de**m** **netten** Mann
+
+de**r** **netten** Frau
+
+de**m** **netten** Kind
+
+de**n** **netten** Kinder**n**
+
+**Genitive**
+
+de**s** **netten** Manne**s**
+
+de**r** **netten** Frau
+
+de**s** **netten** Kinde**s**
+
+de**r** **netten** Kinder
+
+For the indefinite and possessive articles, the adjective endings are the same except for the three places where the article has no hard ending and the adjective has to take it on:
+
+  **TYPE 2: Indefinite & Possessive Articles**
+
+"My little dog / cat / bunny / birds"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+mein **kleiner** Hund
+
+meine **kleine** Katze
+
+mein **kleines** Kaninchen
+
+meine **kleinen** Vögel
+
+**Accusative**
+
+meinen **kleinen** Hund
+
+meine **kleine** Katze
+
+mein **kleines** Kaninchen
+
+meine **kleinen** Vögel
+
+**Dative**
+
+meinem **kleinen** Hund
+
+meiner **kleinen** Katze
+
+meinem **kleinen** Kaninchen
+
+meinen **kleinen** Vögeln
+
+**Genitive**
+
+meines **kleinen** Hundes
+
+meiner **kleinen** Katze
+
+meines **kleinen** Kaninchens
+
+meiner **kleinen** Vögel
+
+And with no article ("the taste of hot coffee"), the adjective always takes on the hard ending, except in the three cases where it’s still there on the noun:
+
+  **TYPE 3: No Article**
+
+"hot coffee / cold milk / fresh bread / warm rolls"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+**heißer** Kaffee
+
+**kalte** Milch
+
+**frisches** Brot
+
+**warme** Brötchen
+
+**Accusative**
+
+**heißen** Kaffee
+
+**kalte** Milch
+
+**frisches** Brot
+
+**warme** Brötchen
+
+**Dative**
+
+**heißem** Kaffee
+
+**kalter** Milch
+
+**frischem** Brot
+
+**warmen** Brötche**n**
+
+**Genitive**
+
+**heißen** Kaffee**s**
+
+**kalter** Milch
+
+**frischen Brotes**
+
+**warmer** Brötchen
+
+ 
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/adjectives/comparative-and-superlative-forms.md)

nouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+---
+title: "II. Nouns & Articles"
+description: "Section overview for Part II: Nouns & Articles — covering gender, plurals, case, declension tables, and noun formation."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# II. Nouns & Articles

nouns/case.md

@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+---
+title: "Case - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+description: "A description of the four cases/declensions in German, with direct comparisons to English"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/case"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Case - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Case
+
+There are four “cases” in German, which correspond to four different roles a noun can play in a sentence. The first three are fairly straightforward: the _nominative_ case refers to the subject of a sentence, the _accusative_ case refers to the direct object, and the _dative_ case refers to the indirect object.
+
+Der Schüler _gab dem Lehrer seinen Bericht_  
+The student gave the teacher his report.  
+     NOM                       DAT              ACC
+
+The final case is the _genitive_, which expresses possession or belonging and corresponds to the English _‘s_. It looks a little different in German than in English, with the possessor and possessed in the reverse order:
+
+_Der Hund_ _meines Bruders bringt ihm die Zeitung._  
+      NOM           GEN                         DAT       ACC  
+  
+My brother’s dog brings him the newspaper.  
+    GEN        NOM             DAT          ACC
+
+You can use the English-style genitive “s” in German, but _only with names_ – and without the apostrophe. Unless a name ends in “s,” in which case you use the apostrophe without the additional s. (In English we do that with plural nouns, but that doesn’t come up in German since this form of the genitive is only for names).
+
+_Dieters Hund bringt ihm die Zeitung._  
+Dieter's dog brings him the newspaper.
+
+_Hans' Hund ist zu alt dafur._  
+Hans's dog is too old for that.
+
+OK, full disclosure: an increasing number of Germans use the English-style apostrophe (“Dieter’s Hund”) and in the ’90s it was even approved as an alternative form by Duden, the German dictionary publisher. But to say that some Germans disagree with this “reform” is putting it mildly. Play it safe and leave the apostrophe out. And this has nothing to do with the erroneous use of the apostrophe with a _plural_ s (“the dog’s are barking”) which is just as incorrect in German as it is in English.
+
+Certain prepositions can make it hard to identify cases. For example, in “the deer ran _through_ the forest,” is the forest a direct or indirect object? Fortunately it doesn’t matter, because every ambiguous preposition in German is associated with a specific case for the following noun. You’ll learn these when we cover prepositions in Section VI.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/declension-tables.md)

nouns/declension-tables.md

@@ -0,0 +1,150 @@
+---
+title: "Declension Tables - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/declension-tables"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Declension Tables - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Declension Tables
+
+Now that we’ve covered gender, plurals and case, here’s how they all fit together:
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**  
+(subject)
+
+der Mann
+
+die Frau
+
+das Kind
+
+die Kinder
+
+**Accusative**  
+(direct object)
+
+den Mann
+
+die Frau
+
+das Kind
+
+die Kinder
+
+**Dative**  
+(indirect object)
+
+dem Mann
+
+der Frau
+
+dem Kind
+
+den Kindern
+
+**Genitive**  
+(possession)
+
+des Mannes
+
+der Frau
+
+des Kindes
+
+der Kinder
+
+Again, notice that the noun itself rarely changes – it only picks up an ending in three places. Most of the changes take place in the article. The highlighted letters are the _signal_ or _“hard” endings_; in addition to der/die/das, they apply as above to the following definite articles:
+
+*   dieser / diese / dieses (“this/that, these/those”)
+*   solcher / solche / solches (“such”)
+*   welcher / welche / welches (“which”)
+
+And here are two more, but they sound poetic or fancy in modern German and are not used as often:
+
+*   jener / jene / jenes (“that, those”)
+*   mancher / manche / manches (“many a”)
+
+You may be wondering how “that” and “those” can be rare words in any language. The short answer is that you can use “dies-“ for both this/these and that/those, as we’ve indicated above. The full answer is a little more complicated. Our _this/that_ distinction in English – what linguists call the _proximal/distal_ distinction – is not handled the same way in all languages, and German just doesn’t have it to the same degree.
+
+Even “dies-” is less common than “this” in English; it’s most often used when distinguishing among a group of similar items, not just in referring to anything nearby. For example, if you’re helping someone pick out a dress, you’d say _Ich mag dieses Kleid_ (“I like _this_ one \[as opposed to the others\]”) but “this beer \[in my hand\] is too warm” would often just be _das Bier ist zu warm_. It’s actually a bit more complicated than that, but it’s way too much to get into here. If you’re really struggling to get across a this/that distinction in German, remember that you can always use extra words to help (“this building _here_,” “the guy _over there_,” etc.)
+
+The other two categories are the _indefinite articles_ (like a/an in English) and _possessives_ (my, your, his, etc). These words have the same hard endings as the definite articles above, except that they drop them in three places. Here’s how to say: “my dog/cat/bunny/birds”:
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**  
+(subject)
+
+mein\-- Hund
+
+meine Katze
+
+mein\-- Kaninchen
+
+meine Vögel
+
+**Accusative**  
+(direct object)
+
+meinen Hund
+
+meine Katze
+
+mein\-- Kaninchen
+
+meine Vögel
+
+**Dative**  
+(indirect object)
+
+meinem Hund
+
+meiner Katze
+
+meinem Kaninchen
+
+meinen Vögeln
+
+**Genitive**  
+(possession)
+
+meines Hundes
+
+meiner Katze
+
+meines Kaninchens
+
+meiner Vögel
+
+We will fully review the possessives in Section 6 (Pronouns), but here are the two indefinite articles:
+
+*   ein / eine / ein (“a/an \_\_\_”)
+*   kein / keine / kein (“no/not a \_\_\_“)
+
+_**Ein** Hund folgte mir nach Hause._  
+**A** dog followed me home.
+
+_Ich spreche **kein** Deutsch._  
+I speak **no** German.
+
+_Das ist **keine** Lösung._  
+That’s **not a** solution.
+
+In learning these declensions, as well as the adjective forms in the [**next section**](/adjectives/adjective-declensions.md "III.1 Adjective Declensions"), it’s better to focus on those 16 hard endings and the few exceptions to them than to memorize every table by rote.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/more-on-the-genitive-case.md)

nouns/diminutive-endings.md

@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+---
+title: "Diminutive Endings - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/diminutive-endings"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Diminutive Endings - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Diminutive Endings
+
+Diminutive noun endings in German are used for a smaller version of something, or just to communicate cuteness, informality or affection. We don't have many diminutive endings in English, and the ones we do have are usually just a matter of size, without the other connotations: for example, _let_ as in "piglet" or "booklet."
+
+There are many different diminutive endings in regional German dialects, some of which you've already heard -- like the _li_ in muesli cereal or the _el_ in _Hansel & Gretel_. But there are only two in standard German: _**chen**_ and _**lein**_.
+
+You need to remember three main things about _chen_ and _lein_:
+
+*   they always make the noun neuter;
+*   they never change in the plural; and
+*   they usually add an umlaut to the base word when they can
+
+Here are a few examples:
+
+_der Tisch_  
+table
+
+_**das** Tisch**lein**_  
+small table
+
+_**die** Tisch**lein**_  
+small tables
+
+_die Maus_  
+mouse
+
+_**das** Mäus**chen**_  
+(cute) little mouse
+
+_**die** Mäus**chen**_  
+(cute) little mice
+
+_das Brot_  
+bread
+
+_**das** Bröt**chen**_  
+bread roll
+
+_**die** Bröt**chen**_  
+bread rolls
+
+There are a few common diminutives in German where the base word has fallen out of use, but they still follow the above rules. Two examples are _das Märchen_ (fairy tale, "little story") and _das Mädchen_ (girl, "little maid").
+
+It's possible to take things too far: even some native speakers find expressions like _Hallöchen_ (for _Hallo_) or _Alles Klärchen_ (for _Alles Klar_, "understood") to be overly cute or ditzy.
+
+Some nouns can take either _chen_ or _lein_, but for others, one is more standard than the other. There's no clear rule for this, but you shouldn't be making up your own diminutives anyway. It's more a matter of recognizing them when you see or hear them.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/how-to-memorize-nouns.md "How to Memorize Nouns")

nouns/gender-and-plurals.md

@@ -0,0 +1,100 @@
+---
+title: "Gender & Plurals - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/gender-and-plurals"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Gender & Plurals - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Gender & Plurals
+
+German nouns can be masculine, feminine or neuter. When a noun is given out of context (as in a vocabulary list), these are usually distinguished by including the nominative article: _der_ (masculine), _die_ (feminine) or _das_ (neuter). (We'll get to what "nominative" means in the next section.)
+
+When a noun refers to a person, the gender usually corresponds to the biological gender, but for other nouns there’s rarely much logic to it:
+
+der Vater  
+the father
+
+die Mutter  
+the mother
+
+das Pferd  
+the horse
+
+der Tisch  
+the table
+
+die Feder  
+the feather
+
+The plural article is "die" for all three, and for declension purposes you can think of it as a fourth gender. There are six ways that German nouns form the plural, and three of them can also add an umlaut, for a total of nine forms:
+
+singular
+
+plural
+
+**no ending**
+
+das Messer (knife)
+
+die Messer
+
+(with umlaut)
+
+der Mantel (coat)
+
+die M**ä**ntel
+
+**added E**
+
+der Schuh (shoe)
+
+die Schuh**e**
+
+(with umlaut)
+
+die Wurst (sausage)
+
+die W**ü**rst**e**
+
+**added (E)N**
+
+die Ampel (traffic light)  
+der Hase (hare/jackrabbit)
+
+die Ampel**n**  
+die Hase**n**
+
+**added ER**
+
+das Lied (song)
+
+die Lied**er**
+
+(with umlaut)
+
+der Wald (forest)
+
+die W**ä**ld**er**
+
+**added S**  
+(usually foreign words)
+
+das Büro (office)  
+der Kolibri (hummingbird)
+
+die Büro**s**  
+die Kolibri**s**
+
+**irregular**  
+(usually Latin words)
+
+das Datum (calendar date)
+
+die Daten
+
+Remember, an umlaut is just a shift in the vowel sound, which can also happen in English plurals (_goose_ / _geese_, _mouse_ / _mice_). There are a few other echoes of the above forms in English (e.g. _ox-_\>_oxen_) but for the most part our irregular plurals come from other languages.
+
+If this is your first introduction to German, you may be about ready to give up at this point. So here is something that’s not said often enough: **very few foreigners, even those who achieve fluency, are able to memorize the genders and plurals of every noun they learn.** Even some native speakers occasionally get them wrong. You’ll remember as much as you can, but the most important thing is not to expect perfection from yourself, and to **_be willing to just guess_** if you’re talking in German and can’t remember the gender or plural form of a word. Even if you get it wrong, you will probably still be understood. The wrong article or plural ending may sound silly, but there are very few cases where it actually changes the meaning of a word. **_Don’t let stress over genders and plurals stop you from communicating._**
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/case.md)

nouns/how-to-memorize-nouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+---
+title: "How to Memorize Nouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/how-to-memorize-nouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# How to Memorize Nouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# How to Memorize Nouns
+
+Rather than memorizing genders and plurals by rote, try to remember short phrases that encode them. For example, instead of trying to remember **_die_** _Nacht_ (night), think of the song title _Stille Nacht_ (_Silent Night_). The _–e_ ending on _Stille_ tells you that _Nacht_ is feminine. For the plural, think of _1001 Arabische Nächte_.
+
+You probably already know some other examples, like _Guten Abend_ (good evening), in which the _–n_ should remind you that _Abend_ is masculine. Or take the expression _In der Nacht sind alle Katzen grau_ (“In the night all cats are gray”) – in those seven words you’re reminded both that _Nacht_ is feminine and that _Katze_ (cat) has an _–n_ plural with no umlaut. In general, our brains are better at retaining things in context this way than just in arbitrary lists. And you’ll be strengthening your grammar at the same time.
+
+The other thing that some find helpful is to learn various rules and guidelines: most types of alcohol are masculine, most types of trees are feminine, nouns with certain Latin endings are neuter, and so on. You can find these guidelines in any good textbook or all over the web. In the sections above, we’ve already mentioned the ones that we think are the most important, and we’re not big fans of the others – most of them have enough exceptions that they don’t seem worth the trouble. But your mileage may vary.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns-articles/adjective-declensions.md)

nouns/more-on-the-genitive-case.md

@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+---
+title: "More on the Genitive Case - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/more-on-the-genitive-case"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# More on the Genitive Case - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# More on the Genitive Case
+
+You will often hear that the genitive is “dying out” in German, or being “replaced by the dative,” but what does this mean exactly? It means that many Germans – especially younger people, mainly when speaking – avoid the genitive case by using the preposition _von_, which is like avoiding it in English by using _of_:
+
+my brother's dog
+
+\-->
+
+the dog **of** my brother
+
+_der Hund meines Bruders_  
+GEN
+
+\-->
+
+_der Hund **von** meinem Bruder_  
+DAT
+
+Now, the phrase on the left would sound a bit fancy to some native speakers, and the one on the right would sound awkward to others. But they’re both perfectly correct. What’s _not_ correct in standard German is to use the dative case instead of the genitive without the _von_. _Der Hund meinem Bruder_ would be just as wrong as _the dog my brother_.
+
+Some dialects replace the genitive with the dative in another way, by saying _meinem Bruder sein Hund_ ("my brother his dog"), but this is also not standard and you shouldn't do it. It's what the language columnist Bastian Sick was making fun of in the title of his popular book [_Der Dativ ist dem Genitiv sein Tod_](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Der_Dativ_ist_dem_Genitiv_sein_Tod) ("the dative is the death of the genitive").
+
+Many prepositions take the genitive case, and these are also increasingly being used with the dative – we’ll cover this in Section VI. But in general, although it’s true that you don’t need to know the genitive as well as the other three cases, you can’t yet – and shouldn’t try to – avoid it entirely. And you definitely need to be able to recognize it; in particular, English speakers often confuse the genitive _s_ at the end of a (masculine or neuter) noun with the English plural _s_ (which is actually one of the least common plural forms in German).
+
+Also, you may have noticed in the tables above that some masculine and neuter nouns add an –s in the genitive, and some add an –es. There are complex rules for this but no simple one, and some sources will suggest that you memorize the genitive ending for every masculine and neuter noun just like the gender and plural form. But given how infrequently you’re likely to use the genitive actively (as opposed to just reading or hearing it), this is not a great use of your time. If you’re writing something important and want to get it right, the –s or –es is included in any good German-English (or German-only) dictionary.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/weak-nouns-the-n-declension.md)

nouns/reflexive-pronouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+---
+title: "Reflexive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/reflexive-pronouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Reflexive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Reflexive Pronouns
+
+Reflexive pronouns (myself, yourself, etc) are more common in German than in English, because there are many more verbs that require them. (Reflexive verbs will be covered in [Section V.12](/verbs/reflexive-verbs.md "V.12 Reflexive Verbs").) By default, a reflexive pronoun is the direct or indirect object of a verb, so it can only take the accusative or dative case. As you can see, there's a great deal of overlap between the reflexive pronouns and the personal pronouns:
+
+Singular
+
+Plural
+
+Formal
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+2nd
+
+**ACC**
+
+mich
+
+dich
+
+sich
+
+uns
+
+euch
+
+sich
+
+sich
+
+**DAT**
+
+mir
+
+dir
+
+English
+
+myself
+
+yourself
+
+him-/her-/  
+itself
+
+ourselves
+
+yourselves
+
+themselves
+
+\[yourself/  
+yourselves\]
+
+By the way, those plural forms can also be used to mean “each other” or “one another.” For example, “wir sehen uns” doesn’t mean that we'll see ourselves, it means we’ll see each other – or translating more idiomatically, “see you later.”
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/pronouns/relative-pronouns.md)

