German grammar · Intermediate (B1)
Linking clauses: als, wenn, obwohl, damit, um … zu
The linking words that send the verb to the end (als, wenn, ob, obwohl, damit, nachdem), um … zu, and the ones that don't (denn, deshalb, trotzdem).
Verb at the end
You know that and send the conjugated verb to the end. Many other linking words do the same. If the clause comes first, the main clause starts with its verb: Als ich ankam, war sie schon weg.
| Word | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| when (once in the past) | ||
| when, whenever; if | ||
| whether, if | ||
| although | ||
| so that | ||
| after |
als, wenn or wann?
All three can mean “when”. is for one moment or one period in the past. is for things that happen again and again (whenever), and for the present and future; it also means “if”. is only the question word, also in indirect questions:
- Als ich ein Kind war, hatten wir einen Hund.When I was a child, we had a dog.
- Immer wenn er müde ist, redet er nicht viel.Whenever he's tired, he doesn't talk much.
Indirect questions
A question inside another sentence has the verb at the end. Question words stay: Yes/no questions use : English “if” in this sense is always , not .
um … zu and damit: purpose
To say why someone does something, use … + infinitive when both parts have the same subject: With separable verbs, goes in the middle: . When the subjects are different, use :
+ infinitive also follows many other expressions: , … …, , … …, , … …. Modal verbs never take .
No change: denn, deshalb, trotzdem
(because) doesn't change the word order: …, (so, that's why) and (still, even so) count as position one, so the verb comes straight after them: …, deshalb bleibe ich zu Hause.