Learn German A1: Modal Verbs in German Lesson . Usually, a verb is a word that expresses physical or mental actions (e.g., to work, to think), or states of being (e.g., to exist). Modal Verbs have lots of different meanings, typically to the main verb of a sentence. They are used for expressing what you want or like to do, what needs to be done, and what one is or isn’t allowed to do. Therefore, they are essential to daily conversations.
In this article, we will take a closer look at the German modal verbs and learn what each of them means, how they are used and how to change (conjugate) them correctly to make them fit in a sentence. We will also tell you how to structure sentences, form questions and practice using German modal verbs efficiently.
Learn German A1: What do you do in Your free Time Lesson 49
Table of Contents
Modalverben
This unit introduces you the six German modal verbs. Modal verbs modify an action in a sentence. They usually imply ability, possibility, probability or obligation.
Modal verbs express actions based on necessity, obligation, possibility, ability, or intent. That is why they are usually combined with other verbs.
There are six modal verbs in German that you must be familiar with.When you study those six German modal verbs, you will be able to construct a variety of phrases in German. Because they are all irregular verbs.
Modal verbs are definitely the most useful verbs in German, and English too! They are special because the ”ich” form is the same as the ”er/sie/es” form.
| können (to be able to) |
| dürfen (to be allowed) |
| müssen (must, to have to) |
| mögen (would like) |
| wollen (to want) |
| sollen (should, to be supposed to) |
We mostly use modal verbs together with the so called “main verb” of a sentence (this is the action that is modified), which we use in its infinitive form and put at the end of the sentence:
| Ich kann Fußball spielen. (I can play football.) |
| Mein Hund darf im Bett schlafen. (My dog is allowed to sleep in bed.) |
können – to be able to
Similar to the English modal verb “can”, with können, you express what you’re capable of doing and if it is possible for you to do something:
Ich kann Klavier spielen. – I can play the piano.
Sie können Gitarre spielen. – They can play the guitar.
Er kann Volleyball spielen. – He can play volleyball.
Sie können Skifahren. – You can ski.
In the examples below, the modal verb “können” (can) changes the meaning of the sentence and is conjugated and placed in second position.
Beispiele:
In the example below, The main verb “spielen” (to play) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Ich spiele Cricket. (I play cricket)
- Ich kann Cricket spielen. (I can play cricket.)
In the example below, The main verb “spielen” (to play) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Was spielen Sie? (What are you playing?)
- Was können Sie spielen? (What can you play?)
- Spielen Sie fußball? (Do you play soccer?)
- Können Sie fußball spielen? (Can you play soccer?)
In the example below, The main verb “kochen” (to cook) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Ich koche gut. (I cook well.)
- Ich kann nicht gut kochen. (I can not cook well.)
In the example below, The main verb “hören” (to hear) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Du hörst nicht gut. (You are not hearing well.)
- Du kannst sehr schlecht hören. (You can not hear well.)
In the example below, The main verb “kommen” (to come) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Kommst du morgen? (Are you coming tomorrow?)
- Kannst du morgen kommen? (Can you come tomorrow?)
dürfen – to be allowed
When talking about rules, you will need the verb dürfen. You can use it to express what you’re allowed and what you’re not allowed to do:
Mein Hund darf im Bett schlafen. – My dog is allowed to sleep in bed.
Wir dürfen bis um zehn fernsehen. – We are allowed to watch TV until ten o clock.
Du darfst mit deinem Bruder spielen. – You are allowed to play with your brother.
Ihr dürft Schwimmen gehen. – You are allowed to go swimming.
In the examples below, the modal verb “dürfen” (may) changes the meaning of the sentence and is conjugated and placed in second position.
Beispiele:
In the example below, The main verb “rauchen” (to smoke) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Er raucht nicht. (He does not smoke.)
- Er darf nicht rauchen. (He’s not allowed to smoke.)
In the example below, The main verb “parken” (to park) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Wo parke ich mein Auto? (Where do I park my car?)
- Wo darf ich mein Auto parken? (Where do I allowed to park my car? )
In the example below, The main verb “trinken” (to drink) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Trinken Sie wein? (Do you drink wine?)