nouns/some-rules-of-noun-formation.md

@@ -0,0 +1,144 @@
+---
+title: "Some Rules of Noun Formation - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/some-rules-of-noun-formation"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Some Rules of Noun Formation - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Some Rules of Noun Formation
+
+Nouns that describe an occupation or a type of person are usually masculine. Many are formed by attaching an _er_ ending to a verb or noun. These _er_ nouns have no change in the plural:
+
+_die Musik_  
+music
+
+_der Musiker_  
+(male) musician
+
+_die Musiker_  
+multiple (male) musicians
+
+_lehren_  
+to teach
+
+_der Lehrer_  
+(male) teacher
+
+_die Lehrer_  
+multiple (male) teachers
+
+Even those that don't fit the _er_ pattern tend to be masculine. But their plural forms can vary:
+
+_der Arzt_  
+(male) doctor
+
+_die Ärzte_  
+multiple (male) doctors
+
+_der Matrose_  
+sailor
+
+_die Matrosen_  
+multiple (male) sailors
+
+The feminine version is formed by adding an _in_, and it always has the same plural. With the non-"er" forms, they often add an umlaut:
+
+_die Musiker**in**_  
+female musician
+
+_die Musiker**innen**_  
+multiple female musicians
+
+_die Lehrer**in**_  
+female teacher
+
+_die Lehrer**innen**_  
+multiple female teachers
+
+_die Ärzt**in**_  
+female doctor
+
+_die Ärzt**innen**_  
+multiple female doctors
+
+_die Matros**in**_  
+female sailor
+
+_die Matros**innen**_  
+multiple female sailors
+
+Like many other languages, German is struggling a little to create modern gender-neutral noun forms; a construction like "_Lehrer/in_" is a common approach, but it doesn't always work: you can't say "_Arzt/in_," because you'd be leaving out the umlaut on the feminine form. Sometimes you'll also see the [present participle](/verbs/present-participles-and-gerunds.md "14. Present Participles & Gerunds"), _Lehrende_: "\[those who are\] teaching."
+
+A related problem in German is that there's no single form for a mixed-gender group. For example, speeches in East Germany often began with the awkward _Liebe Genossen und Genossinnen_: "Dear male comrades and female comrades."
+
+There are many other standard noun formations, but for now we'll just cover two of the most common. The first is the _ung_ ending, which converts a verb to a noun. These nouns are always feminine, they all have the same _en_ plural, and they include some of the most common words in German:
+
+_wohnen_  
+to live
+
+_die Wohn**ung**_  
+home, apartment/flat
+
+_die Wohn**ungen**_  
+homes, apartments
+
+_zahlen_  
+to pay
+
+_die Zahl**ung**_  
+payment
+
+_die Zahl**ungen**_  
+payments
+
+_regieren_  
+to rule, govern
+
+_die Regier**ung**_  
+government
+
+_die Regier**ungen**_  
+governments
+
+_impfen_  
+to vaccinate
+
+_die Impf**ung**_  
+vaccination
+
+_die Impf**ungen**_  
+vaccinations
+
+This looks like the English "ing" ending, but as you can see above, it rarely translates that way. And in the other direction, "-ing" verb forms in English (walking, talking) generally do not translate to "ung" nouns in German. See our sections on [present participles, gerunds](/verbs/present-participles-and-gerunds.md "14. Present Participles & Gerunds") and the [progressive aspect](/verbs/the-continuous-and-progressive-aspects.md "15. The Continuous/Progressive Aspects") for more on this.
+
+Finally, there are the endings _heit_ and _keit_, which convert an adjective into a noun and roughly correspond to the English "ness." As with _ung_, these endings always make the noun feminine and always take an _en_ plural:
+
+_krank_  
+sick, ill
+
+_die Krank**heit**_  
+sickness, illness
+
+_die Krank**heiten**_  
+illnesses
+
+_möglich_  
+possible
+
+_die Möglich**keit**_  
+possibility
+
+_die Möglich**keiten**_  
+possibilities
+
+_schwierig_  
+difficult
+
+_die Schwierig**keit**_  
+difficulty
+
+_die Schwierig**keiten**_  
+difficulties
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/diminutive-endings.md "Diminutive Endings")

nouns/weak-nouns-the-n-declension.md

@@ -0,0 +1,87 @@
+---
+title: "Weak Nouns (the "N-Declension") - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/nouns/weak-nouns-the-n-declension"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Weak Nouns (the "N-Declension") - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Weak Nouns (the "N-Declension")
+
+Just to make things more complicated, certain masculine nouns are “weak” and take an “n” ending in all cases except the nominative. For example, most of the words for “boy” in German (Junge, Bursche, Knabe, Bube) fall into this group:
+
+Singular
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+der Junge
+
+die Jungen
+
+**Accusative**
+
+den Jungen
+
+die Jungen
+
+**Dative**
+
+dem Jungen
+
+den Jungen
+
+**Genitive**
+
+des Jungen
+
+der Jungen
+
+There are at least a few hundred weak nouns and it’s impractical to memorize them all, but once you know some of the most common ones, you can start to recognize them. They fall into two basic groups. The first, which you just saw, end in _e_ and usually refer to people or animals:
+
+  
+
+_der Kunde_ (customer)  
+_der Neffe_ (nephew)  
+_der Russe_ (Russian)  
+_der Schwede_ (Swede)
+
+_der Soziologe_ (sociologist)  
+_der Löwe_ (lion)  
+_der Rabe_ (raven)  
+_der Schimpanse_ (chimpanzee)
+
+These aren’t hard to remember, because there are very few masculine nouns in German that end in a single e and are _not_ weak. _Der Käse_ (cheese) is the only common one we can think of.
+
+The only wrinkle with this group is that a few of them keep the genitive _s_ after the _n._ These are often the ones that _don’t_ refer to a person or animal, like _der Wille_ (will, volition) or _der Gedanke_ (thought, idea). So the genitive of those would be _des Willens_ and _des Gedankens_ respectively. And the only non-masculine weak noun also works this way: _das Herz_ (heart) --> _des Herzens_.
+
+The second group is a little fuzzier, but it’s basically nouns with certain Latin and Greek endings. Most of them are so close to their English equivalents that we don’t even have to translate:
+
+_der Elefant_  
+_der Emigrant_  
+_der Präsident_
+
+_der Kapitalist_  
+_der Kommunist_  
+_der Diplomat_
+
+_der Astronaut_  
+_der Kandidat_  
+_der Kamerad_ (comrade)
+
+Finally, there are a few weak nouns that don’t fit into either group. The most common are:
+
+_der Bauer_ (farmer)  
+_der Bär_ (bear)  
+_der Held_ (hero)  
+_der Mensch_ (person)
+
+_der Nachbar_ (neighbor)  
+_der Pilot_  
+_der Idiot_  
+_der Architekt_
+
+You can find long lists of weak nouns, but you shouldn't try to memorize them all. If you remember the basic types above, you’ll get most of them right, and if you don’t, it’s not a real barrier to comprehension anyway.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/nouns/some-rules-of-noun-formation.md)

other.md

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+---
+title: "VII. Other Topics"
+description: "Section overview for Part VII: Other Topics — covering adverbs, conjunctions, two-part conjunctions, and modal particles."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/other"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# VII. Other Topics

other/adverbs.md

@@ -0,0 +1,124 @@
+---
+title: "Adverbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/other/adverbs"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Adverbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Adverbs
+
+German does not have the –ly distinction in English between an adjective and an adverb. You can use almost any adjective as an adverb without changing it, as long as it makes sense:
+
+Das Pferd ist **schnell.**  
+The horse is **quick**.
+
+Er rennt **schnell.**  
+He runs **quickly**.
+
+The only thing in German that’s somewhat comparable to our _–ly_ is the _–erweise_ fomulation, which modifies an entire clause rather than just a verb or an adjective:
+
+Es ist **normal**, dass wir um 7 Uhr essen.  
+It's **normal** for us to eat at 7 o'clock.
+
+**Normalerweise** essen wir um 7 Uhr.  
+**Normally** we eat at 7 o'clock.
+
+As in English, there are also some common adverbs that don’t map as directly to adjectives. They all work grammatically in the same way as their English equivalents, and they don’t take any case endings, so you just have to memorize them. Some of them you’ve probably seen already:
+
+**Time**
+
+**Manner**
+
+**Place**
+
+anfangs -- at the beginning  
+bald -- soon  
+bereits -- already  
+damals -- at that time, then  
+danach -- afterward  
+dann -- then  
+diesmal -- this time  
+einmal -- once  
+endlich -- finally, at last  
+früher -- earlier, previously  
+gestern -- yesterday  
+heute -- today  
+immer -- always  
+inzwischen -- meanwhile  
+jemals -- ever  
+jetzt -- now  
+langsam -- slowly  
+längst -- long ago  
+manchmal -- sometimes  
+meistens -- mostly, most often  
+neulich -- recently  
+nie -- never  
+noch -- still  
+nochmal -- again  
+nun -- now  
+oft -- often  
+schon -- already  
+sofort -- immediately  
+vorbei -- over, past  
+vorher -- previously, before  
+vorhin -- just now, a short time ago  
+wieder -- again  
+zuerst -- first, at first  
+zurzeit -- at the moment, at present  
+
+beinahe -- nearly, almost  
+besonders -- especially  
+bloß -- merely, simply, just  
+daneben -- besides, in addition  
+ebenfalls -- likewise, also  
+ebenso -- equally, similarly  
+eigentlich -- actually, in fact  
+fast -- almost  
+gemeinsam -- in common, jointly  
+gern, gerne -- gladly  
+hoffentlich -- hopefully  
+insgesamt -- in total, altogether  
+kaum -- hardly  
+leider -- unfortunately  
+mindestens -- at least, at minimum  
+nämlich -- namely  
+natürlich -- naturally  
+nebenbei -- by the way, incidentally  
+schließlich -- finally  
+sehr -- very  
+sogar -- even  
+sonst -- otherwise  
+teilweise -- partially  
+übrigens -- by the way  
+ungefähr -- approximately  
+ursprünglich -- originally  
+vielleicht -- perhaps, maybe  
+wahrscheinlich -- probably, likely  
+wirklich -- really, truly  
+ziemlich -- rather, quite  
+zufällig -- accidentally, by chance  
+zurück -- back  
+zusammen -- together
+
+aufwärts -- upward  
+auseinander -- separated, apart  
+außen -- outside  
+da -- here, there  
+drüben -- over there  
+geradeaus -- straight ahead  
+hier -- here  
+hinten -- in back, at the back  
+innen -- inside  
+links -- left  
+nebenan -- next door  
+nirgends/nirgendwo -- nowhere  
+oben -- above  
+rechts -- right (≠left)  
+rückwärts -- backwards  
+überall -- everywhere  
+unten -- under  
+vorn(e) -- in front, at the front  
+vorwärts -- forward
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/other/conjunctions.md)

other/conjunctions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,183 @@
+---
+title: "Conjunctions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/other/conjunctions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Conjunctions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Conjunctions
+
+In German there’s an important distinction between _subordinating conjunctions_, which send the verb to the end in the following (subordinated) clause, and _coordinating conjunctions_, which link two main clauses and keep each clause’s conjugated verb in the second position. There are only five one-word coordinating conjunctions – three main ones that you already know if you’ve made it this far, and two that are a bit less common. We’ve underlined the conjugated verbs so you can see how they stay in the second position in both clauses:
+
+  **Coordinating Conjunctions**
+
+und (and)
+
+   
+Du machst das noch mal **und** ich gehe ohne dich.  
+You do that again and I’m going without you.  
+ 
+
+oder (or)
+
+   
+Du hörst auf damit **oder** ich gehe.  
+You stop it or I’ll leave.  
+ 
+
+aber (but)
+
+   
+Ich wollte es abholen, **aber** der Laden hatte schon zu.  
+I wanted to pick it up, but the store was already closed.  
+ 
+
+doch  
+(but, and yet)
+
+   
+\[more lyrical and nuanced than aber, often expresses a mild paradox (it's like this, and yet it's also like that)\]  
+  
+Jahre vergehen, **doch** die Liebe bleibt.  
+Years go by, but love remains.  
+ 
+
+denn  
+(because, for)
+
+   
+\[a bit softer than "weil" (next table) and often used when the hearer is already aware of the following explanation.\]  
+  
+Bleibe bei uns, **denn** es will Abend werden.  
+Stay with us, for evening is nigh.
+
+  
+The list of subordinating conjunctions is a bit longer. Again, we’ve underlined the verbs -- notice how they move to the end in the subordinate clause:  
+  
+
+  **Subordinating Conjunctions**
+
+dass (that)
+
+   
+Ich will, **dass** du deine Hausaufgaben machst.  
+I want you to do your homework.  
+(literally I want that you do your homework)  
+  
+Er sagte, dass er kommen würde.  
+He said (that) he’s coming.  
+  
+\[notice that "dass" is often required in German  
+where "that" is optional in English.\]
+
+wenn  
+(if, when)
+
+ **Wenn** du möchtest, kannst du bei mir bleiben.  
+If you’d like, you can stay with me.  
+  
+Jeden Tag, **wenn** ich von der Schule nach Hause kam, wartete mein Hund schon vor der Tür.  
+Every day, when I came home from school, my dog was already waiting at the door.
+
+"When" is a more differentiated concept in German than in English. "Wenn" is used for the present, future, and repeated events in the past ("Remember when we used to stay out all night long?"). For a single event in the past ("When I got there, the house was empty") you should use "als" (below).
+
+immer wenn  
+(whenever)
+
+**Immer wenn** es regnet, muss ich an dich denken.  
+Whenever it rains, I think of you.  
+
+weil (because)
+
+  
+Ich komme zu spät, **weil** ich eine Reifenpanne hatte**.**I'm arriving late because I had a flat tire.  
+ 
+
+Many Germans also use **weil** in speech as a coordinating conjunction, without moving the verb to the end afterwards. Often they're not even aware of it, although they would instantly see the mistake if it was used this way in writing. One possibility is that they’re doing it for sentences where the listener already knows the "reason" (as with denn above). Another is that they’re accommodating a longer subordinate clause that would be harder to understand with the verb at the end.
+
+sobald  
+(as soon as)
+
+   
+Wir reden darüber, **sobald** ich zurück bin.  
+We'll talk about it as soon as I'm back.  
+ 
+
+bevor (before)
+
+   
+Ich hoffe, wir sehen uns noch mal, **bevor** ich das Land verlasse.  
+I hope we see each other again before I leave the country.  
+ 
+
+nachdem  
+(after)
+
+   
+Sie kamen an, **nachdem** alles schon vorbei war.  
+They arrived after everything was already over.  
+  
+**Nachdem** alles vorbei war**,** konnten wir darüber reden.  
+After it was all over, we were able to talk about it.
+
+als  
+(as, when, while)
+
+   
+_Ich bin gestolpert, **als** ich aus dem Bus stieg._  
+I stumbled as I was getting off the bus.  
+  
+\[Again, als is for a single past event; use wenn for a repeated event.\]
+
+da (because, since)
+
+   
+_Sie fuhren gerne Rad, **da** ihnen die Bewegung gut tat._  
+They enjoyed cycling because being active did them good.  
+ 
+
+seit, seitdem  
+(since \[a point in time\])
+
+   
+_Er konnte an nichts anderes mehr denken, **seit\[dem\]** er sie zum ersten Mal gesehen hatte._  
+He couldn't think of anything else since he had seen her for the first time.  
+ 
+
+ob (whether)
+
+   
+Ich weiss nicht, ob er alt genug ist.  
+I don’t know whether he’s old enough.  
+  
+Often translates to "if" in casual English, e.g. we’ll say "I don’t know if he’s old enough" rather than "I don’t know whether"
+
+obwohl (although)
+
+   
+Ich habe zugesagt, **obwohl** ich Bedenken hatte.  
+I agreed, although I had my doubts.  
+ 
+
+solange  
+(so long as)
+
+ **Solange** du hier bist, kannst du dich nützlich machen.  
+As long as you're here, you can make yourself useful.  
+ 
+
+während  
+(while, during)
+
+ **Während** du auf mich wartest, kannst du die Zeitung lesen.  
+While you're waiting for me, you can read the paper.  
+ 
+
+bis (until)
+
+   
+Ich bleibe hier, **bis** du zurückkommst**.**I'll wait here till you come back.  
+ 
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/other/two-part-conjunctions.md)

