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German verbs
The modal verbs
Modal verb meanings
| Modal verb usage | Modal
verb tense formation | Subjunctive
of modal verbs
Summary of verb tenses
| GRAMMAR INDEX
Modal verbs & their meanings
The German modal verbs are a group of 6 verbs that behave and are formed
in much the same way. Modal verbs indicate the attitude of the sentence
subject with regard to what is being said in the rest of the sentence.
| Modal verb |
Primary
(& secondary)
"modes" it conveys |
English
meaning |
| können |
ability (possibility) |
can, to be able to (may, might) |
| dürfen |
permission (probability) |
may, to be allowed to
(in the negative: ought not) |
| müssen |
necessity, compulsion |
must, to have to, to need to
(should, ought) |
| mögen |
liking (probability, possibility) |
to like (may, can) |
| wollen |
desire, intention |
to want to, to intend to, shall
(to claim to) |
| sollen |
obligation (intention, prediction) |
shall, to be supposed to
(should, is said to be, ought to) |
ENGLISH MODALS vs. GERMAN
MODALS
While English modal verbs have only two tenses -- past and present (can,
could - like, liked - have to, had to, etc.) -- German modal verbs
have a full range of tenses and moods. This can sometime create confusion
for English-speakers, because in English the past tense is sometimes
used to relate a conditional meaning. For example: Ich konnte gehen.
(past indicative) and Ich könnte
gehen. (present subjunctive) both translatate into English as I
could go but they don't mean the same thing. Ich konnte gehen
means I was able to go, whereas Ich könnte
gehen means It would be possible for me to go. Though it
may seem confusing at first, it is important that English speakers develop
a sense of these differences in German.
Modal verb meanings
| Modal verb usage | Modal
verb tense formation | Subjunctive
of modal verbs
Summary of verb tenses
| GRAMMAR INDEX
Usage
These verbs behave much like an auxiliary verb in that they are typically
used in combination with other verbs. The modal
verb is conjugated to agree with the subject of the sentence.
The other verb is at the end of the sentence
in its infinitive form.
MODAL VERB + INFINITIVE
EXAMPLES of MODAL VERB + PRESENT INFINITIVE
| Wir
können nicht kommen. |
We can't come. |
| Sie kann zu Hause sein. |
She might be at home. |
| Er darf heute nach Hause gehen. |
He's allowed to go home today. |
| Wollen wir uns treffen? |
Shall we meet? |
| Ich soll hier bleiben. |
I am supposed to stay here. |
EXAMPLES of MODAL VERB + PERFECT INFINITIVE
| Das muss
ein Mißverständnis gewesen
sein. |
That must have been a misunderstanding. |
| Er will das Buch
schon gelesen haben. |
He claims to have read the book already. |
EXAMPLES of MODAL VERB + PASSIVE INFINITIVE
| Es musste
sofort gegessen werden. |
It had to be eaten immediately. |
| Dürftet ihr zusammen
gesehen werden? |
Are you allowed to be seen together? |
EXAMPLES of MODAL VERB + PASSIVE PERFECT INFINITIVE
| Der Brief mag
schon geschrieben worden sein. |
The letter may already have been
written. |
| Es soll schon
verkauft worden sein. |
It is supposed to have been sold
already. |
THE SPECIAL STATUS OF MÖGEN
Unlike the other modal verbs, the verb mögen is usually used
without an additional verb when it is used to express a liking of someone
or something. When used with another verb, it often means may.