- Dürfen Sie wein trinken? (Are you allowed to drink wine?)
In the example below, The main verb “mähen” (to cut grass) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Du mähst den Rasen. (You are cutting the lawn)
- Du darfstden Rasen mähen.(You can/may cut the lawn.)
müssen – to have to
When you have to do something, you will normally use the modal verb müssen. Together with the negation nicht, it means that something is not necessary.
We use the verb “müssen” (to have to) to express obligation.
Ich muss mit dem Zug fahren. – I have to go by train.
Er muss um zwölf nach Hause gehen. – He has to go home at twelve.
Ich muss um zehn nach Hause gehen. – I have to go home around ten o clock.
Wann müssen Sie morgen aufstehen? – When do you have to get up tomorrow?
In the examples below, the modal verb “müssen” (must) changes the meaning of the sentence and is conjugated and placed in second position.
Beispiele:
In the example below, The main verb “warten” (to wait) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Ich warte hier. (I’ll wait here.)
- Ich muss hier warten. (I have to wait here.)
In the example below, The main verb “gehen” (to go) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Wohin gehen Sie? (Where you go?)
- Wohin müssen Sie gehen? (Where do you need to go?)
In the example below, The main verb “schlafen” (to sleep) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Schlafen Sie? (Do you sleep?)
- Müssen Sie Schlafen? (Do you need to sleep?)
In the example below, The main verb “kaufen” (to buy) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Sabiene kauft ein Auto. (Sabiene is buying a car.)
- Sabine muss ein Auto kaufen. (Sabine has to buy a car.)
In the example below, The main verb “machen” (to do) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Ich mache meine Hausaufgaben. (I am doing my homework.)
- Ich muss Hausaufgaben machen. (I have to do homework.)
Conjugation of 3 Modal Verbs
The modal verbs “können” (to be able to), “dürfen” (to be allowed) and “müssen” (to have to) are conjugated as follows:
| können | dürfen | müssen |
| ich kann | ich darf | ich muss |
| du kannst | du darfst | du musst |
| er kann | er darf | er muss |
| wir können | wir dürfen | wir müssen |
| ihr könnt | ihr dürft | ihr müsst |
| sie können | sie dürfen | sie müssen |
Sollen (to be supposed to, should)
If you are supposed to or should do something, you will use sollen:
Ich soll mehr Gemüse essen. (I should eat more vegetables).
Er soll eine neue Freundin haben. (He should have a new girlfriend.)
Ich soll das Buch kaufen. (I’m supposed to buy the book).
Du sollst das Auto waschen. – You should wash the car.
In the examples below, the modal verb “sollen” (should) changes the meaning of the sentence and is conjugated and placed in second position.
Beispiele:
In the example below, The main verb “studieren (to study)” (to smoke) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Er studiert in Deutschland. (He studies in Germany.)
- Er soll in Deutschland studieren. (He should study in Germany.)
In the example below, The main verb “essen” (to eat) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Was essen wir heute? (What will we eat today?)
- Was sollen wir heute essen? (What shall we eat today?)
In the example below, The main verb “lernen” (to learn) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Lernst du Deutsch? (Are you learning German?)
- Sollst du Deutsch lernen? (Should you learn German?)
In the example below, The main verb “waschen” (to wash) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Peter wäscht ein Auto. (Peter is washing a car.)
- Peter soll das Auto waschen. (Peter should wash the car.)
In the example below, The main verb “reparieren” (to repair) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Der Vater repariert das Fahrrad. (The father is repairing the bike.)
- Der Vater soll das Fahrrad reparieren. (The father should repair the bike.)
Wollen (to want to, to wish)
To refer to something you really strongly and firmly want to do or wish, you use wollen:
Ich will ins Kino gehen. (I want to go to the movies).
Ich will Deutschlehrer werden. (I want to become a German teacher).
Er will in das Restaurant gehen. – He wants to go to the restaurant.
Die Kinder wollen draußen spielen. – The children want to play outside.