other/modal-particles.md

@@ -0,0 +1,203 @@
+---
+title: "Modal Particles - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/other/modal-particles"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Modal Particles - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Modal Particles
+
+“Particle” is a catch-all term for words that have no clear part of speech, like “hmm.” (Many English particles are also described as “interjections.”) A _modal_ particle is a word that’s used in speech to convey extra emphasis or emotion, without any real grammatical function.
+
+It’s often said that English has no modal particles, but we have some pretty similar features. Think of asking a small child “What have you got there?” or “What’s your name then?” The _there_ and _then_ aren’t really necessary in those sentences, they’re just a friendly way of expressing interest. Or if you say “Come on now!” to express disbelief or frustration, the _now_ isn’t strictly necessary. Some other examples are a little more old-timey: “What _ever_ are you talking about?” or “I’ll get him _but_ good.” Notice that all these words have ‘ordinary’ usages apart from their use as particles; this is also the case for the German particles below.
+
+In any case, the exact definition of a modal particle is complicated, but hopefully you’re getting the idea. For our purposes, let’s just define them as any common verbal flourish in spoken German. (Another way to think of them is as ‘verbal emoticons.’) You’re going to hear a lot of these if you talk to native speakers, so it’s useful to know them. Some can have different emphatic meanings, so they appear under more than one heading below.
+
+**Affirmation/  
+Agreement**
+
+aber
+
+   
+**aber** gerne!  
+with pleasure!  
+  
+**aber** sicher!  
+**most** certainly
+
+wohl
+
+   
+Das ist **wohl** wahr!  
+That’s **certainly** true!  
+ 
+
+ja
+
+   
+Das ist **ja** eine tolle idee!  
+That’s really a great idea!  
+ 
+
+na
+
+   
+**Na** klar komme ich!  
+You bet I‘m coming!  
+  
+**Na** logisch!  
+Of course!  
+ 
+
+**Contradiction/  
+Disagreement**
+
+doch
+
+   
+Du bist **doch** nur zugekifft.  
+You're just \[saying that because you're\] high.  
+  
+Q: Das ist **doch** nicht dein Ernst, oder? A: **Doch**!  
+Q: You’re not being serious, are you? A: I am!  
+ 
+
+**Special Emphasis/  
+Focus**
+
+gerade
+
+   
+Dass ich das **gerade** von DIR höre...  
+That I'm hearing that from YOU (of all people)…  
+  
+**Gerade** heute musste es schneien!  
+It had to snow today (of all days)!  
+ 
+
+eben
+
+   
+Ich versuche, eine Antwort auf **eben** die Frage zu formulieren.  
+I'm trying to find an answer to \[just\] that very question.  
+ 
+
+**Resignation**
+
+eben
+
+   
+So ist es **eben**. / Es ist **eben** so.  
+That's just how it is.  
+ 
+
+naja
+
+ **Naja**, was hast du erwartet?  
+Ah well, what did you expect?  
+ 
+
+halt
+
+   
+Ich war **halt** besoffen.  
+(What can i say?) I was drunk.  
+ 
+
+**Surprise**
+
+aber
+
+   
+Das war **aber** nett von dir!  
+That was nice of you! \[I wasn't expecting it\]  
+ 
+
+etwa
+
+   
+Ist das **etwa** für mich?  
+Is that for me?  
+ 
+
+**Interest**
+
+denn
+
+   
+Wie alt bist du **denn**? \[to a child\]  
+So how old are you?  
+ 
+
+mal
+
+   
+Guck dir das **mal** an!  
+Take a look at that!  
+ 
+
+**Intensifiers**
+
+schon
+
+   
+Das ist **schon** viel!  
+It’s more than you think/more than it seems  
+ 
+
+ja
+
+   
+Du bist **ja** blöd!  
+Are you ever dumb!  
+ 
+
+aber
+
+   
+Das ist **aber** völliger Quatsch!  
+That's complete nonsense!  
+ 
+
+**Exasperation/  
+Ang****er**
+
+nur
+
+   
+Wie konntest du **nur**?  
+How COULD you?  
+  
+Was hat er sich **nur** dabei gedacht?  
+What WAS he thinking?  
+ 
+
+schon
+
+   
+Was will er **schon** von mir?  
+What in the world does he want from me?  
+ 
+
+nun
+
+   
+Was soll das **nun** bedeuten?  
+**Now** what’s that supposed to mean?  
+ 
+
+**Softening/  
+Casual**
+
+halt
+
+   
+Es war **halt** ein Vorschlag.  
+It was just a suggestion.  
+ 
+
+mal
+
+   
+Warte **mal.**Wait a sec.

other/two-part-conjunctions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+---
+title: "Two-Part Conjunctions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/other/two-part-conjunctions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Two-Part Conjunctions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Two-Part Conjunctions
+
+Most two-part conjunctions in German have direct English equivalents, so it's faster to learn them by example than to break them down grammatically. The easiest are either/or and neither/nor:
+
+_Wir können **entweder** ins Kino **oder** ins Restaurant gehen._  
+We can either go to the cinema or to the restaurant.
+
+_Sie isst **weder** Fisch **noch** Fleisch._  
+She eats neither fish nor meat.
+
+(Also, if someone offers you two options and you want to reject both, you can just say weder noch to mean "neither one.")
+
+_Sowohl_ literally translates to "as well (as)" and is usually combined with _als auch_ or _wie_ to indicate that two things are both true. The sentence structure is a little different from English, though. We put "as well as" or "and" in between the two items, but _sowohl_ goes before them. The nearest English equivalent in terms of sentence structure is "both/and":
+
+_Dieses Gerät spart **sowohl** Zeit **als auch** Geld._  
+This appliance saves **both** time **and** money.  
+OR This appliance saves time **as well as** money.
+
+_**sowohl** im Inland **wie auch** im Ausland_  
+**both** at home **and** abroad  
+OR at home **as well as** abroad.
+
+Je/desto expresses a relationship between two [comparative](/adjectives/comparative-forms.md "2. Comparative & Superlative Forms") adjectives:
+
+_**Je mehr** du redest, **desto dümmer** klingst du._  
+**The more** you talk, **the dumber** you sound.
+
+_Zwar_ usually translates to "indeed" or "granted" or "it's true." It's frequently used with _aber_ ("but") to partially concede an argument or fact but still maintain an opposing position:
+
+_Er mochte sie **zwar**, wollte sie **aber** nicht heiraten._  
+While he certainly liked her, he did not want to marry her.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/other/modal-particles.md)

prepositions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+---
+title: "VI. Prepositions"
+description: "Section overview for Part VI: Prepositions — covering accusative, dative, two-way, and genitive prepositions, plus contractions."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/prepositions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# VI. Prepositions

prepositions/accusative-prepositions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,142 @@
+---
+title: "Accusative Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/prepositions/accusative-prepositions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Accusative Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Accusative Prepositions
+
+**English  
+equivalent(s)**
+
+**Sample usage and notes**
+
+_betreffend\*_  
+(btrf.)
+
+concerning,  
+with reference to
+
+   
+_Ihre Anfrage **betreffend**…_  
+regarding your inquiry…  
+ 
+
+bis
+
+until
+
+ Zähle von 1 **bis** 10.  
+Count from 1 to 10.  
+ 
+
+by
+
+ **Bis** wann mussen wir fertig sein?  
+By when do we have to be finished?  
+ 
+
+durch
+
+through
+
+ Es bringt mich **durch** den Tag.  
+It gets me through the day.  
+ 
+
+by
+
+ **durch** einen Anwalt vertreten werden  
+to be represented by a lawyer  
+ 
+
+because of
+
+ **Durch** den Regen war das Picknick ein Fiasko.  
+Because of the rain, the picnic was a fiasco.  
+ 
+
+via
+
+ Ich habe es **durch** Freunde erfahren.  
+I found out through/from friends.  
+ 
+
+für
+
+for
+
+ eine Nachricht **für** dich  
+a message for you  
+ 
+
+entlang\*
+
+along(side)
+
+   
+\[accusative when postpositional…\]  
+den Strand **entlang** laufen  
+to walk along the beach  
+   
+\[…but usually genitive when prepositional\] die Häuser **entlang** der Straße  
+the houses along the street  
+ 
+
+gegen
+
+against
+
+   
+„Gegen die Wand” (movie title)  
+Against the Wall  
+   
+Alle sind gegen mich.  
+Everyone's against me.  
+   
+
+around/about \[a time\]  
+ 
+
+Gegen Mitternacht gingen wir ins Bett.  
+We went to bed around midnight.  
+ 
+
+ohne
+
+without
+
+   
+ohne Zweifel  
+without \[a\] doubt  
+   
+Ohne dich kann ich nicht leben.  
+I can't live without you.  
+ 
+
+um
+
+around
+
+   
+um den Block laufen  
+to walk around the block
+
+at \[a time\]
+
+Wir treffen uns um 14:00 Uhr.  
+We're meeting at 2 pm.  
+ 
+
+_wider_
+
+against
+
+   
+\[more idiomatic / literary than "gegen"\] wider meinen Willen  
+against my will  
+ 
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/prepositions/dative-prepositions.md "3. Dative Prepositions")

prepositions/contractions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+---
+title: "Contractions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/prepositions/contractions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Contractions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Contractions
+
+A few common preposition-article pairs are usually contracted, as follows:
+
+an dem > **am**
+
+hinter dem > **hinterm**
+
+unter dem > **unterm**
+
+an das > **ans**
+
+in das > **ins**
+
+von dem > **vom**
+
+auf das > **aufs**
+
+in dem > **im**
+
+vor das > **vors**
+
+bei dem > **beim**
+
+über das > **übers**
+
+vor dem > **vorm**
+
+durch das > **durchs**
+
+um das > **ums**
+
+zu dem > **zum**
+
+für das > **fürs**
+
+unter das > **unters**
+
+zu der > **zur**
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/other/adverbs.md)

prepositions/dative-prepositions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,292 @@
+---
+title: "Dative Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/prepositions/dative-prepositions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Dative Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Dative Prepositions
+
+ 
+
+**English  
+equivalent(s)**
+
+**Sample usage and notes**
+
+_ab_
+
+from  
+\[a point in time\]
+
+   
+ab dem ersten Schultag  
+from the first day of school  
+ 
+
+aus
+
+from  
+\[origin or source\]
+
+   
+Ich komme aus den USA.  
+I come from the US.  
+ 
+
+from (out of)
+
+   
+Tomaten aus der Dose  
+tomatoes out of the can  
+ 
+
+from (made of)
+
+  
+aus Metall  
+made from/of metal  
+ 
+
+außer
+
+except for, besides,  
+apart from
+
+   
+keiner außer mir  
+no one but me  
+ 
+
+out of
+
+   
+außer Kontrolle  
+out of control  
+  
+außer Betrieb  
+out of order  
+ 
+
+bei
+
+at
+
+   
+Wasser kocht bei hundert Grad.  
+Water boils at 100 degrees.  
+  
+bei der Arbeit  
+at work  
+ 
+
+with/at the house of
+
+   
+Ich bleibe bei dir  
+I’ll stay with you / at your place  
+ 
+
+_entgegen\*_
+
+towards
+
+   
+Sie lief mir entgegen.  
+She ran towards me.  
+ 
+
+contrary to, notwithstanding
+
+   
+Dem steht nichts entgegen.  
+There's nothing to stop it from happening.  
+  
+entgegen den Erwartungen...  
+contrary to expectations...  
+ 
+
+_entsprechend\*_
+
+considering, according to, corresponding to
+
+   
+den Umständen entsprechend...  
+considering the circumstances...  
+ 
+
+_gegenüber\*_
+
+across from
+
+   
+gegenüber der Strasse  
+across the street  
+ 
+
+to (a person)
+
+   
+Mir gegenüber hat er nichts darüber gesagt.  
+He didn’t say anything to me about it.  
+ 
+
+_gemäß\*_
+
+according to,  
+in accordance with  
+(often used legally)
+
+   
+gemäß Paragraf 27 des Strafgesetzbuches...  
+according to Paragraph 27 of the criminal law code...  
+  
+unseren Instinkten gemäß…  
+according to our instincts…  
+ 
+
+laut
+
+according to
+
+   
+laut dem Pressesprecher...  
+according to the press spokesman...  
+  
+\[can also be genitive (laut des Presseprechers)\]  
+ 
+
+mit
+
+with
+
+   
+Bier mit Cola  
+beer with cola (popular German drink)  
+ 
+
+over \[time\]
+
+   
+mit den Jahren  
+over the years  
+ 
+
+at \[an age\]
+
+   
+ein Kind mit 2 Jahren  
+a two year old child  
+ 
+
+_(mit)samt_
+
+including, together with
+
+   
+samt Familie  
+with one's whole family  
+  
+samt Gepäck  
+with all one's baggage  
+ 
+
+nach\*
+
+after
+
+   
+nach der Arbeit/Schule  
+after work/school  
+ 
+
+according to
+
+   
+nach meiner Meinung  
+\[or meiner Meinung nach\]  
+according to (in) my opinion  
+ 
+
+to
+
+   
+Ich fliege nach Deutschland  
+I’m flying to Germany  
+ 
+
+_nahe_
+
+near
+
+   
+nahe der Natur  
+close to nature  
+ 
+
+seit
+
+since \[point in time\]
+
+   
+seit September  
+since September  
+ 
+
+for \[time period\]
+
+   
+seit langer Zeit  
+for a long time  
+ 
+
+von
+
+from (immediate origin)
+
+   
+Ich komme von der Arbeit.  
+I'm coming from work.  
+ 
+
+of
+
+   
+die Königin von England  
+the Queen of England  
+ 
+
+by
+
+   
+von Hand gemacht  
+made by hand  
+ 
+
+zu
+
+to
+
+   
+Ich gehe zum Arzt.  
+I'm going to the doctor.  
+ 
+
+at
+
+   
+zu diesem Zeitpunkt  
+at this point in time  
+ 
+
+too (adverb)
+
+   
+zu groß  
+too big  
+ 
+
+ 
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/prepositions/two-way-prepositions.md)

prepositions/genitive-prepositions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,241 @@
+---
+title: "Genitive Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/prepositions/genitive-prepositions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Genitive Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Genitive Prepositions
+
+As mentioned in [Section II.4](/nouns/more-on-the-genitive-case.md "4. More on the Genitive Case"), the slow death of the genitive extends to prepositions. You may hear some of the following genitive prepositions used with the dative case instead. We've noted a few where the dative is especially common.
+
+ 
+
+**English  
+equivalent(s)**
+
+**Sample usage and notes**
+
+(an)statt
+
+instead of
+
+   
+Statt der erwarteten Beförderung bekam er die Kündigung.  
+Instead of the expected promotion, he was let go.  
+ 
+
+abzüglich
+
+less, minus
+
+   
+abzüglich der Unkosten...  
+after expenses...  
+ 
+
+angesichts
+
+in view of, given
+
+   
+Angesichts der Tatsache, dass…  
+In view of the fact that…  
+ 
+
+außerhalb
+
+outside of
+
+   
+außerhalb der Stadt  
+outside the city  
+ 
+
+_bar_
+
+devoid of, barring any
+
+   
+Bar jeder Vernunft  
+(famous cabaret in Berlin)  
+"against all reason"  
+ 
+
+bezüglich (bzgl.)
+
+concerning, regarding,  
+with respect to
+
+   
+bezüglich unseres Telefonats  
+regarding our phone conversation  
+   
+
+binnen
+
+within \[a time period\]
+
+   
+binnen einer Woche  
+within a/one week  
+ 
+
+dank
+
+thanks to
+
+   
+dank Ihrer Hilfe...  
+thanks to your help...  
+  
+\[also frequently used in the dative\]  
+ 
+
+einschließlich
+
+including
+
+   
+einschließlich aller Kosten  
+all expenses included  
+ 
+
+infolge
+
+due to, because of
+
+   
+infolge einer schweren Erkrankung  
+due to a serious illness  
+ 
+
+inmitten
+
+in the middle/midst of
+
+   
+inmitten der Menge  
+in the middle of the crowd  
+ 
+
+innerhalb
+
+inside of
+
+   
+innerhalb eines kleinen Kreises  
+within a small circle \[of people\]  
+ 
+
+_mangels_
+
+for lack of (esp. legal)
+
+   
+Das Verfahren war mangels Beweisen eingestellt.  
+The case was dismissed for lack of evidence.  
+ 
+
+mittels
+
+by means of (esp. technical)
+
+   
+mittels eines Schraubenziehers... \[assembly instructions\]  
+using a screwdriver...   
+ 
+
+_oberhalb_
+
+above, beyond
+
+  
+oberhalb des Gefrierpunktes  
+above the freezing point  
+ 
+
+_unbeschadet_
+
+notwithstanding
+
+   
+unbeschadet des zuvor Gesagten...  
+despite/notwithstanding what was just said...  
+  
+unbeschadet dessen, dass...  
+notwithstanding the fact that...  
+ 
+
+ungeachtet
+
+in spite of
+
+   
+Ungeachtet der Drohungen des Irans will Deutschland Sanktionen.  
+In spite of Iran's threats, Germany wants sanctions.  
+ 
+
+unterhalb
+
+below, underneath
+
+   
+unterhalb der Armutsgrenze  
+below the poverty line  
+ 
+
+unweit
+
+not far from
+
+   
+unweit des Hotels  
+not far from the hotel  
+ 
+
+_zugunsten_
+
+in favor of,  
+in the interests of
+
+   
+zugunsten meines Mandanten  
+\[note weak noun\]  
+in the interest of my client  
+ 
+
+trotz
+
+despite
+
+   
+trotz des schlechten Wetters \[GEN\]  
+trotz dem schlechten Wetter \[DAT\]  
+despite the bad weather  
+  
+\[Native speakers disagree about whether the correct usage of "trotz" is genitive or dative. This is partly a North/South thing and partly a function of how it sounds with different nouns. We had to put it somewhere, but you can absolutely use it either way.\]  
+ 
+
+während
+
+during
+
+   
+Während des Semesters gelten folgende Sprechstunden...  
+During the semester the following office hours apply...  
+ 
+
+wegen
+
+because of
+
+   
+wegen Krankheit geschlossen  
+closed due to illness  
+  
+\[Like "dank" and "trotz" this is very commonly used in the dative.\]  
+ 
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/prepositions/contractions.md)