The most common use of mögen is the subjunctive form möchte,
would like.
| Ich
mag keine Filme. |
I don't like movies. |
| Magst du diesen Lehrer? |
Do you like this teacher? |
| Das mag wohl sein. |
That may well be. |
| Er möchte
eine Tasse Kaffee. |
He would like a cup of coffee. |
| Möchtest du noch länger
schlafen? |
Would you like to sleep longer? |
OMISSION OF THE 2nd VERB
Occasionally, the infinitive of the 2nd verb may be omitted when its
meaning is understood from the context of the sentence. This occurs
most often with verbs of motion, tun, and haben, or when
the verb has been previously mentioned. It also occurs with the verb
können when expressing a knowledge of something that has
been learned.
| Wir
müssen bald nach Hause. |
We have to go
home soon. |
| Er will nach England. |
He wants to travel to England. |
| Wollten Sie ein Stück
Kuchen? |
Did you want a piece of cake? |
| Was soll ich
mit dem Auto? |
What am I supposed to do with the car? |
| Ich rauche gern, aber ich darf
(es) nicht. |
I like to smoke, but I'm not allowed to. |
| Ich kann gut Deutsch. |
I can speak German well. |
| Kannst du Schach? |
Can you play chess? |
Modal verb meanings
| Modal verb usage | Modal
verb tense formation | Subjunctive
of modal verbs
Summary of verb tenses
| GRAMMAR INDEX
Tense Formation (Indicative)
As mixed verbs, the modal verbs have
irregularities in their conjugations. As with all verbs, each of the
tenses of the modal verbs is formed with one of the verb's principle
parts:
| Infinitive |
Present tense stem |
Simple past stem |
Past
participle |
|
|
| können |
kann |
konnte |
gekonnt |
|
|
| dürfen |
darf |
durfte |
gedurft |
|
|
| müssen |
muss |
musste |
gemusst |
|
|
| mögen |
mag |
mochte |
gemocht |
|
|
| wollen |
will |
wollte |
gewollt |
|
|
| sollen |
soll |
sollte |
gesollt |
|
|
PRESENT TENSE
All of the modal verbs (except for sollen) have characteristic
stem changes in their present tense singular forms. Note that the the
ich-form and er/sie/es-forms of the modal verbs all lack
personal endings and these two forms are also identical for each verb.
Present tense plural forms of modal verbs are wholly regular.
können
|
müssen |
dürfen |
mögen |
wollen |
sollen |
| ich kann |
ich muss |
ich darf |
ich mag |
ich will |
ich soll |
| du kannst |
du musst |
du darfst |
du magst |
du willst |
du sollst |
| er kann |
sie muss |
es darf |
es mag |
er will |
sie soll |
| wir können |
wir müssen |
wir dürfen |
wir mögen |
wir wollen |
wir sollen |
| ihr könnt |
ihr müsst |
ihr dürft |
ihr mögt |
ihr wollt |
ihr sollt |
| sie können |
Sie müssen
|
sie dürfen |
Sie mögen |
Sie wollen
|
sie sollen |
As noted above, when used in a sentence, the modal verb falls in the
2nd position in a sentence and any accompanying infinitive
appears at the end of the sentence:
EXAMPLES:
| Wir müssen
morgen aufräumen. |
We have to clean up tomorrow. |
| Er kann das Buch geschrieben
haben. |
He may have written the book. |
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
The simple past tense forms are created using the simple past stem.
These forms look much like the forms for weak verbs, with the difference
that the 4 verbs that have umlauts in their infinitive forms drop them
in the simple past tense.
Simple past forms = Simple past stem (infinitive
minus -en & minus umlaut + weak simple past suffix -te)
+ personal endings: -, -st,
-, -en, -t,
-en.
Another way to approach the simple past of modals is: Simple past
forms = Infinitive minus -en & minus umlaut + simple
past personal endings: -te,
-test, -te,
-ten, -tet,
-ten.
können
|
müssen |
dürfen |
mögen |
wollen |
sollen |
| ich konnte |
ich musste |
ich durfte |
ich mochte |
ich wollte |
ich sollte |
| du konntest |
du musstest |
du durftest |
du mochtest |
du wolltest |
du solltest |
| er konnte |
sie musste |
es durfte |
es mochte |
er wollte |
sie sollte |
| wir konnten |
wir mussten |
wir durften |
wir mochten |
wir wollten |
wir sollten |
| ihr konntet |
ihr musstet |
ihr durftet |
ihr mochtet |
ihr wolltet |
ihr solltet |
| sie konnten |
Sie mussten
|
sie durften |
Sie mochten |
Sie wollten
|
sie sollten
|
Just like in the present tense, modal verbs in the simple past tense
occur in the finite form and any accompanying verb is in its infinitive
form at the end of the sentence.