In the examples below, the modal verb “wollen” (to want) changes the meaning of the sentence and is conjugated and placed in second position.
Beispiele:
The main verb “spielen” (to play) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Der Junge spielt gern Fußball. (The boy likes to play soccer.)
- Der Junge will Fußball spielen. (The boy wants to play soccer.)
In this example, the main verb ”fliegen” (to fly) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Er fliegt nach Amerika. (He flies to America.)
- Er will nach Amerika fliegen. (He wants to fly to America.)
In the example below, The main verb “spielen” (to play) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Wann spielst du Cricket? (When do you play cricket?)
- Wann willst du Cricket spielen? (When do you want to play cricket?)
In the example below, The main verb “essen” (to eat) is moved to the end of the sentence.
- Essen Sie nichts? (Don’t you eat?)
- Wollen Sie nichts essen? (Don’t you want to eat anything?)
In the example below, The main verb “grillen” (to barbecue) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Grillst du am Wochenende? (Do you doing a barbecue at the weekend? )
- Willst du am Wochenende grillen? (Do you want to grill on the weekend?)
In the example below, The main verb “wohnen” (to live) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Wohnst du allein? (Do you live alone?)
- Willst du allein wohnen? (Do you want to live alone?)
Möchten (to want to, would like to)
The polite way of asking for something is to use möchten instead of wollen. Germans usually add the word bitte (please) after möchten to kick things up a notch on the politeness scale.
Instead of mögen we use möchten most of the time as a Modal verb.
Ich möchte Eis essen. (I would like to eat ice cream.)
Wir möchten bitte bestellen. (We would like to order, please.)
In the examples below, the modal verb “mögen – möchten” (like, desire) changes the meaning of the sentence and is conjugated and placed in second position.
Beispiele:
In the example below, The main verb “trinken” (to drink) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Ich trinke kaffe. (I drink coffee.)
- Ich möchte kaffe trinken. (I want to drink coffee.)
In the example below, The main verb “nehmen” (to take) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Was nimmst du? (What are you taking?)
- Was möchtest du nehmen? (What would you like to take?)
In the example below, The main verb “kaufen” (to buy) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Kaufen Sie die blumen? (Do you buy the flowers?)
- Möchten Sie die blumen kaufen? (Would you like to buy the flowers?)
In the example below, The main verb “machen” (to do) is moved to the end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
- Was machst du abends? (What do you do in the evenings?)
- Was möchtest du abends machen? (What would you like to do in the evening?)
- Das Wetter ist sehr gut. (The weather is very good.)
- Ich mag das schöne Wetter. (I like good weather.)
- Wir mögen den neuen Kinofilm. (We like the new movie.)
- Magst du die Wohnung? (Do you like the apartment?)
- Magst du das Bücherregal? (Do you like the bookcase?)
Conjugation of further 3 Modal Verbs
| sollen | wollen | möchten |
| ich soll | ich will | ich möchte |
| du sollst | du willst | du möchtest |
| er soll | er will | er möchte |
| wir sollen | wir wollen | wir möchten |
| ihr sollt | ihr wollt | ihr möchtet |
| sie sollen | sie wollen | sie möchten |
Negation in Modal Verbs
By adding the word “nicht” (not) after the modal verb, we express that someone is not allowed or able or does not have to do something. This works with most modal verbs – you will get a hang of it as your German progresses!
| Mein Hund darf nicht im Bett schlafen. (My dog is not allowed to sleep in bed.) |
| Er muss nicht um elf nach Hause gehen. (He does not have to go home at eleven.) |
Ich kann nicht schwimmen. – I can not swim.
Sie muss nicht einkaufen gehen. – She does not have to go shopping.
Ich darf nicht ins Kino gehen. – I am not allowed to go to the cinema.
Ich kann nicht gut kochen. – I can not cook well.
Learn German A1: What day is today Lesson 47
To summarize
We can use modal verbs to express ability, possibility, probability or obligation to do something, for example.
The infinitive form of the main verb goes to the end of the sentence and we conjugate the modal verb.
Let’s practice what we’ve learned so far!
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