prepositions/introduction-to-prepositions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+---
+title: "Introduction to Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/prepositions/introduction-to-prepositions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Introduction to Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Introduction to Prepositions
+
+In German, prepositions tell you which case to use for the following noun. You should never learn a preposition without learning the associated case.
+
+The following lists are meant to be as complete as possible, so they include some less-common prepositions that you may not find in textbooks. Rather than leave anything out, we’ve italicized these less important words so you don’t spend too much time on them. The genitive group in particular has many little-used members.
+
+Keep in mind that it’s almost impossible to translate prepositions exactly in any language, because they have so many idiomatic usages. Imagine trying to explain the word “up” to someone learning English in a way that accounts for phrases like “give up,” “screw up,” “put up with,” “put up a fight,” “what are you up to?” and so on. What you’ll find in this section are the most literal and/or common English equivalents, but they’re not exhaustive.
+
+A few terms marked with an asterisk can also be used _after_ the noun, as “postpositions.” For example, _wir liefen den Strand entlang_ (_we walked along the beach_) rather than _wir liefen entlang den Strand._ The line between postpositions and separable verb prefixes can be a little fuzzy – some German teachers would read that first sentence and see the verb _entlanglaufen_ with no preposition – but it’s often a distinction without a difference.
+
+When two or more prepositions are used together, the one closer to the noun trumps. For example, in _ab ins Bett mit dir_ ("off to bed with you"), the bed is in the accusative case from the “in” (ins = in das) rather than the dative case from “ab.”
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/prepositions/accusative-prepositions.md)

prepositions/two-way-prepositions.md

@@ -0,0 +1,174 @@
+---
+title: "Two-Way Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/prepositions/two-way-prepositions"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Two-Way Prepositions - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Two-Way Prepositions
+
+The following two-way prepositions are called _Wechselpräpositionen_ in German (from the verb _wechseln,_ to change). They’re accusative when they express motion/direction, and dative when they express only location:
+
+I put the book **on** the table.  
+                                  ACC
+
+The book is **on** the table.  
+                                DAT
+
+ 
+
+**English  
+equivalent(s)**
+
+**Sample usage and notes**
+
+an
+
+at, on
+
+   
+Setz dich an den Tisch. \[ACC\]  
+Sit down at the table.  
+  
+ein Bild an die Wand hängen \[ACC\]  
+to hang a picture on the wall  
+  
+Das Bild hängt an der Wand. \[DAT\]  
+The picture hangs (is hanging) on the wall.  
+ 
+
+auf
+
+on, up
+
+   
+auf den Berg steigen \[ACC\]  
+to climb up the mountain  
+  
+eine Vase auf den Tisch stellen \[ACC\]  
+to set a vase down on the table  
+  
+Die Vase steht auf dem Tisch. \[DAT\]  
+The vase is (standing) on the table.  
+ 
+
+  **_an_ vs. _auf_:** The word _auf_ implies a position on top of something;  
+_an_ is more like "beside" or suspended from.
+
+hinter
+
+behind
+
+   
+ein Blick hinter die Kulissen \[ACC\]  
+a glimpse behind the scenes  
+  
+Was passiert hinter den Kulissen? \[DAT\]  
+What's happening behind the scenes?  
+ 
+
+in
+
+into, to \[ACC\]  
+in \[DAT\]
+
+   
+Die Kinder gehen in die Schule. \[ACC\]  
+The kids are going to school.  
+  
+Was hast du in der Schule gelernt? \[DAT\]  
+What did you learn in school?  
+ 
+
+neben
+
+next to (_not_ just near)
+
+   
+Komm, setz dich neben mich. \[ACC\]  
+Come sit down next to me.  
+  
+Der Platz neben mir ist frei. \[DAT\]  
+The seat next to me is free.  
+ 
+
+über
+
+over, above  
+
+   
+Der Zug fuhr über die Brücke. \[ACC\]  
+The train went over the bridge.  
+  
+Die Sonne hing über dem Meer \[DAT\]  
+The sun hung over the sea.  
+ 
+
+about
+
+Wir redeten über den Film. \[ACC\]  
+We talked about the movie.  
+ 
+
+unter
+
+under, below  
+
+   
+Schau unters Bett vorm Schlafengehen \[ACC\]  
+Look under the bed before going to sleep.  
+  
+Ein Monster versteckt sich unterm Bett. \[DAT\]  
+A monster is hiding under the bed.
+
+among
+
+   
+ein Schaf unter Wölfen \[DAT\]  
+a sheep among wolves  
+  
+_unter anderem (u.a.)_ \[DAT\]  
+among other things / _inter alia_  
+ 
+
+vor
+
+in front of  
+  
+
+   
+_Ich stellte mich vors Mikro(fon)._ \[ACC\]  
+I went up to the microphone.  
+  
+_Der Tisch steht vor dem Fenster._ \[DAT\]  
+The table is in front of the window.
+
+of
+
+   
+_Angst vor Höhe_ \[DAT\]  
+fear of heights
+
+before
+
+   
+_Ich muss es vorm Wochenende machen_ \[DAT\]  
+I have to do it before the weekend.  
+ 
+
+zwischen
+
+between
+
+   
+_etwas zwischen die Finger bekommen_ \[ACC\]  
+to get a hold of something  
+(literally, between one's fingers)  
+  
+_zwischen den Jahren_ \[DAT\]  
+between the years  
+(German expression for the time between Christmas and New Year’s)  
+ 
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/prepositions/genitive-prepositions.md)

pronouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+---
+title: "IV. Pronouns"
+description: "Section overview for Part IV: Pronouns — covering personal, possessive, reflexive, relative, and interrogative pronouns."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/pronouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# IV. Pronouns

pronouns/interrogative-pronouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,79 @@
+---
+title: "Interrogative Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/pronouns/interrogative-pronouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Interrogative Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Interrogative Pronouns
+
+Finally, there are the **interrogative** pronouns, or “question words.” In German they’re sometimes called _W-Wörter_, since they all start with W. Most of them have a direct English equivalent:
+
+_Warum?_  
+Why?
+
+_Was?_  
+What?
+
+_Wann?_  
+When?
+
+_Wie?_  
+How?
+
+But "where" is a little more complicated:
+
+_Wo?_  
+Where at?
+
+_Woher?_  
+Where from?
+
+_Wohin?_  
+Where to?
+
+And "who" has a full set of case endings:
+
+**Nominative**
+
+_Wer?_
+
+Who?
+
+**Accusative**
+
+_Wen?_
+
+Who(m)?
+
+**Dative**
+
+_Wem?_
+
+To who(m)?
+
+**Genitive**
+
+_Wessen?_
+
+Whose?
+
+_Wo_ can also be added to the beginning of many prepositions to make a question word. If the preposition starts with a vowel, an “r” is inserted between them to make the pronunciation easier:
+
+_**Wofür** lebe ich?_  
+**What** am I living **for**?
+
+_**Worüber** sprichst du?_  
+**What** are you talking **about**?
+
+As you can see, we usually do this using “what” in modern English, but it used to be a more direct equivalent – think of “Romeo, Romeo, **wherefore** \[why, what for\] art thou Romeo?”
+
+“Which” in German is _welch—_ and is fully declined according to gender and case (see [Section II](/nouns/declension-tables.md "3. Declension Tables")).
+
+As in English, the interrogative pronouns can also sometimes be used as relative pronouns. Unlike the standard relative pronouns in the [previous subsection](/pronouns/relative-pronouns.md "3. Relative Pronouns"), they are not declined:
+
+_Der Ort, **wo** ich zur Schule ging, ist nicht weit von hier._  
+The place **where** I went to school is not far from here.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/verb-types.md)

pronouns/personal-possessive-pronouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,167 @@
+---
+title: "Personal & Possessive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/pronouns/personal-possessive-pronouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Personal & Possessive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Personal & Possessive Pronouns
+
+Like articles and adjectives, pronouns in German vary according to gender and case. But this time it should be slightly more familiar, as English has kept some of these distinctions too. Here are the personal pronouns in English, which hopefully look familiar:
+
+Singular
+
+Plural
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+**NOM**
+
+I
+
+you
+
+he / she / it
+
+we
+
+you
+
+they
+
+**ACC/DAT**
+
+me
+
+you
+
+him / her / it
+
+us
+
+you
+
+them
+
+**GEN**
+
+my/mine
+
+your(s)
+
+his / her(s) / its
+
+our(s)
+
+your(s)
+
+their(s)
+
+As you can see from the table below, German pronouns are a little more complicated. Three important things to notice:
+
+1.  German pronouns often distinguish between the accusative and the dative case, while English pronouns never do. Old English did have this distinction, but even by the time of Chaucer it was gone (e.g. _thee_ was both accusative and dative).
+2.  German has a second person plural (ihr) that’s different from the singular (du); English uses "you" for both, except in casual/regional plurals like “y’all” or “you guys."
+3.  German adds a formal “you” (Sie), which is both singular and plural. These “Sie” forms share the same conjugation as the third person plural, but are capitalized.
+
+Singular
+
+Plural
+
+Formal
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+2nd
+
+**NOM**
+
+ich
+
+du
+
+er / sie / es
+
+wir
+
+ihr
+
+sie
+
+Sie
+
+**ACC**
+
+mich
+
+dich
+
+ihn / sie / es
+
+uns
+
+euch
+
+sie
+
+Sie
+
+**DAT**
+
+mir
+
+dir
+
+ihm / ihr / ihm
+
+uns
+
+euch
+
+ihnen
+
+Ihnen
+
+**GEN**
+
+meiner
+
+deiner
+
+seiner / ihrer / seiner
+
+unser
+
+euer
+
+ihrer
+
+Ihrer
+
+The genitive forms (last row) are grayed out because they're almost never used. We've included them mainly because they give you the stems of the possessive articles (_mein, dein, sein_, etc.) that are used instead (see [II.3](/nouns/declension-tables.md "II.3 Declension Tables")). Indeed, saying "der Hund _meiner_" instead of "mein Hund" would be just as awkward as saying "the dog _of me_” in English.
+
+When to use the _Sie_ form rather than _du_ or _ihr_ is one of the most common questions for German learners, and there's no simple answer. Like most “proper” forms of address (“sir/ma’am” in English, _vous_ in French) it’s no longer used in every situation where the teachers and textbooks suggest that it is. However, it’s still important to use _Sie_ with police officers (in Germany this is actually the law) and other authority figures. It’s also polite to use it with anyone in a service position, like waiters, clerks or salespeople.
+
+After that, it’s largely a matter of familiarity and age – both the absolute age of the person you’re talking to (older people are more likely to expect _Sie_), and their age relative to yours. It can be about the setting, too: sometimes the same two people will address each other with _Sie_ in the office and _du_ in the bar after work. It’s also about the tone you’re trying to adopt, and sometimes even a touch of politics; for example, it was kind of a Hippie thing to use _du_ with everyone as a statement of egalitarian values. Anyway, you should never use _Sie_ with children, but otherwise it’s safer to fall back on _Sie_ whenever you’re not sure.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/pronouns/reflexive-pronouns.md)

pronouns/reflexive-pronouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,75 @@
+---
+title: "Reflexive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/pronouns/reflexive-pronouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Reflexive Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Reflexive Pronouns
+
+Reflexive pronouns (myself, yourself, etc) are more common in German than in English, because there are many more verbs that require them. (Reflexive verbs will be covered in [Section V.12](/verbs/reflexive-verbs.md "V.12 Reflexive Verbs").) By default, a reflexive pronoun is the direct or indirect object of a verb, so it can only take the accusative or dative case. As you can see, there's a great deal of overlap between the reflexive pronouns and the personal pronouns:
+
+Singular
+
+Plural
+
+Formal
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+2nd
+
+**ACC**
+
+mich
+
+dich
+
+sich
+
+uns
+
+euch
+
+sich
+
+sich
+
+**DAT**
+
+mir
+
+dir
+
+English
+
+myself
+
+yourself
+
+him-/her-/  
+itself
+
+ourselves
+
+yourselves
+
+themselves
+
+\[yourself/  
+yourselves\]
+
+By the way, those plural forms can also be used to mean “each other” or “one another.” For example, “wir sehen uns” doesn’t mean that we'll see ourselves, it means we’ll see each other – or translating more idiomatically, “see you later.”
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/pronouns/relative-pronouns.md)

pronouns/relative-pronouns.md

@@ -0,0 +1,76 @@
+---
+title: "Relative Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/pronouns/relative-pronouns"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Relative Pronouns - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Relative Pronouns
+
+The function of **relative** pronouns in English is usually served by “that,” “who” or “which.” In German these relative pronouns are fully declined, and the relative clause is usually set off with commas:
+
+_Das Auto, **das** ich sah, war blau._  
+The car **that** I saw was blue.
+
+_Der Mann, **der** fuhr, hatte einen Hut auf._  
+The man **who** was driving had a hat on.
+
+Note that “das” in the first sentence above is in the accusative case, as the car is the direct object of the verb “see” in the relative clause. The “der” in the second sentence is nominative, as the man is the subject of the relative clause.
+
+As you may have noticed, relative pronouns in German decline for the most part the same way as the definite article “the.” The only differences are in the dative plural and the genitive:
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**Nominative**
+
+der
+
+die
+
+das
+
+die
+
+**Accusative**
+
+den
+
+die
+
+das
+
+die
+
+**Dative**
+
+dem
+
+der
+
+dem
+
+**denen**
+
+**Genitive**
+
+**dessen**
+
+**deren**
+
+**dessen**
+
+**deren**
+
+Those genitive forms of the relative pronoun would usually translate to “whose” or "of which" in English. Since genitive constructions always involve two nouns – possessor and possessed – they can be a little tricky to decline. The relative pronoun takes its gender and number from the possessor:
+
+_Der Mann, **dessen** Hunde du hörst, ist mein Nachbar._  
+The man **whose** dogs you hear is my neighbor.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/pronouns/interrogative-pronouns.md)

reference.md

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+---
+title: "Reference Materials"
+description: "Reference section — complete declension tables, strong verb list, dative verb list, and keyboard shortcuts for German characters."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/reference"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Reference Materials

reference/complete-declension-tables.md

@@ -0,0 +1,183 @@
+---
+title: "Complete Declension Tables - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/reference/complete-declension-tables"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Complete Declension Tables - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Complete Declension Tables
+
+The "hard" case endings are highlighted in yellow in these tables, and the “soft” adjective endings are underlined.
+
+ TYPE 1: Definite Articles
+
+"The nice man / woman / child / children"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**NOM**
+
+de**r** **nette** Mann
+
+di**e** **nette** Frau
+
+da**s** **nette** Kind
+
+di**e** **netten** Kinder
+
+**ACC**
+
+de**n** **netten** Mann
+
+di**e** **nette** Frau
+
+da**s** **nette** Kind
+
+di**e** **netten** Kinder
+
+**DAT**
+
+de**m** **netten** Mann
+
+de**r** **netten** Frau
+
+de**m** **netten** Kind
+
+de**n** **netten** Kinder**n**
+
+**GEN**
+
+de**s** **netten** Manne**s**
+
+de**r** **netten** Frau
+
+de**s** **netten** Kinde**s**
+
+de**r** **netten** Kinder
+
+ TYPE 2: Indefinite & Possessive Articles
+
+"My little dog / cat / bunny / birds"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**NOM**
+
+mein **kleiner**  
+Hund
+
+meine **kleine**  
+Katze
+
+mein **kleines**  
+Kaninchen
+
+meine **kleinen**  
+Vögel
+
+**ACC**
+
+meinen **kleinen**  
+Hund
+
+meine **kleine**  
+Katze
+
+mein **kleines**  
+Kaninchen
+
+meine **kleinen**  
+Vögel
+
+**DAT**
+
+meinem **kleinen**  
+Hund
+
+meiner **kleinen**  
+Katze
+
+meinem **kleinen**  
+Kaninchen
+
+meinen **kleinen**  
+Vögeln
+
+**GEN**
+
+meines **kleinen**  
+Hundes
+
+meiner **kleinen**  
+Katze
+
+meines **kleinen**  
+Kaninchens
+
+meiner **kleinen**  
+Vögel
+
+ TYPE 3: No Article
+
+"hot coffee / cold milk / fresh bread / warm rolls"
+
+Masculine
+
+Feminine
+
+Neuter
+
+Plural
+
+**NOM**
+
+**heißer** Kaffee
+
+**kalte** Milch
+
+**frisches** Brot
+
+**warme** Brötchen
+
+**ACC**
+
+**heißen** Kaffee
+
+**kalte** Milch
+
+**frisches** Brot
+
+**warme** Brötchen
+
+**DAT**
+
+**heißem** Kaffee
+
+**kalter** Milch
+
+**frischem** Brot
+
+**warmen** Brötche**n**
+
+**GEN**
+
+**heißen** Kaffee**s**
+
+**kalter** Milch
+
+**frischen Brotes**
+
+**warmer** Brötchen