EXAMPLES:
| Er
konnte die Aufgabe nicht
machen. |
It couldn't do
the assignment. |
| Wir mussten früh aufstehen. |
We had to get up early. |
| Sie wollten mich schon besucht
haben. |
They claimed to have visited me already. |
| Durftest du es
wissen? |
Were you allowed to know? |
FUTURE, PRESENT PERFECT,
PAST PERFECT & FUTURE PERFECT TENSES
All of the other verb tenses are compound tenses, i.e. they employ a
helping verb (or two helping verbs) in addition to the modal verb. In
these tenses, a helping verb is the finite
verb in the 2nd position in the sentence and the modal
verb is relegated to a place at or near the end of the sentence.
In the perfect tenses, the helping verb for all modal verbs is haben.
| Tense |
Form |
English equivalent |
| FUTURE |
ich werde ...
können
er wird ... wollen |
I will be able
to
he will want to |
| PRES. PERFECT |
ich habe ... gekonnt
er hat ... gewollt |
I could, I have been able to
he wanted to, he has wanted to |
| PAST PERFECT |
ich hatte ... gekonnt
er hat ... gewollt |
I had been able
he had wanted |
| FUTURE PERFECT |
ich werde ... gekonnt
haben
er wird ... gewollt
haben |
I will have been able
he will have wanted |
When the modal verb is accompanied by another
verb in any of these 4 compound tenses, a double infinitive construction
is used. In the perfect tenses this means that the double infinitive
takes the place of the past participle:
| Tense |
Form |
English equivalent |
| FUTURE |
ich werde ...
schreiben können
er wird ... arbeiten
wollen |
I will be able
to write
he will want to work |
| PRES PERF |
ich habe ... schreiben
können
er hat ... arbeiten
wollen
FREQUENTLY USED ALTERNATIVE: (SIMPLE PAST)
ich konnte ... schreiben.
er wollte
... arbeiten.
|
I have been/I was able to write
he (has) wanted to work
I was able to/could write.
he wanted to work |
| PAST PERFECT |
ich hatte ...
schreiben können
er hatte ... arbeiten
wollen |
I had been able to write
he had wanted to work |
| FUTURE PERFECT |
ich werde ... haben
schreiben können
er wird ... haben
arbeiten können
**This future perfect form
with modals is rarely used. |
I will have been able to write
he will have wanted to work |
Modal verb meanings
| Modal verb usage | Modal
verb tense formation | Subjunctive
of modal verbs
Summary of verb tenses
| GRAMMAR INDEX
Modal verbs in the subjunctive mood
The Subjunctive II forms of modal verbs are used very frequently. Almost
all usages of the subjunctive with modal verbs happens in the present
or past tense.
PRESENT TENSE SUBJUNCTIVE
II
The present subjunctive forms are based on the simple
past conjugation. If the verb has an umlaut in its infinitive then
it is added back in the present tense subjunctive conjugations. What
this means is that the present tense subjunctive form of 4 of the modal
verbs with umlauts is created like that of the other mixed verbs. The
subjunctive forms of wollen and sollen are created like
that of the weak verbs.