reference/dative-verbs.md

@@ -0,0 +1,349 @@
+---
+title: "Dative Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/reference/dative-verbs"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Dative Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Dative Verbs
+
+As a reminder, these are verbs that can take a dative object even without an accusative object or a dative preposition. (See [V.13](/verbs/dative-verbs.md "V.13 Dative Verbs") for more.) The best way to remember them is a short phrase with a dative pronoun or article, so we've given you one for each verb:
+
+  
+
+English
+
+Sample Usage
+
+ähneln
+
+to resemble
+
+_Er ähnelt **seinem** Vater sehr._  
+He really resembles his father.
+
+antworten
+
+to answer
+
+_Sie haben **mir** nicht geantwortet._  
+They haven't answered me.
+
+auffallen
+
+to stand out,  
+make an impression
+
+_Der Kratzer an seinem Auto ist **ihm** nie aufgefallen._  
+He never noticed the scratch on his car.
+
+ausweichen
+
+to evade
+
+_Er weicht **meinen** Fragen ständig aus._  
+He constantly evades my questions.
+
+befehlen
+
+to order, command
+
+_Der Offizier befiehlt **den Soldaten** den Angriff._  
+The officer orders the soldiers to attack.
+
+begegnen
+
+to meet someone
+
+_Ich bin **ihm** schon einmal begegnet._  
+I've met him before.
+
+beistehen
+
+to stand by, support
+
+_In schweren Zeiten standen wir **ihnen** bei._  
+We stood by them in difficult times.
+
+danken
+
+to thank
+
+_Ich möchte **Ihnen** nochmals danken..._  
+I wanted to thank you again...
+
+dienen
+
+to serve
+
+Lass **dir** das als Warnung dienen!  
+Let that serve as a warning to you!
+
+drohen
+
+to threaten
+
+_Mein Chef drohte **mir** mit der Kündigung._  
+My boss threatened to fire me.
+
+einfallen
+
+to come to mind,  
+think of something
+
+Es fällt **mir** nicht im Traum ein.  
+I wouldn't dream of it.
+
+entgegnen
+
+to reply, retort
+
+_**Dem** ist auch nichts zu entgegnen._  
+There's nothing to say to that.
+
+erlauben
+
+to allow, permit
+
+_Erlauben Sie **mir** die Bemerkung..._  
+Permit me to remark...
+
+erscheinen
+
+to appear
+
+_Das erscheint **mir** gar nicht geheuer._  
+That doesn't appear safe to me.
+
+erwidern
+
+to reply
+
+_Sie wusste nicht, was sie **ihm** daraufhin erwidern sollte._  
+She didn't know how to reply to him.
+
+fehlen
+
+to be missing
+
+**Mir** fehlen die Worte...  
+Words fail me...
+
+folgen
+
+to follow
+
+Da kann ich **dir** nicht folgen.  
+I'm not following you.
+
+gefallen
+
+to please \[someone\]
+
+_Wie gefällt **dir** das Essen?_  
+How do you like the food?
+
+gehorchen
+
+to obey
+
+_Der Hund gehorcht nur **seinem Herrchen**._  
+The dog only obeys his owner.
+
+gehören
+
+to belong to
+
+**Wem** gehört diese Tasche?  
+Who does this bag belong to?
+
+gelingen
+
+to succeed
+
+_Mit etwas Geduld wird es **dir** gelingen!_  
+With a little patience you'll succeed!
+
+genügen
+
+to suffice, be enough
+
+_Leider genügt es **den Anforderungen** nicht._  
+Unfortunately it doesn't fulfill the requirements.
+
+geraten
+
+to advise
+
+_Ich habe **ihm** dazu geraten._  
+I advised him to do it.
+
+geschehen
+
+to happen, occur
+
+_**Ihr** ist etwas geschehen._  
+Something happened to her.
+
+glauben
+
+to believe \[someone\]
+
+Du kannst es **mir** glauben.  
+You can trust me on this.
+
+gleichen
+
+to closely resemble  
+\[someone or something\]
+
+Du gleichst **ihm** aufs Haar.  
+You resemble him down to a hair.
+
+glücken
+
+to succeed, work out
+
+_Hoffentlich wird es **ihnen** glücken._  
+Hopefully it'll work out for them.
+
+gratulieren
+
+to congratulate
+
+_Wir hatten ein Geschenk gekauft, um **ihm** zu gratulieren._  
+We had bought a gift to congratulate him.
+
+helfen
+
+to help
+
+_Könntest du **mir** bitte helfen?_  
+Could you give me a hand?
+
+lauschen
+
+to eavesdrop, listen in  
+\[on someone\]
+
+_Sie konnte nicht widerstehen, **ihnen** zu lauschen._  
+She couldn't resist eavesdropping on them.
+
+misslingen
+
+to fail
+
+_Sie konnten sich nicht sicher sein, ob es **ihnen** misslingen würde._  
+They couldn't be sure whether they'd fail.
+
+munden
+
+to taste good  
+\[to someone\]
+
+_Lebkuchen mundetet **ihr** in der Weihnachtszeit immer noch am besten._  
+Gingerbread cake still tasted best \[to her\] at Christmastime.
+
+nützen
+
+to be of use  
+\[to someone\]
+
+Es wird **dir** nichts nützen.  
+It won't do you any good.
+
+passen
+
+to fit
+
+Das Kleid passt **ihr** wie angegossen.  
+That dress fits her like it was poured on.
+
+passieren
+
+to happen
+
+_Das kann **jedem** einmal passieren._  
+It can happen to anyone.
+
+raten
+
+to advise
+
+_Dazu kann ich **dir** nur raten._  
+I can only advise you to do so.
+
+schaden
+
+to damage \[something\],  
+do harm \[to someone\]
+
+_Ein bisschen Bewegung kann **niemandem** schaden._  
+A little exercise can't hurt anyone.
+
+schmecken
+
+to taste good  
+\[to someone\]
+
+_Hat **dir** das Essen geschmeckt?_  
+Did you like the food?
+
+schmeicheln
+
+to flatter
+
+_Es ist einfach, **einem** Kind zu schmeicheln._  
+It's easy to flatter a child.
+
+sich nähern
+
+to approach,  
+draw near to
+
+Er nähert sich **dem** Ruhestand.  
+He's nearing retirement.
+
+trauen
+
+to trust
+
+**Dem** Glück ist nicht zu trauen.  
+Good fortune is not to be trusted.
+
+vertrauen
+
+to trust, confide in,  
+rely on
+
+Ich vertraue **ihm** nicht.  
+I don't trust him.
+
+verzeihen
+
+to forgive
+
+Verzeihen Sie **mir** die Unterbrechung...  
+Forgive me the interruption...
+
+weichen
+
+to yield to, make way for
+
+_Allein **der Gewalt** wird er weichen._  
+He will only yield to force.
+
+widersprechen
+
+to contradict, gainsay
+
+Wage nicht, **mir** zu widersprechen!  
+Don't you dare contradict me!
+
+winken
+
+to wave \[to someone\]
+
+Er winkte **mir** zum Abschied.  
+He waved goodbye to me.

reference/non-german-keyboards.md

@@ -0,0 +1,95 @@
+---
+title: "Non-German Keyboards - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/reference/non-german-keyboards"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Non-German Keyboards - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Non-German Keyboards
+
+Here's how to type the "extra" German characters on a non-German keyboard, with a few more notes below for Windows users:
+
+ 
+
+Mac
+
+Windows  
+(all versions)
+
+Windows 7  
+(sometimes)
+
+Ä/ä
+
+Option-U, then A or a
+
+Alt-0196 (capital)  
+or -0228 (lowercase)
+
+Control-colon (control+shift+;),  
+then A or a
+
+Ö/ö
+
+Option-U, then O or o
+
+Alt-0214  
+or -0246
+
+Control-colon,  
+then O or o
+
+Ü/ü
+
+Option-U, then U or u
+
+Alt-0220  
+or -0252
+
+Control-colon,  
+then U or u
+
+ß
+
+Option-S
+
+Alt-0223
+
+Control-&  
+(control-shift-7)
+
+German quotes,  
+single (‚‘)
+
+Alt-8218 (open),  
+or -8216 (close)
+
+German quotes,  
+double („“)
+
+Alt-8222 (open),  
+or -8220 (close)
+
+"Chevron"  
+quotes, single  
+(‹›,›‹)
+
+Alt-8249  
+and -8250
+
+"Chevron"  
+quotes, double  
+(«»,»«)
+
+Shift-Alt-3  
+and -4
+
+Alt-0171  
+and -0187
+
+Those Windows shortcuts in the middle column usually have to be entered on the numeric keypad, and sometimes it has to be the left Alt key, not the right one. As for the Windows 7 shortcuts, we put "sometimes" because they're unpredictable -- they tend to work only in certain installations of Windows, or in Word but not a web form, etc.
+
+To be honest, the whole process on Windows is so annoying that most users who have to type any serious amount of German text will be better off just switching their keyboard layout. This may interfere with a few other keyboard shortcuts (especially the ones with the right-hand Alt key) but it's usually worth it. [Click here](http://support.microsoft.com/kb/258824) for instructions on how to switch your keyboard layout in Windows.
+
+Of the default layouts, the "US-International" one is a good alternative to "German," because it keeps most of the letters and basic punctuation in the same places and uses alt-key combos for the umlaut vowels.

verbs.md

@@ -0,0 +1,8 @@
+---
+title: "V. Verbs"
+description: "Section overview for Part V: Verbs — covering verb types, tenses, moods, passive voice, prefix verbs, reflexive verbs, and more."
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# V. Verbs

verbs/dative-verbs.md

@@ -0,0 +1,42 @@
+---
+title: "Dative Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/dative-verbs"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Dative Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Dative Verbs
+
+There are certain verbs in German that always put their object in the dative, even when there’s no preposition and it seems to be a direct object. In the [Perfect Tenses](/verbs/perfect-tenses.md "5. The Perfect Tenses") section, we mentioned a few that take _sein_, but most of them actually take _haben_. Here are a few more examples:
+
+antworten – to answer
+
+Ich antworte **dir** \[not **dich\]** Morgen.  
+I’ll answer you tomorrow
+
+danken – to thank
+
+Ich danke **dir** für deine Hilfe.  
+\[I\] thank you for your help.
+
+gefallen – to please
+
+Es gefällt **mir \[**not **mich\]**.  
+It pleases me / I like it
+
+helfen – to help
+
+Kann ich **dir** helfen?  
+Can I help you?
+
+raten – to advise
+
+Ich habe **ihm** \[not **ihn**\] geraten, es nicht zu tun.  
+I advised him not to do it.
+
+Sometimes you’ll see verbs like schreiben (to write) identified as dative verbs, because they commonly take a dative (indirect) object in addition to an accusative (direct) one, as when you write a letter \[accusative\] to a friend \[dative\]. That’s not what we’re talking about here, though. A “true” dative verb is one that takes a dative object _without_ an accusative object, and there are only about 50 of them. If you look closely, what’s going on with most of them is that an implied direct object is being dropped, often because it’s being used as the verb itself. You _answer_ someone by giving them an _answer_, help them by giving _help_, advise them by giving _advice_, and so on.
+
+Click [here](/reference/dative-verbs.md "Dative Verbs") for our full list of dative verbs.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/present-participles-and-gerunds.md)

verbs/future-tenses.md

@@ -0,0 +1,69 @@
+---
+title: "The Future Tenses (and Futuristic Present) - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/future-tenses"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The Future Tenses (and Futuristic Present) - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# The Future Tenses (and Futuristic Present)
+
+The basic future tense in German is the Futur I; it’s formed with the present tense of the verb werden (given in [section V.3](/verbs/present-and-simple-past.md "V.3 The Present & Preterite Tenses")) and the infinitive of the main verb. We do the same thing in English with _will_:
+
+_Ich **werde** dort ein Hotel **suchen**._  
+I **will look for** a hotel there.  
+  
+_Ich **werde** das Geschirr **spülen.**_  
+I **will do** the dishes. \[literally, _spülen_ is more like "rinse"\]  
+
+To form the Futur II (future perfect), use _werden_ + past participle + _haben/sein_. Again it's similar in English: _will have_. The only difference is that, as always in German, the non-conjugated verbs move to the end of the clause:
+
+_Wenn ihr ankommt **werde** ich ein Hotel **gefunden haben**._  
+By the time you arrive, I **will have found** a hotel.  
+  
+_Bis heute Abend **werde** ich das Geschirr **gespült haben**._  
+By this evening, I **will have done** the dishes.
+
+In English we also have the more casual form "I’m going to..." to replace "I will..." This form does not exist in German, so don’t try to translate it literally: Ich gehe zu \[verb\] would not make sense. Just use werden instead.\*  
+  
+The futuristic present (Futuristisches Präsens) refers to a tendency in both languages to use the present tense for future events. In English we do this in two main situations: when we have arranged to do something in the near future ("I’m going to the movies tomorrow") and when referring to an action that will take place according to a fixed (usually printed) schedule or timetable ("The train leaves in half an hour"). German also uses the present tense for these situations:  
+  
+_Meine Freundin **besucht** mich nächstes Wochenende._  
+My girlfriend **visits** \[is visiting\] me next weekend.  
+  
+_Der Zug **fährt** in 10 Minuten **ab**._  
+The train **departs** in ten minutes.  
+  
+(Note that we often use the progressive aspect in these situations -- "is visiting" -- which [doesn’t exist in German](/verbs/the-continuous-and-progressive-aspects.md "V.15 The Continuous/Progressive Aspects").)  
+  
+There are a few situations where German uses the futuristic present and English does not. The most important is an offer or promise to do something:
+
+German (Präsens):  
+Literal English (present):  
+Correct English (future):
+
+**Ich zahle** es dir morgen zurück.  
+**I pay** you back tomorrow.  
+**I’ll pay** you back tomorrow.
+
+**Ich hole** dir eine Jacke.  
+**I get** you a jacket.  
+**I’ll get** you a jacket.
+
+There’s another case where use of the present is optional: predictions or speculation. In the case of speculation, we usually use may/might/maybe in English, and German uses vielleicht (perhaps):
+
+German (Präsens):  
+German (Futur I):  
+English (future):
+
+Morgen **regnet** es.  
+Morgen **wird** es **regnen**.  
+Tomorrow it **will rain**.
+
+Vielleicht **gehe** ich nächste Woche.  
+Vielleicht **werde** ich nächste Woche **gehen.**  
+I may **go** \[Maybe I’ll **go**\] next week.
+
+\*(To be more specific: the verb phrase “going to” in English usually means that a future event is already planned or expected (“I’m going to do my homework later”) rather than the announcement of a decision (“I’ll do my homework later”). In German, “going to” will often have werden, or possibly schon or noch. Ich werde meine Hausaufgaben später machen; Ich mache meine Hausaufgaben schon/noch. But an announcement is in the futuristic present: Ich mache meine Hausaufgaben später.)
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/the-konjunktiv-moods.md)

verbs/past-participles.md

@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+---
+title: "Past Participles - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/past-participles"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Past Participles - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Past Participles
+
+In English, the perfect tense is formed with the present tense of the verb “to have” and the **past participle** of the main verb: **_Have_** _you **written** the report? Yes, I **have written** it._ In German it’s the same, except that sometimes _sein_ (to be) is used instead of _haben_ (to have). But before we get to that, we have to learn how to form German participles.
+
+To form the past participle of weak verbs, add _ge_ to the beginning, then drop the _en_ or _n_ and add _t_ to the end. So _kaufen_, for example, would become _gekauft_.
+
+Strong verbs take the _ge-_ but keep their regular (_–n_ or –_en_) infinitive ending. They also often have a vowel shift. The participle is the third and last irregular form that you have to learn for each strong verb – the first two being the present-tense vowel shift (if any) and the past stem. Strong verbs are often given with all three irregular forms immediately after them, present-past-participle, like this:
+
+**halten** (hält, hielt, gehalten) – to stop  
+**riechen** (riecht, roch, gerochen) – to smell  
+**helfen** (hilft, half, geholfen) – to help  
+
+(Annoyingly, some language dictionaries and textbooks leave out the present form in their list of strong verbs and just give past-participle. Try to find one that has all three, or just use [our list](/reference/strong-verbs.md).)
+
+Notice that the vowel in the participle can match the infinitive (halten/gehalten), the past (roch/gerochen) or neither (geholfen). Some people find it easier to learn the strong verbs when they’re arranged in these three groups. We’ve presented them that way in our [list of strong verbs](/reference/strong-verbs.md "Strong Verbs"), as well as in a single alphabetical list.
+
+Mixed verbs are all of the second type, with the vowel in the participle matching the one in the past:
+
+**brennen** (brennt, brannte, gebrannt) – to burn  
+**bringen** (bringt, brachte, gebracht) – to bring  
+**denken** (denkt, dachte, gedacht) – to think  
+**kennen** (kennt, kannte, gekannt) – to know (people)  
+**nennen** (nennt, nannte, genannt) – to name  
+**rennen** (rennt, rannte, gerannt) – to run  
+**senden** (sendet, sandte, gesandt) – to send  
+**wenden** (wendet, wandte, gewandt) – to turn  
+**wissen** (weiß, wusste, gewusst) – to know (facts)
+
+As for the auxiliary verbs: the participle of _sein_ is _gewesen_, for _haben_ it's _gehabt_, and for _werden_ it's _geworden_ or just _worden_, depending on the context.
+
+The only other exceptions to the above rules are a group of weak verbs that end in _\-ieren_. These get the _t_ but not the _ge_. So _studieren_ (to study) becomes _studiert_ in the participle (not _gestudiert_). In other respects these -_ieren_ verbs are completely weak, and they are some of the easiest German verbs to remember, because you can usually just drop the ending and get pretty close to the English verb. A few more examples:
+
+**diskutieren** – to discuss  
+**installieren** – to install  
+**informieren** – to inform  
+**fotografieren** – to photograph
+
+**existieren** – to exist  
+**markieren** – to mark  
+**integrieren** – to integrate  
+**realisieren** – to realize / implement
+
+Although the English forms are very similar, many of these –ieren verbs actually come to German through French, and they can occasionally come from German roots as well. Here are a few that are a little more distant from English:
+
+**buchstabieren** – to spell (from the German _Buchstabe_, a letter of the alphabet)  
+**etablieren** – to establish (from the French _établir_)  
+**jonglieren** – to juggle (Fr. _jongler_)  
+**regieren** – to rule, govern (Fr. _régir_)  
+**kaschieren** – to conceal (Fr. _cacher_)
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/perfect-tenses.md)