können
|
müssen |
dürfen |
mögen |
wollen |
sollen |
| ich könnte |
ich müsste |
ich dürfte |
ich möchte |
ich wollte |
ich sollte |
| du könntest |
du müsstest |
du dürftest |
du möchtest |
du wolltest |
du solltest |
| er könnte |
sie müsste |
es dürfte |
es möchte |
er wollte |
sie sollte |
| wir könnten |
wir müssten |
wir dürften |
wir möchten |
wir wollten |
wir sollten |
| ihr könntet |
ihr müsstet |
ihr dürftet |
ihr möchtet |
ihr wolltet |
ihr solltet |
| sie könnten |
Sie müssten
|
sie dürften |
Sie möchten |
Sie wollten |
sie sollten |
Like the finite forms of the present and past indicative, when used
in a sentence, the present subjunctive modal verb
falls in the 2nd position in a sentence (or in the 1st position
in a yes-no question) and any accompanying infinitive
appears at the end of the sentence:
EXAMPLES:
| Ich möchte
sie Ihnen vorstellen. |
I would like to introduce her to you. |
| Wir sollten es
mal probieren. |
We should try it sometime. |
| Dürfte ich
das Fenster aufmachen? |
May I open the window? |
| Er müsste
zu schnell gefahren sein. |
He must have driven too fast. |
PAST TENSE SUBJUNCTIVE
II
Besides the present tense subjunctive, the only other form of the subjunctive
commonly used with modal verbs is the past subjunctive, which is based
on the perfect tense, using the subjunctive of the helping
verb haben + the past participle of the modal
verb.
| Examples |
English equivalent |
| Ich hätte
es gekonnt. |
I would have been able to do it.
(If) I could have done it ... [conditional] |
| Er hätte
die Bilder gewollt. |
He would have wanted the pictures.
(If) he had wanted the pictures ...[conditional] |
Wir hätten
ihn gemocht.
|
We would have liked him.
(If) we had liked him ... [conditional] |
When the modal verb is accompanied by another verb in the past subjunctive,
as is very often the case, instead of the past participle form, a double
infinitive construction is used:
| Examples |
English equivalent |
| Ich hätte
es sagen können. |
I would have been able to say it
(If) I could have said it ... [conditional] |
| Er hätte
die Kinder sehen wollen. |
He would have wanted to see the pictures.
(If) he had wanted to see the pictures ...[conditional] |
Wir hätten
ihn besuchen sollen.
|
We ought to have visited him.
(If ...) we should have visited him ... [conditional] |
FUTURE & FUTURE PERFECT
SUBJUNCTIVE II
The subjunctive forms of the future tense and future perfect tense are
created with the use of helping verbs. Please
note that these forms are used infrequently. The present subjunctive
is often used in place of the future tense subjunctive. And by virtue
of its meaning as well as its stilted form in combination with other
verbs, the future perfect tense does not occur with any frequency. These
forms are included here only for the sake of completeness and comparison:
| Tense |
Examples |
English equivalent |
| FUTURE |
Ich würde
... können. |
I would be able to; (if) I could |
|
Er würde
... wollen.
PREFERRED ALTERNATIVE:
(PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE)
ich könnte ...
er wollte
... |
he would want; (if) he wanted
I would be able to; (if) I could
he would want; (if) he wanted |
| FUTURE PERFECT |
Ich würde
... gekonnt haben.
|
I would have played |
|
Er würde
... gewollt haben.
|
he would have wanted |
When the modal verb is accompanied by another verb in these tenses,
a double infinitive construction is used:
| Tense |
Examples |
English equivalent |
| FUTURE |
Ich würde
... schreiben können. |
I would be able to write;
I could write |
|
Er würde
... arbeiten wollen.
PREFERRED ALTERNATIVE:
(PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE)
ich könnte ...
schreiben
er wollte
... arbeiten
|
he would want to work
I would be able to write;
(if) I could write
he would want to work;
(if) he wanted to work |
| FUTURE PERFECT |
Ich würde
... haben schreiben
können.
|
I would have been able to write |
|
Er würde
... haben arbeiten
wollen.
**The subjunctive form of the future
perfect with modals is rarely used. |
he would have wanted to work |
MODAL VERBS & SUBJUNCTIVE
OF INDIRECT SPEECH
The modal verb forms of Subjunctive I, or subjunctive of indirect speech,
follow the same patterns as for any other verb.
Modal verb meanings
| Modal verb usage | Modal
verb tense formation | Subjunctive
of modal verbs
Summary of verb tenses
| GRAMMAR INDEX
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