verbs/perfect-tenses.md

@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
+---
+title: "The Perfect Tenses - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/perfect-tenses"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The Perfect Tenses - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# The Perfect Tenses
+
+Once you know a verb’s participle, the _Perfekt_ is formed by adding it to the present tense of _haben_ or _sein_:
+
+**haben:**
+
+**sein:**
+
+_Ich habe gelacht._  
+I laughed.
+
+_Du bist aber gewachsen!_  
+Have you ever grown!
+
+_Es hat funktioniert._  
+It worked.
+
+_Wir sind wieder zu Hause angekommen._  
+We arrived back home.
+
+_Habt ihr gegessen?_  
+Have you (guys) eaten?
+
+_Sind sie da geblieben?_  
+Did they stay there?
+
+Your first instinct will be to translate every _Perfekt_ statement in German with the perfect tense in English: "I have laughed," "It has worked," etc. But as you can see above, the most natural translation is usually the simple past (preterite) tense. There is effectively **no connection** between the _Präteritum_/_Perfekt_ distinction in modern German, which is mainly a written/spoken one, and the preterite/perfect distinction in English, which is about the relationship between past and present (see the [next section](/v-verbs/6-perfect-vs-preterite.md "6. Perfect vs. Preterite") for much more on this).
+
+Most verbs take _haben_, but some of the ones that take _sein_ are pretty common. In general, _sein_ is for verbs showing a change of location (movement) or a change of state/condition (transformation). For example:
+
+**movement:**  
+_gehen_ – to go  
+_kommen_ – to come  
+_laufen_ – to walk, run
+
+**change of state:**  
+_sterben_ – to die  
+_wachsen_ – to grow  
+_genesen_ – to recover, convalesce
+
+There are some regional differences; generally, as you go further South you'll hear more verbs used with _sein_. For example, in Bavaria it's more common to say _ich bin gesessen_ (I was sitting) but in the rest of Germany it's _ich habe gesessen_.
+
+Verbs that take _sein_ are always **intransitive**, which means that they don't take a direct (accusative) object. Unfortunately, many intransitive verbs also take _haben_, like _schlafen_ (to sleep) or _starren_ (to stare), so this rule doesn't work in the other direction.
+
+In the rare cases where a _sein_ verb is used with a direct object, it takes _haben_ instead:
+
+**intransitive** (_sein_):  
+_Ich **bin** in die Stadt gefahren._  
+I drove into the city.
+
+**transitive** (_haben_):  
+_Ich **habe** meine Schwester in die Stadt gefahren._  
+I drove my sister into the city.
+
+However, it’s more common for verbs to have a transitive variant: one example that still has the shift in English is _fallen_ (with _sein_, as in "a tree **falls**") vs. _fällen_ (with _haben_, as in "to **fell** a tree").  Another is _liegen/legen_, which corresponds to the English "lie/lay." With pairs like these in German, the transitive verb (with _haben_) tends to be weak, while the intransitive verb (with _sein_) is strong.
+
+The _Plusquamperfekt_ is used for an event that had already occurred before some other point in the past. It’s the same as the _Perfekt_, only it uses the past tense (_Präteritum_) of _haben/sein_ instead of the present tense:
+
+_Es **hatte** bereits **angefangen** zu regnen, als Stefan nach Hause kam._  
+It **had** already **started** to rain when Stefan came home.
+
+_Wir **waren** bis zur Brücke **gekommen**, bevor uns einfiel, dass wir unser Geld **vergessen hatten**._  
+We **had come** to the bridge before it occurred to us that we **had forgotten** our money.
+
+_Damals **hatten** wir noch nie ein echtes Schloss **gesehen**._  
+At the time, we **had** never **seen** a real castle before.
+
+One of the more complex aspects of the perfect tenses in German is what to do when there are multiple verbs in a dependent clause. Generally, German does not allow two adjacent past participles in the same clause. Instead, both become infinitives. (There is an exception to this, termed the [Ultra-Perfekt](http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doppeltes_Perfekt) by some, but it’s regional and very non-standard usage.) And when such a bundle of verbs gets grouped together at the end of a dependent clause, the conjugated auxiliary verb goes before the infinitive forms, not after them.
+
+_Ich habe es gemacht._ (I did it.)  
+_Ich musste es machen._ (I had to do it.)  
+_Ich habe es machen müssen._ (I had to do it.)  
+_Weißt du, bis wann er es hatte machen müssen?_ (Do you know by when he had to have done it?)
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/perfect-vs-preterite.md)

verbs/perfect-vs-preterite.md

@@ -0,0 +1,111 @@
+---
+title: "Perfect vs. Preterite - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/perfect-vs-preterite"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Perfect vs. Preterite - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Perfect vs. Preterite
+
+In English we use the preterite about 90% of the time, and we tend to reserve the perfect for situations where a past action has ongoing implications or relevance in the present. For example, consider "**have you seen** the Godfather movies?" (perfect – if you haven’t, you still could) versus "**did you see** the circus while it was in town?" (preterite – it’s too late to see it now).
+
+In German, this distinction no longer really exists. There is a single concept of the past (_die Vergangenheit_) and **the _Präteritum_ and _Perfekt_ tenses are interchangeable** in expressing it. In practice, Germans use the _Perfekt_ for about 90% of speech; they only use the _Präteritum_ in speech for the auxiliary and modal verbs and a few _very_ common strong or mixed verbs. Overusing the _Präteritum_ in speech will make you sound like a snob or a robot, depending on the context.
+
+Here are the rules you should follow in _spoken_ German:
+
+1\. Always use the preterite for _sein_:
+
+_Ich **war** glücklich._  
+I was happy.
+
+_Es **war** schönes Wetter auf der Insel._  
+The weather on the island was nice.
+
+_**Warst** du zu Hause?_  
+Were you home?
+
+_Wir **waren** noch nie in Griechenland._  
+We've never been to Greece.
+
+2\. Always use the preterite for modal verbs:
+
+_Ich **konnte** es nicht sehen._  
+I couldn't see it.
+
+_Das **solltest** du schon gestern machen._  
+You were supposed to do that yesterday.
+
+_**Durfte** er nicht mitkommen?_  
+Wasn't he allowed to come along?
+
+_Wir **wollten** aber nicht._  
+But we didn't want to.
+
+3\. Use the perfect tense for everything else:
+
+_Ich **bin** ihm am Sonntag **begegnet**._  
+I met him on Sunday.
+
+_Was **hast** du ihm **gesagt**?_  
+What did you say to him?
+
+_Es **ist** vor langer Zeit **gemacht worden**._  
+It was done a long time ago.
+
+_Meine Vorfahren **haben** Deutschland vor 150 Jahren **verlassen**._  
+My ancestors left Germany 150 years ago.
+
+You'll hear native speakers using more exceptions than these, of course, but they tend to be verb-by-verb (and often regional) preferences that you have to just pick up by ear.
+
+Written German always uses the _Präteritum_ more than spoken German, but just how much varies according to the context. The _Präteritum_ is most favored in novels, history and other literary/academic writing. For example, here's the opening of a detective novel by the German author Jakob Arjouni. We've highlighted all the conjugated verbs for you:
+
+_Endlich schlug ich die Augen auf und ortete die verdammte Fliege. Dick und schwarz saß sie auf der weißen Bettdecke. Ich zielte anständig und stand auf, um mir die Hand zu waschen. Den Spiegel mied ich. Ich ging in die Küche, setzte Wasser auf_ und suchte Filtertüten.
+
+Finally I opened my eyes and located the damned fly. Fat and black, it sat on the white blanket. I aimed well and stood up to wash my hand. I avoided the mirror. I went into the kitchen, set up some water \[to boil\] and looked for coffee filters.
+
+Arjouni has used every one of those verbs in the _Präteritum_. Let's review them:
+
+**Strong Verbs**
+
+_Präteritum_
+
+_aufschlagen_ (to open)  
+_sitzen_ (to sit)  
+_aufstehen_ (to stand up)  
+_meiden_ (to avoid)  
+_gehen_ (to go)
+
+_schlug auf_ (opened)  
+_saß_ (sat)  
+_stand auf_ (stood up)  
+_mied_ (avoided)  
+_ging_ (went)
+
+**Weak Verbs**
+
+_Präteritum_
+
+_orten_ (to locate)  
+_zielen_ (to aim)  
+_aufsetzen_ (to set)  
+_suchen_ (to look for)
+
+_ortete_ (located)  
+_zielte_ (aimed)  
+_setzte auf_ (set)  
+_suchte_ (looked for)
+
+Journalistic content generally leans towards the _Präteritum_ too, although not quite as much. In fact, most news stories begin with either the _Präsens_ or the _Perfekt_ before switching back to the _Präteritum_. For [example](http://www.morgenpost.de/vermischtes/stars-und-promis/article116851748/Brad-Pitts-unanstaendiges-Geburtstagsgeschenk-fuer-Jolie.html):
+
+_Angelina Jolie hat mit Partner Brad Pitt in Berlin ihren 38. Geburtstag gefeiert. Dafür mieteten sie eine ganze Restaurant-Etage. Doch das Essen war nicht seine einzige Aufmerksamkeit..._
+
+Angelina Jolie celebrated her 38th birthday with her partner Brad Pitt in Berlin. They rented an entire floor of a restaurant. But the food wasn't his only gift...
+
+This usage of the _Perfekt_ is one of the few remaining echos in German of that "relevance to the present" distinction. It just sounds a little more up-to-the-minute, more like _news_ to begin a story that way.
+
+Once you get to less formal writing -- personal emails, online posts, text messages -- it's much harder to offer any clear guidelines. You will definitely see a lot more _Perfekt_ in these formats than you would in a novel, often because we tend to affect a looser "spoken" register (in any language) in these kinds of casual writing. But there's also more use of the _Präteritum_ than in speech. The exact mix of the two depends on the person and the context.
+
+All students of German are told to avoid the _Präteritum_ in speech, but few take it seriously enough. The fact is, many native speakers are unaware that certain preterite forms even _exist_ in their language unless they've learned about them in advanced grammar classes. This is especially true of the second-person preterite forms, since books and newspapers are almost never written in the second person. For example, we know a teacher who was giving an English class to young [Deutsche Bahn](http://www.bahn.com/i/view/index.shtml) employees, and wanted them to come up with the phrase "what did you (guys) do?" in English. Instead of the normal "Was habt ihr gemacht?" (_Perfekt_) he asked them to translate "Was machtet ihr?" (_Präteritum_) so that they wouldn't have "what have you done?" as an option. But "Was machtet ihr?" sounds so odd to modern ears that the students absolutely refused to accept that it was proper German at all!
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/future-tenses.md)

verbs/prefix-verbs.md

@@ -0,0 +1,97 @@
+---
+title: "Prefix Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/prefix-verbs"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Prefix Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Prefix Verbs
+
+So far we’ve been talking about ‘root’ verbs, but many common verbs in German are formed by combining a root verb with a prefix. We have prefix verbs in English too (**_re_**_calculate, **un**wind_) but they’re much more common in German, and the way they work is a little different.
+
+Verb prefixes in German can be **separable** or **inseparable**. A separable prefix moves to the end of a sentence when  the verb is conjugated.\* For example, the mixed verb _bringen_ (to bring) can add the separable prefix _mit_ (with) to become the verb _mitbringen_ (to bring along, bring with). Or add the separable prefix _zu_ (to) to the weak verb _hören_ (to hear) to make _zuhören_ (to listen to):
+
+_**Ich bringe** morgen meinen Freund **mit**._  
+**I’ll bring** my friend **along** tomorrow.
+
+_**Sie hörte** mir **zu**._  
+**She listened to** me.
+
+When the verb is not conjugated – when it’s used with a modal verb, for example – the prefix stays attached:
+
+_**Darf** ich meinen Freund **mitbringen**?_  
+**May** I **bring** my friend **along**?
+
+_Er **will** mir nicht **zuhören**._  
+He doesn’t **want** **to listen** **to** me.
+
+At this point, you may be starting to think of English "phrasal" verbs like “**take out** the garbage,” which are similar in that the extra word can often be moved to the end of the sentence (“**take** the garbage **out**”) and even occasionally stuck onto the beginning (“the **outtakes** from the film”). These can be helpful in conceptualizing separable prefixes, but remember that they’re not quite the same thing grammatically.
+
+**Inseparable** prefixes are more like English verb prefixes, although they don’t always have a direct English translation. Inseparable prefixes are never stressed in the pronunciation of the verb. There are nine major inseparable prefixes: _be-_, _emp-_ _ent-_, _er-_, _ge-_, _miss-_, _ver-_, _voll-_ and _zer-_.
+
+Other than these nine, almost all other prefixes in German are separable. Separable prefixes are always stressed in pronouncing the verb. The most common ones are prepositions, like _mit-_ (with) or _zu-_ (to) above.
+
+Finally, there are a few prefixes which can be separable or inseparable, even when attached to the same root verb. The pronunciation rules still apply –  they are stressed when separable and unstressed when inseparable. There’s also a rough logic to the different usages: generally the more figurative meanings of the verb are inseparable, and the literal ones are separable. The classic example of this is **_über_**_setzen_, which can mean _to ferry, carry over_ (literal, separable, stress on ‘über’) or _to translate_ (figurative, inseparable, stress on ‘setz’).
+
+Truthfully, though, no one really uses _übersetzen_ in the old separable sense anymore. A better example would be _durchsuchen_, which we used in the section on the Passive voice. _Durchsuchen_ is formed from the weak verb _suchen_  (_to search_) and the prefix _durch_ (_through_). We were using the inseparable form, which means _to thoroughly search_ (a physical space), as the police would do after a crime. In the separable form, it means to literally _search through_ (files, records, mail) and the past participle would have been _durch**ge**sucht_ instead of _durchsucht._
+
+As that example indicates, prefix verbs are a little irregular in how they form the past participle. An inseparable prefix verb does not take the _ge—_ prefix. But a separable prefix verb takes the ‘ge’ _between_ the prefix and the main verb.
+
+This is easier to visualize with a table. The first column is what you already learned in section V.4, and the next two columns show how prefixes fit in:
+
+ 
+
+**root verbs** (no prefix)
+
+**inseparable prefix**
+
+**separable prefix**
+
+weak verbs
+
+_ge_ + verb stem + _t kaufen > **ge**kauf**t**_
+
+prefix + verb stem + _t **ver**kaufen > **ver**kauf**t**_
+
+prefix + _ge_ + verb stem + _t_
+
+**_ein_**_kaufen > ein**ge**kauf**t**_
+
+weak –ieren verbs
+
+verb stem + _t_
+
+_fotografieren > fotografier**t**_
+
+prefix + verb stem + _t **miss**interpretieren > **miss**interpretier**t**_
+
+prefix + verb stem + _t_
+
+**_an_**_probieren > anprobier**t**_
+
+strong verbs
+
+_ge_ + irreg. stem + _(e)n_ _schreiben_ > **_ge_**_schr**ie**b**en**_
+
+_prefix_ + irreg. stem + _(e)n beginnen > hat begonnen_
+
+prefix + _ge_ + irreg. stem + _(e)n_
+
+_anbieten > hat an**ge**boten_
+
+mixed verbs
+
+_ge_ + past stem + _t denken > **ge**dach**t**_
+
+prefix + past stem + _t benennen > **be**nn**a**n**t**_
+
+prefix + _ge_ + past stem + _t auskennen > aus**ge**kannt_
+
+ 
+
+Separable prefix verbs are especially likely to use the ‘infinitive imperative’ mentioned in V.7, e.g. _Aufpassen!_ (_pay attention!_). And in an infinitive clause – where you’d put _zu_ (to) in front of the verb – a separable verb ‘swallows’ the _zu_ the same way it does with the _ge_ above:
+
+\[example\]
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/reflexive-verbs.md)

verbs/present-and-simple-past.md

@@ -0,0 +1,754 @@
+---
+title: "The Present & Preterite Tenses - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/present-and-simple-past"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The Present & Preterite Tenses - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# The Present & Preterite Tenses
+
+The _Präsens_ and _Präteritum_ are the two "fully conjugated" forms in German (that is, they don't use an auxiliary verb), so it's good to learn them together. Here’s the weak verb _kaufen_ (to buy):
+
+**Präsens**
+
+**Präteritum**
+
+singular
+
+1st
+
+ich
+
+kaufe
+
+I buy
+
+ich
+
+kaufte
+
+I bought
+
+2nd
+
+du
+
+kaufst
+
+you buy
+
+du
+
+kauftest
+
+you bought
+
+3rd
+
+er/sie/es
+
+kauft
+
+he/she/it buys
+
+er/sie/es
+
+kaufte
+
+he/she/it bought
+
+plural
+
+1st
+
+wir
+
+kaufen
+
+we buy
+
+wir
+
+kauften
+
+we bought
+
+2nd
+
+ihr
+
+kauft
+
+you (pl.) buy
+
+ihr
+
+kauftet
+
+you (pl.) bought
+
+3rd
+
+sie/Sie
+
+kaufen
+
+they buy
+
+sie/Sie
+
+kauften
+
+they bought
+
+  
+Notice the pattern: the "en" ending of the infinitive is removed (sometimes it’s just an "n") and replaced with the appropriate highlighted ending. The past tense endings are mostly just the present tense endings with an extra _t_; this is the “weak” past tense ending mentioned in V.I, and it’s directly related to the _–d_ ending in the weak English past tense.
+
+These twelve endings are used for every weak verb in German, without exception. Some of them are hard to pronounce if the verb has certain consonants at the end of the stem; in this case an _e_ is added in between the stem and the ending. For example, here is the weak verb _reden_ (to talk). Notice how without the extra e it would be harder to distinguish among these forms:
+
+**Präsens**
+
+**Präteritum**
+
+singular
+
+1st
+
+ich
+
+rede
+
+I talk
+
+ich
+
+red**e**te
+
+I talked
+
+2nd
+
+du
+
+red**e**st
+
+you talk
+
+du
+
+red**e**test
+
+you talked
+
+3rd
+
+er/sie/es
+
+red**e**t
+
+he/she/it talks
+
+er/sie/es
+
+red**e**te
+
+he/she/it talked
+
+plural
+
+1st
+
+wir
+
+reden
+
+we talk
+
+wir
+
+red**e**ten
+
+we talked
+
+2nd
+
+ihr
+
+red**e**t
+
+you (pl) talk
+
+ihr
+
+red**e**tet
+
+you (pl) talked
+
+3rd
+
+sie/Sie
+
+reden
+
+they talk
+
+sie/Sie
+
+red**e**ten
+
+they talked
+
+Also notice that the _Sie_ form, the formal second person that we learned about in Section 4, is conjugated exactly the same as the third person plural (“they”). This is true for all tenses and moods, and for all types of verbs.
+
+Strong verbs are a little different. Remember that strong verbs form their past tense with a vowel shift rather than an added _t_; some of them also have a (different) vowel shift in the present tense, but only in the 2nd and 3rd person singular. There’s no one rule for these vowel shifts -- you have to learn them when you learn the verb, just as you once learned to say "broke" instead of "breaked" in English. Here’s the strong verb _fallen_ (to fall):
+
+**STRONG VERBS**
+
+**Präsens**
+
+**Präteritum**
+
+singular
+
+1st
+
+ich
+
+falle
+
+I fall
+
+ich
+
+f**iel**
+
+I fell
+
+2nd
+
+du
+
+f**ä**llst
+
+you fall
+
+du
+
+f**iel**st
+
+you fell
+
+3rd
+
+er/sie/es
+
+f**ä**llt
+
+he/she/it falls
+
+er/sie/es
+
+f**iel**
+
+he/she/it fell
+
+plural
+
+1st
+
+wir
+
+fallen
+
+we fall
+
+wir
+
+f**iel**en
+
+we fell
+
+2nd
+
+ihr
+
+fallt
+
+you (pl) fall
+
+ihr
+
+f**iel**t
+
+you (pl) fell
+
+3rd
+
+sie/Sie
+
+fallen
+
+they fall
+
+sie/Sie
+
+f**iel**en
+
+they fell
+
+Notice that the present tense endings are the same as for weak verbs. Also notice that with both strong and weak verbs, the 1st and 3rd person singular are the same in the past tense, and the 1st and 3rd person plural (_we_ and _they_) are the same in both tenses.
+
+Now let’s try a mixed verb. Remember that there are only a few of these, and they combine the strong past stem changes with the weak past endings. Mixed verbs do not have the strong vowel shift in the present tense, except for _wissen_ (which becomes _weiß_). Here is _bringen_ (to bring):
+
+**MIXED VERBS**
+
+**Präsens**
+
+**Präteritum**
+
+singular
+
+1st
+
+ich
+
+bringe
+
+I bring
+
+ich
+
+br**ach**te
+
+I brought
+
+2nd
+
+du
+
+bringst
+
+you bring
+
+du
+
+br**ach**test
+
+you brought
+
+3rd
+
+er/sie/es
+
+bringt
+
+he/she/it brings
+
+er/sie/es
+
+br**ach**te
+
+he/she/it brought
+
+plural
+
+1st
+
+wir
+
+bringen
+
+we bring
+
+wir
+
+br**ach**ten
+
+we brought
+
+2nd
+
+ihr
+
+bringt
+
+you (pl) bring
+
+ihr
+
+br**ach**tet
+
+you (pl) brought
+
+3rd
+
+sie/Sie
+
+bringen
+
+they bring
+
+sie/Sie
+
+br**ach**ten
+
+they brought
+
+Modal verbs are irregular in the present singular tenses, and weak in the plural:
+
+**MODAL VERBS: _Präsens_**
+
+**dürfen**
+
+**können**
+
+**mögen**
+
+**müssen**
+
+**sollen**
+
+**wollen**
+
+singular
+
+1st
+
+ich
+
+**darf**
+
+**kann**
+
+**mag**
+
+**muss**
+
+**soll**
+
+**will**
+
+2nd
+
+du
+
+**darf**st
+
+**kann**st
+
+**mag**st
+
+**mus**st
+
+**soll**st
+
+**will**st
+
+3rd
+
+er/sie/es
+
+**darf**
+
+**kann**
+
+**mag**
+
+**muss**
+
+**soll**
+
+**will**
+
+plural
+
+1st
+
+wir
+
+dürfen
+
+können
+
+mögen
+
+müssen
+
+sollen
+
+wollen
+
+2nd
+
+ihr
+
+dürft
+
+könnt
+
+mögt
+
+müsst
+
+sollt
+
+wollt
+
+3rd
+
+sie/Sie
+
+dürfen
+
+können
+
+mögen
+
+müssen
+
+sollen
+
+wollen
+
+You may have guessed that the English modal verbs _can_ and _must_ are directly related to these forms. So is _will_, but be careful, because the way we use it in modern English translates to _werden_ rather than _wollen._ _Ich **werde** es tun_ means _I **will** do it_, while _Ich **will** es tun_ means _I **want to** do it_.
+
+The modal verbs have weak endings in the past tense, but they lose their umlauts and _mögen_ has a stem change:
+
+**MODAL VERBS: _Präteritum_**
+
+**dürfen**
+
+**können**
+
+**mögen**
+
+**müssen**
+
+**sollen**
+
+**wollen**
+
+singular
+
+1st
+
+ich
+
+durfte
+
+konnte
+
+mochte
+
+musste
+
+sollte
+
+wollte
+
+2nd
+
+du
+
+durftest
+
+konntest
+
+mochtest
+
+musstest
+
+solltest
+
+wolltest
+
+3rd
+
+er/sie/es
+
+durfte
+
+konnte
+
+mochte
+
+musste
+
+sollte
+
+wollte
+
+plural
+
+1st
+
+wir
+
+durften
+
+konnten
+
+mochten
+
+mussten
+
+sollten
+
+wollten
+
+2nd
+
+ihr
+
+durftet
+
+konntet
+
+mochtet
+
+musstet
+
+solltet
+
+wolltet
+
+3rd
+
+sie/Sie
+
+durften
+
+konnten
+
+mochten
+
+mussten
+
+sollten
+
+wollten
+
+Finally, the three auxiliary verbs are almost completely irregular, especially _sein_:
+
+**AUXILIARY VERBS**
+
+**sein**
+
+**haben**
+
+**werden**
+
+_Präs._
+
+_Prät._
+
+_Präs._
+
+_Prät._
+
+_Präs._
+
+_Prät._
+
+singular
+
+1st
+
+ich
+
+bin
+
+war
+
+habe
+
+hatte
+
+werde
+
+wurde
+
+2nd
+
+du
+
+bist
+
+warst
+
+hast
+
+hattest
+
+wirst
+
+wurdest
+
+3rd
+
+er/sie/es
+
+ist
+
+war
+
+hat
+
+hatte
+
+wird
+
+wurde
+
+plural
+
+1st
+
+wir
+
+sind
+
+waren
+
+haben
+
+hatten
+
+werden
+
+wurden
+
+2nd
+
+ihr
+
+seid
+
+wart
+
+habt
+
+hattet
+
+werdet
+
+wurdet
+
+3rd
+
+sie/Sie
+
+sind
+
+waren
+
+haben
+
+hatten
+
+werden
+
+wurden
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/past-participles.md)

verbs/present-participles-and-gerunds.md

@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+---
+title: "Present Participles & Gerunds - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/present-participles-and-gerunds"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Present Participles & Gerunds - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Present Participles & Gerunds
+
+It's a little harder for native English speakers to remember the difference between these two forms, because in English they have the same -ing ending. But in German (and most other languages) they're formed differently.
+
+The **present participle** is a way of using a verb as an adjective, and in German it's only used right before a noun, as in "**running** water" or "**barking** dogs." It’s formed by adding a –d to the end of the infinitive, then the normal adjective case endings:
+
+_Auf der A1 ist **fließender** Verkehr._ (traffic report)  
+\[Smoothly\] **flowing** traffic on the A1.
+
+Don’t confuse the present participle with the more common _past_ participle that we’ve been discussing up till now. You can also use the past participle as an adjective, but of course it has a different meaning (think of _breaking glass_ vs. _broken glass_).
+
+A **gerund** is a verb used as a noun, as in "The **Taming** of the Shrew" or "the **running** of the bulls." The gerund in German is just the infinitive, capitalized. (Like all nouns.) All gerunds are neuter, and when there’s a plural, it has no added ending or umlaut.
+
+You often see the gerund on signs, in both German and English:
+
+_**Rauchen** tötet_  
+**Smoking** kills
+
+_**Parken** verboten_  
+No **parking** \[literally "parking forbidden"\]
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/the-continuous-and-progressive-aspects.md)

verbs/reflexive-verbs.md

@@ -0,0 +1,102 @@
+---
+title: "Reflexive Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/reflexive-verbs"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Reflexive Verbs - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Reflexive Verbs
+
+A reflexive verb is one that refers back to the subject using a reflexive pronoun, as in "Give **yourself** a break!" We covered the reflexive pronouns in [Section IV.2](/nouns/reflexive-pronouns.md "IV.2 Reflexive Pronouns"), but here they are again:
+
+Singular
+
+Plural
+
+Formal
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+1st
+
+2nd
+
+3rd
+
+2nd
+
+**ACC**
+
+mich
+
+dich
+
+sich
+
+uns
+
+euch
+
+sich
+
+sich
+
+**DAT**
+
+mir
+
+dir
+
+English
+
+myself
+
+yourself
+
+him-/her-/  
+itself
+
+ourselves
+
+yourselves
+
+themselves
+
+\[yourself/  
+yourselves\]
+
+As in English, most verbs _can_ take a reflexive pronoun in one of these positions, but some verbs _require_ them. These **reflexive verbs** in German are usually given with the 3rd person pronoun _sich_ in front of the infinitive. This may seem redundant at times, but there are two reasons you need to learn them this way:
+
+1.  There are many actions that drop the reflexive pronoun in English but not in German, so you can’t just translate them word for word. For example, in English you’d say _I’m going to shower_, but in German you say _I’m going to shower **myself**._ (_Ich werde **mich** duschen_). By learning the verb _shower_ as _sich duschen_ rather than just _duschen_, you’ll remember when you have to include a reflexive pronoun.  \[But if you use these verbs non-reflexively (_to shower someone with compliments_), then you don’t need the pronoun.\]
+2.  Some verbs in German have different meanings in their reflexive and non-reflexive forms. For example, _versprechen_ means _to promise_, but _sich versprechen_ means _to misspeak_; _umziehen_ means _to move house_, but _sich umziehen_ means _to change clothes._
+
+As far as where to put the reflexive pronouns, they usually go right after the conjugated verb. In questions or subordinate clauses, where the conjugated verb moves to the end, the reflexive pronoun comes after the subject:
+
+\[examples\]
+
+The reflexive clauses that sound the most unnatural to English speakers are those where the reflexive pronoun has to be used in addition to a separate direct object. This usually occurs with parts of the body:
+
+German:
+
+_Ich wasche **mir** die Haare._
+
+_Er putzt **sich** die Zähne._
+
+Literal English:
+
+“I wash **myself** the hair.”
+
+“He cleans **himself** the teeth.”
+
+Correct English:
+
+I wash my hair.
+
+He cleans \[brushes\] his teeth.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/dative-verbs.md)

verbs/tenses-and-moods.md

@@ -0,0 +1,128 @@
+---
+title: "Overview of Tenses & Moods - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/tenses-and-moods"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Overview of Tenses & Moods - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Overview of Tenses & Moods
+
+A verb’s _tense_ has to do with the time of the action, and its _mood_ has to do with the reality of the action. To start with, here are some of the basic tenses and moods in English. Even if you’ve forgotten their names, the forms should look familiar:
+
+**TENSE**
+
+**MOOD**
+
+**Indicative**
+
+**Conditional**
+
+**Imperative**
+
+**Present**
+
+he does it
+
+he would do it
+
+Do it!
+
+**Preterite**  
+("simple past")
+
+he did it
+
+he would have done it
+
+**Perfect**
+
+he has done it
+
+**Past Perfect**  
+(“pluperfect”)
+
+he had done it
+
+**Future**
+
+he will do it
+
+**Future Perfect**
+
+he will have done it
+
+And here are the tenses and moods in German. The statement is the same as above, using _er_ (he), _es_ (it), and the strong verb _tun_ (to do):
+
+**TENSE**
+
+**MOOD**
+
+**Indikativ**
+
+**_Konjunktiv I_**
+
+**Konjunktiv II**
+
+**Imperativ**
+
+**Präsens**
+
+Er tut es
+
+_Er tue es_
+
+Er würde es tun
+
+Tu(e) es!
+
+**Präteritum**
+
+Er tat es
+
+_Er habe es getan_
+
+Er hätte es getan
+
+**Perfekt**
+
+Er hat es getan
+
+**Plusquamperfekt**
+
+Er hatte es getan
+
+**Futur I**
+
+Er wird es tun
+
+_Er werde es tun_
+
+**Futur II**
+
+Er wird es getan haben
+
+_Er werde es getan haben_
+
+Be careful: **although most of the German tenses and moods look very much like their English counterparts, there are some big differences in how they're used.** In particular, the present and perfect tenses (_Präsens_ and Perfekt) account for a huge proportion of actual German speech. The Perfekt is used for almost anything that happened in the past, and the Präsens is used for much of the future as well as the present. You still need to know the other four tenses, but they’re not used as often as their English equivalents.
+
+The moods are easier to describe, so let’s take them first:
+
+*   The **_Indikativ_/Indicative** mood is the most common in both languages, used for describing reality: things that have actually happened, are happening or are expected to happen.
+*   The **_Konjunktiv I_** serves to distance the writer from indirect or reported speech: according to his spokesman, he **knows** nothing about the scandal. There is no useful English equivalent, and it’s used almost exclusively in news reporting. It’s in italics in the table above because you don’t need to learn to use it actively unless you’re a journalist.
+*   The **_Konjunktiv II_** is similar to the **conditional** mood in English. It expresses hypothetical and/or conditional actions, and it usually uses a form of _werden_ in the same way that we use "would" ("I **would**n’t **do** that" --> _Ich **würde** das nicht **tun**_).
+*   The **_Imperativ_/Imperative** mood is used for commands ("Go away!"; "Clean your room!"). It’s the easiest mood to learn in either language, because it only exists in the present tense and the second person. In German (but not in English) the infinitive form of the verb can also be used as an imperative in some circumstances.
+
+Note: we said above that there’s no “useful” English equivalent to the _Konjunktiv I_. In fact, we do have sentences like “I suggest that you **be** careful” that are related in form, and many sources try to explain the German _Konjunktiv_ moods in terms of these English Subjunctive/Conjunctive moods. But these comparisons are often just wrong and always more confusing than they’re worth. The terms subjunctive/conjunctive occur in multiple languages but often refer to different things, and the forms they refer to in English are complex enough that they could be a whole section on their own. So we’re not even going to consider the English subjunctive here, and neither should you. Even the conditional/_Konjunktiv II_ comparison that we made above is not perfect. The _Konjunktiv_ moods are one of the few concepts that you really have to learn in German to fully get them.
+
+And now the tenses:
+
+*   The **_Präsens_** corresponds to the simple present tense in English ("**I take** the bus") as well as the “emphatic” ("**I do take** the bus"). It can also be used to refer to future events, in which case it’s called the _Futuristisches Präsens_ (“futuristic present”). We have a futuristic present in English too (e.g. "I get paid tomorrow" means "I **will** get paid tomorrow") but in German it’s more common. And like all German verb forms, the Präsens can also translate to the equivalent _continuous_ form in English, in this case "I **am taking** the bus." (See [V.15](/verbs/the-continuous-and-progressive-aspects.md "15. The Continuous/Progressive Aspects") for more on this.)
+*   The **_Präteritum_** and **Perfekt**, as you can probably guess from their names, are closely related to the English preterite and perfect tenses. As described in the verb types at the beginning of this section, the _Präteritum_ and English preterite are both formed with either a hard consonant ending (weak verbs), a vowel shift (strong verbs) or both (mixed verbs). The _Perfekt_ is formed by conjugating the verb haben (or sometimes sein) in the present tense and adding the participle of the main verb, just the way we do with the verb "to have" in English. Again, these tenses do not translate directly between the two languages, despite their similar forms. In English we mainly use the preterite, but in spoken German the _Perfekt_ dominates. We'll cover this in more detail in the [Perfect vs. Preterite](/verbs/perfect-vs-preterite.md "6. Perfect vs. Preterite") section.
+*   The **_Plusquamperfekt_** is directly related to the past perfect (also called the pluperfect) in English. It’s used for an action that was already completed at some point in the past. It’s formed the same way as the Perfekt, except that it uses the past (Präteritum) form of haben or sein instead of the present form.
+*   the **_Futur I_** tense is similar to our future tense; it uses _werden_ the same way we use "will" in English: "I **will read** it" --> _Ich **werde** es **lesen**_. But note that we have other ways of expressing the future in English (like I’m going to read it) that don’t exist in German – and they also use the futuristic present tense in ways that we wouldn’t. We’ll cover this in detail in the section on Future Tenses.
+*   the **_Futur II_** is similar to the English future perfect, with will + have in English and werden + haben/sein in German: "I **will have read** it" --> _Ich **werde** es **gelesen haben**_.
+
+Finally, as in English, most of these tenses/moods also exist in a **passive** voice. Passive constructions in English usually (but not always) use a form of to be; in German they always use a form of the verb werden. This is the third major auxiliary usage of werden, after the _Konjunktiv II_ and Futur usages mentioned above. We’ll cover the passive voice in [V.10](/verbs/the-passive-voice.md "10. The Passive Voice").
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/present-and-simple-past.md)

verbs/the-continuous-and-progressive-aspects.md

@@ -0,0 +1,58 @@
+---
+title: "The Continuous/Progressive Aspect - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/the-continuous-and-progressive-aspects"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The Continuous/Progressive Aspect - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# The Continuous/Progressive Aspect
+
+If you think there are too many verb forms in German, consider that Germans learning English have to deal with at least eight more:
+
+Indicative
+
+Conditional
+
+present
+
+he is walking
+
+he would be walking
+
+past
+
+he was walking
+
+he would have been walking
+
+perfect
+
+he has been walking
+
+past perfect
+
+he had been walking
+
+future
+
+he will be walking
+
+future perfect
+
+he will have been walking
+
+These are called the “continuous” or “progressive” aspects in English grammar,\* and they’re difficult to learn, especially because they only work with certain verbs and in certain contexts. This is why non-native English speakers often make mistakes like _I am needing your help with this_ or _I was having to take a different route._
+
+Fortunately for you, these forms don’t exist in German. Don’t make the mistake of trying to translate them directly with the present participle; _Ich bin lesend_ for _I am reading_ is incorrect.\*\* Instead, you can just translate them with the equivalent non-continuous form, in this case the _Präsens_: _Ich lese_. This takes some getting used to, but usually it will be clear from the context when you’re using the verb in the progressive sense.
+
+However, when that’s not specific enough, you have two other options:
+
+1.  Add the word **gerade** after the verb. **_Ich lese gerade_** is a more exact way to say _I’m reading_ than just _Ich lese_, which could also mean _I read, I do read,_ etc.
+2.  Use the contractions “am” (= an dem) or “beim” (= bei dem) and the gerund: _Ich bin **beim Lesen**_ or _Ich bin **am Lesen**._ This is even more idiomatic (literally _I’m at the reading_) but it means the same thing. It’s more of an informal/spoken form than **gerade** and it used to be just a regional thing, so it will still sound wrong to some Germans, but it’s becoming fairly widespread. Try to avoid it in writing, though.
+
+\*There’s actually a slight difference between “continuous” and “progressive,” but they’re often used interchangeably and for our purposes they’re exactly the same thing.
+
+\*\*In the section on the Passive, we mentioned that a few past participles are so common that you can use them as normal adjectives, avoiding the _werden_ form. Analagously, there are a few present participles that have also become adjectives, and these are exceptions to the rule above. Probably the most common example is _dringend_ (urgent), which comes from the verb _dringen_ (to force). A few others are _entscheidend_ (decisive), _spannend_ (exciting), and _auffallend_ (conspicuous). These are often used as adverbs too; as you’ll see in the last section, there’s less of an adverb/adjective distinction in German than in English.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/prepositions/introduction-to-prepositions.md)

verbs/the-imperative-mood.md

@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+---
+title: "The Imperative Mood - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/the-imperative-mood"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The Imperative Mood - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# The Imperative Mood
+
+The imperative mood is used for commands and instructions. It can only occur in the second person, so we just need to learn three main forms: _du_ (informal singular), _ihr_ (informal plural), and _Sie_ (formal singular & plural). The _du_ form is just the present tense _du_ form without the _st_ ending:
+
+geben to give
+
+\-->
+
+du gibst 2nd person singular
+
+\-->
+
+**Gib** mir das! **Give** me that!
+
+nehmen to take
+
+\-->
+
+du nimmst 2nd person singular
+
+\-->
+
+**Nimm** die Schlüssel mit. **Take** the keys with you.
+
+The _ihr_ form is identical to the present tense:
+
+\[examples\]
+
+Finally, the _Sie_ form is also the same as the present tense, but the _Sie_ is included after the verb. There can be a slight tension between the respectful tone of _Sie_ and the fact that you’re giving an order, so this is often softened with _bitte_ (please) – and in practice it’s used mainly for polite requests, not outright commands.
+
+_**Nehmen Sie bitte** eine Broschüre._ Please take a brochure.
+
+The verb sein is irregular in the imperative, based on the infinitive instead of the conjugated stems:
+
+"du" form: **Sei** still! Be quiet!
+
+"ihr" form: **Seid** brav, Kinder. Be good, kids.
+
+"Sie" form: **Seien Sie** bitte geduldig... Please be patient...
+
+That's it for the conjugated imperative forms, but there are two related forms you should be aware of. The first is the "infinitive imperative," which is common in posted rules and regulations. When it's used in speech, it usually has a sharper "drill sergeant" tone than the forms above. You probably won't use the infinitive this way yourself, but you should be able to recognize it. Unlike "true" imperative statements where the verb comes at the beginning (as in all the examples above), when you use the infinitive this way it comes at the end:
+
+_Hinten **Anstellen**!_ Go to the back! \[of a line\]
+
+_Nicht mit dem Fahrer **sprechen**!_ Don't speak to the driver!
+
+And finally, there's a "friendly suggestion" formation in German that's equivalent to "Let's..." in English. It's the same as the normal "wir" present tense form, you just switch the order of the verb and pronoun:
+
+_Lass uns zur Seitentür **reingehen**._ Let's go in the side door.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/the-passive-voice.md)

verbs/the-konjunktiv-moods.md

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+---
+title: "The Konjunktiv Moods - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/the-konjunktiv-moods"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The Konjunktiv Moods - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# The Konjunktiv Moods
+
+Again: the _Konjunktiv I_ mood is fairly uncommon and you shouldn’t spend too much time on it. At most, it can be mildly helpful to recognize it when reading the newspaper. It's used for reported speech (without quotation marks) in a relatively formal setting: _According to a witness, the robbers **escaped** in a blue van._ It’s rarely used in informal settings; in a sentence like _My sister says her friends **will meet** us at the restaurant at 8_, you just use the ordinary (indicative) present or future tense.
+
+The endings for the present _Konjunktiv I_ are like those of the strong verb present tense (V.3) with a few extra Es, and with _no stem changes_: even a strong, mixed or modal verb just takes the normal infinitive stem. _Sein_ is the only irregular verb in the _Konjunktiv I_ (see below).
+
+Past tense statements are formed like the _Perfekt_, only with _haben/sein_ in the _Konjunktiv I_ instead of the normal present tense. Likewise, the future tenses are formed with _werden_ in the _Konjunktiv I_.
+
+**Konjunktiv I**
+
+**haben**
+
+**sein**
+
+**werden**
+
+singular
+
+1st person
+
+ich
+
+kaufe
+
+_I buy_
+
+habe
+
+sei
+
+werde
+
+2nd person
+
+du
+
+kauf**e**st
+
+_you buy_
+
+hab**e**st
+
+seist
+
+werd**e**st
+
+3rd person
+
+er/sie/es
+
+kauf**e**
+
+_he/she/it buys_
+
+hab**e**
+
+sei
+
+werd**e**
+
+plural
+
+1st person
+
+wir
+
+kaufen
+
+_we buy_
+
+haben
+
+seien
+
+werden
+
+2nd person
+
+ihr
+
+kauf**e**t
+
+_you (pl) buy_
+
+hab**e**t
+
+seit
+
+werd**e**t
+
+3rd person
+
+sie/Sie
+
+kaufen
+
+_they buy_
+
+haben
+
+seien
+
+werden
+
+ 
+
+You may have noticed that some of the above forms are identical to the normal (indicative) present tense – _ich kaufe_, for example. In these cases it’s common to use the _Konjunktiv II_ forms instead (coming up next) to avoid confusion.
+
+In practice, the _Konjunktiv I_ is mostly used in the third person. You are most likely to notice it in a news article in the form of _sei_ where you’d expect _ist_, or _habe_ where you’d expect _hat._
+
+The **Konjunktiv II** mood is much more common than the _Konjunktiv I_. It’s used to express wishes, desires, speculation, conditionality, and other “unreal” conditions, and it usually translates in English with words like _were_, _would_, or _could_:
+
+_If I **were** rich, I **would** buy it._ Wenn ich reich **wäre**, **würde** ich es kaufen.
+
+There are three ways to form the _Konjunktiv II_:
+
+1.  For weak verbs, it’s the same as the (indicative) _Präteritum_ (given in V.3)
+2.  For non-weak verbs (aux., modal, mixed, strong), it’s the simple past stem with an added umlaut and those same –e endings from the _Konjunktiv I_ (above)
+3.  BUT for certain strong verbs, the vowel in that past stem is conventionally replaced with a _ü_; for example, the KII of "helfen" is not _hälfen_ from the past stem _half_, but rather _hülfen_
+
+Sounds like a nightmare to learn, right? But you probably don't have to. Because in practice, the _only_ verbs that are always conjugated in the _Konjunktiv II_ are the modal and auxiliary verbs. Once you’ve learned their subjunctive forms, you can just use those forms with the infinitives or participles of other verbs. Notice that _sollen_ and _wollen_ are the only exceptions to rule #2 above, in that they don’t get the umlaut:
+
+ 
+
+**sein**
+
+**haben**
+
+**werden**
+
+**dürfen**
+
+**können**
+
+**mögen**
+
+**müssen**
+
+**sollen**
+
+**wollen**
+
+ich
+
+w**ä**re
+
+h**ä**tte
+
+w**ü**rde
+
+dürfte
+
+könnte
+
+möchte
+
+müsste
+
+sollte
+
+wollte
+
+du
+
+w**ä**rest
+
+h**ä**ttest
+
+w**ü**rdest
+
+dürftest
+
+könntest
+
+möchtest
+
+müsstest
+
+solltest
+
+wolltest
+
+er/sie/es
+
+w**ä**re
+
+h**ä**tte
+
+w**ü**rde
+
+dürfte
+
+könnte
+
+möchte
+
+müsste
+
+sollte
+
+wollte
+
+wir
+
+w**ä**ren
+
+h**ä**tten
+
+w**ü**rden
+
+dürften
+
+könnten
+
+möchten
+
+müssten
+
+sollten
+
+wollten
+
+ihr
+
+w**ä**ret
+
+h**ä**ttet
+
+w**ü**rdet
+
+dürftet
+
+könntet
+
+möchtet
+
+müsstet
+
+solltet
+
+wolltet
+
+sie/Sie
+
+w**ä**ren
+
+h**ä**tten
+
+w**ü**rden
+
+dürften
+
+könnten
+
+möchten
+
+müssten
+
+sollten
+
+wollten
+
+The main one you’ll use is _werden_, which works like _would_ in English:
+
+**_Would_** _you **help** me with this?_  
+**Würdest** du mir damit **helfen**?
+
+There are a few strong verbs that are occasionally used in the _Konjunktiv II_, but as a foreign speaker, you _really_ don’t need to worry about them: just use the _werden_ form for everything except the nine verbs in the table above.
+
+One of the most common forms in that table is _möchten_ (would like), from _mögen_ (to like); it’s used for ordering in restaurants (_Ich möchte einen Kaffee_) and other polite requests, as well as more general wishes and desires. In fact it’s so common that it’s often introduced, confusingly, as a seventh modal verb independent from _mögen_. If you’ve learned it that way, then now you know the truth.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/the-imperative-mood.md)

verbs/the-passive-voice.md

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+---
+title: "The Passive Voice - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/the-passive-voice"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# The Passive Voice - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# The Passive Voice
+
+The passive in German always involves at least one form of the verb _werden_, and sometimes also a form of _sein_. There are no conjugation tables in this section because we’ll only be using forms of _werden_ and _sein_ that we’ve already covered; learning the passive is not a matter of learning new endings, it’s about understanding the structure and word order of a passive clause. To highlight this, we’ll use the same sentence in all eight forms.
+
+The present and simple past use the present and past conjugations of _werden_, respectively:
+
+Die Wohnung **wird** **durchsucht**.  
+The apartment **is** \[being\] **searched**.
+
+Die Wohnung **wurde durchsucht**.  
+The apartment **was searched**.
+
+The Perfect tenses use sein with the participle and worden (a short form of werden’s participle geworden). Remember that the Perfekt translates the same as the Präteritum form above:
+
+Die Wohnung **ist durchsucht worden**.  
+The apartment **was searched**.
+
+Die Wohnung **war durchsucht worden**.  
+The apartment **had been searched**.
+
+The future tense uses werden in the present tense, then the participle and another werden in the infinitive. The future perfect adds _sein_:
+
+Die Wohnung **wird durchsucht werden**.  
+The apartment **will be searched.**
+
+Die Wohnung **wird durchsucht worden sein.**  
+The apartment **will have been searched.**
+
+Finally, the conditional forms of the passive use either the Konjunktiv I form of werden or the Konjunktiv II form of sein, as follows:
+
+Die Wohnung **würde durchsucht werden**.  
+The apartment **would be searched.**
+
+Die Wohnung **wäre durchsucht worden**.  
+The apartment **would have been searched.**
+
+A few descriptive past participles are so common that they’ve essentially become adjectives, and you can use them without invoking the passive voice at all:
+
+Ich **bin** \[not werde\] beeindruckt!  
+I’m impressed!
+
+Er **ist** \[not wird\] geschieden.  
+He's divorced.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/prefix-verbs.md)

verbs/verb-types.md

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+---
+title: "Overview of Verb Types - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers"
+source: "https://germanforenglishspeakers.com/verbs/verb-types"
+crawled: "2026-06-30"
+---
+
+# Overview of Verb Types - German for English SpeakersGerman for English Speakers
+
+# Overview of Verb Types
+
+German verbs always end in _–n_ in their infinitive form, usually _–en_:
+
+_kaufen_  
+to buy
+
+_arbeiten_  
+to work
+
+_helfen_  
+to help
+
+_fliegen_  
+to fly
+
+When introducing verbs, most textbooks and classes jump right into conjugation (I work, you work, he works…) but let’s take a few minutes first to understand the big picture. German root verbs can be broken into five categories:
+
+**Auxiliary**  
+(3)
+
+**Modal**  
+(6)
+
+**Mixed**  
+(9)
+
+**Strong**  
+(about 150)
+
+**Weak**  
+(thousands)
+
+_sein_  
+to be
+
+_haben_  
+to have
+
+_werden_  
+will/would
+
+_dürfen_  
+may  
+(to be allowed to)
+
+_können_  
+can  
+(to be able to)
+
+_mögen_  
+to like (to)
+
+_müssen_  
+must
+
+_sollen_  
+should
+
+_wollen_  
+to want to
+
+_brennen_  
+to burn
+
+_bringen_  
+to bring
+
+_denken_  
+to think
+
+_kennen_  
+to know  
+(a person)
+
+_nennen_  
+to name
+
+_rennen_  
+to run
+
+_senden_  
+to send
+
+_wenden_  
+to turn
+
+_wissen_  
+to know  
+(information)
+
+_tun_ - to do
+
+_kommen_ - to come
+
+_gehen_ - to go
+
+_stehen_ - to stand
+
+_schlafen_ - to sleep
+
+_schreiben_ - to write
+
+_sehen_ - to see
+
+_essen_ - to eat
+
+…etc.
+
+_kaufen_ - to buy
+
+_machen_ - to make
+
+_träumen_ - to dream
+
+_nutzen_ - to use
+
+_danken_ - to thank
+
+_sagen_ - to say, tell
+
+_malen_ - to paint
+
+_bauen_ - to build
+
+…etc.
+
+All five of these categories have close parallels in English. Here’s what they mean:
+
+*   **Auxiliary (“helping”) verbs** are used with other verbs to form compound tenses, like the future tense in English (_I **will** **find** it_) and German (_Ich **werde** es **finden**_)
+*   **Modal verbs** are used with other verbs to indicate their _modality_, which means the desire, ability, permission or obligation to do them: _“You **must listen** to me!”_ (“Du **musst** mir **zuhören!**”)
+*   **Strong verbs** form the past (preterite) tense with a vowel shift, like "swim / **swam**" in English (_schwimmen / **schwammen**_ in German). Strong verbs in German have an irregular _participle_ form that ends in –n, which is also true of many strong verbs in English (I choose, I chose, I have **chosen**). But more on all that later.
+*   **Weak verbs** form the past tense with a hard consonant added at the end, _t_ in German and _d_ (or sometimes _t_) in English. _Learn_ is a weak verb in both English (_I learn, I learn**ed** \[US\]_ or _learn**t** \[UK\]_) and German _(ich lerne, ich lern**t**e_)
+*   **Mixed verbs** get their name because they form the past tense with _both_ a vowel shift and a hard consonant sound at the end. _Bring_ is a mixed verb in both English (w_e bring/we br**ought**_) and German (_wir bringen/wir br**acht**en_)
+
+If you’re familiar with the concept of regular and irregular verbs in English or another language, you can think of the weak / strong distinction in German as more or less the same thing. Weak verbs in German are all regular, which means that once you know the infinitive you can form any other conjugation in standard ways. For the other four types, you have to memorize a few other forms when you learn the verb.
+
+We said above that there are thousands of weak verbs, which is technically true, but don't let it scare you: there are at most a few hundred that you really need to know. After that, the vast majority of German verbs in common usage are:
+
+*   formed by adding prefixes to the root verbs above -- we'll cover this in [Section V.11](/verbs/prefix-verbs.md "V.11 Prefix Verbs");
+*   obvious derivations of a non-verb -- for example, if you know that _mehr_ means "more," it'll be clear in context that _mehren_ is "to increase."
+*   obvious Germanizations of foreign verbs, including the -ieren verbs (covered in [V.4](/verbs/past-participles.md "V.4 Past Participles")) and many modern tech-related terms like "adden" (on a social network)
+
+In both German and English, there’s a tendency for strong and mixed verbs to become weak over time, i.e. for people to start treating them as regular verbs. At any given point, there are certain verbs that are still completely strong (you can’t say "I falled" rather than "I fell"), certain verbs where the strong form is almost gone (to say "children clad in rags" rather than "clothed in rags" would sound a little pretentious in modern English), and some where it's been gone so long that few people today have even heard it, though it often still counts in Scrabble (like "holp" for "helped"). A few are somewhere in between: for example, "dived" and "dove" both sound OK to most people today, but in a few decades "dived" may have completely taken over.
+
+In any event, some sources don't do enough to distinguish the strong forms that are mandatory from those that sound old-fashioned or silly. In our [list of strong verbs](/reference/strong-verbs.md "Strong Verbs") we try to make the distinctions a little more clear.
+
+[Continue to next section >>](/verbs/tenses-and-moods.md)