Word Order (die Wortstellung)

Best of all was riding bikes.

Note: The following description of German word order is conceptual in nature. Those who would prefer to follow a more mechanical - but ultimately less complete - set of rules would be better served by linking to these prescriptive instructions for German word order. Both sites overlap considerably.

English vs. German Sentence Construction. English tends to rely mostly on word order to indicate the grammatical function of a word or phrase. Note the difference between "The village gives the dragon the virgin" and "The village gives the virgin the dragon" (Not to mention: "The virgin gives the dragon the village").

German relies more on inflections to show function. Endings, such as those indicating the nominative, accusative, dative, and genitive cases in three different genders, allow for some greater flexibility in clause construction. Hence "Der Hund beißt den Mann" and "Den Mann beißt der Hund" both mean "The dog bites the man" (as opposed to "The man bites the dog"). But this flexibility is far from absolute. Appropriate German word order is important. On the one hand, it plays a major role in how a foreigner's command of the language is evaluated. On the other, and more importantly, each deviation from the "standard" or "expected" order carries significant information of its own.

That said, word order is a complex aspect of language, never wholly mastered by non-native speakers. Very few rules cover all possibilities, and context often trumps other considerations. When Robert Frost writes, "Something there is that doesn't love a wall," it's poetic; if someone with a foreign accent says the same thing in conversation, it sounds like Yoda.

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A. The Declarative Sentence (der Aussagesatz)

I. The Predicate (= Verb Phrase):

The most important concept for determining word order in German is the predicate. Sometimes called the "verb phrase" or "the verbal idea", the predicate can be a complex entity, especially in German. In a declarative sentence, its most basic form contains a finite verb, i.e, the one that changes with the subject: "Der Mann beißt den Hund" (The man bites the dog); "Die Männer beißen den Hund" (The men bite the dog).

a. The Position of the Finite Verb:

In a German declarative sentence, the finite verb always stands in the second position, while other elements can be moved around to indicate emphases in meaning: "Der Mann beißt den Hund"; "Den Hund beißt der Mann." This rule is so firm that when someone in conversation says, "Weiß ich nicht" or "Tut er nicht," it is clear to everyone that the initial word, "das," has been omitted and that the finite verb is still in the second position. b. Verb Complements:

But the predicate can comprise more than just the finite verb. When it contains other elements, such as past participles, infinitives, or modal auxiliaries, these elements go to the end of the clause, while the finite part stands in the second position: Der Mann hat den Hund gebissen (or: Den Hund hat der Mann gebissen .) The man bit the dog. Der Mann wird den Hund beißen (or: "Den Hund wird der Mann beißen ) The man will bite the dog. Der Mann will den Hund beißen (or: "Den Hund will der Mann beißen ) The man wants to bite the dog. Der Mann wird den Hund beißen wollen . (or: "Den Hund wird der Mann beißen wollen ). The man will want to bite the dog. Sie geht heute einkaufen . (or: Heute geht sie einkaufen ). She is going shopping today. Mein Bruder lernt jetzt fahren . (or: Jetzt lernt mein Bruder fahren ). My brother is learning to drive now. Wann geht Ihr Kind schlafen ? When does your child go to bed? If the finite verb has a separable prefix, that, too, goes to the end: Wir holen meine Mutter am Bahnhof ab . We're picking my mother up at the train station. c. Verb Complements Made from Other Parts of Speech:

To some degree in English, but much more so in German, the predicate can contain other parts of speech that combine with the verb conceptually. These "verb complements" are necessary parts of the predicate's meaning, not just augmentations. Here are three common examples: Sie spielt gern Tennis . She likes to play tennis. Ich spiele fast jeden Tag Schach . I play chess almost every day. Ich nehme lieber in der ersten Reihe Platz . I prefer to sit (take a seat) in the first row. In each case, the predicate is made up of the verb (in second position) and the object that is necessary to its meaning in this sentence (at the end). The concepts being presented are not simply verbs ("spielen" and "nehmen") that are then modified by their objects, but rather conceptual entities: "Tennis spielen," "Schach spielen," and "Platz nehmen." "Tennis," "Schach," and "Platz" are placed at the end of the clause just as if they were separable prefixes. Such complements are not limited to nouns: Er liest ein Buch mit seinen Kindern . He reads a book with his children. Here, "mit seinen Kindern lesen" is the verbal concept. d. Qualifiers (Non-Obligatory Elements):

Note the contrast between these two sentences: Ich fahre gern Auto . I like to drive (a car). Ich fahre dieses Auto gern . I like to drive this car. In the first sentence, the concept is "Auto fahren." In the second, the concept is "fahren" (modified by "gern"), and "dieses Auto" is the object - what I like to drive - and hence is not positioned at the end as a verbal complement. Another example: Sie sieht ihn oft im Supermarkt. She often sees him in the supermarket. Here the "ihn" is not a necessary part of the predicate; rather, it modifies the act of seeing (as do "oft" and "im Supermarkt"). Die Kinder sehen fast jeden Abend "Das Sandmännchen" . The children watch "The Sandman" almost every evening. [= a children's tv show] In this example, the "Sandmännchen" is a defining element of the children's activity: "Sandmännchen sehen". Note that it is also possible to say: "Die Kinder sehen 'Das Sandmännchen' fast jeden Abend." This variation creates a different concept. Here 'Das Sandmännchen' is the show that the children watch, the object of their "sehen," and "fast jeden Abend" becomes the more important information. He has visions every day. ["Visionen haben" is the verbal idea] e. The Predicate Nominative and Predicate Adjective:

English-speakers may feel more comfortable with this way of thinking about the "verb complement" when considering the "predicate nominative": Er ist meistens ein guter Freund . He is mostly a good friend. and the "predicate adjective": In der Nacht sind alle Katzen grau . At night all cats are gray. In these examples, German indicates in two ways that "ein guter Freund" and "grau" are part of the predicate: through inflection (in the case of "friend," by putting him in the nominative; in the case of "gray", by giving it no ending) and through position (both "friend" and "gray" are placed at the end, indicating that they are part of the "verbal idea": "Freund sein"; "grau sein"). Other examples: "fleißig sein": Sie ist in der Schule sehr fleißig . She's very industrious in school. "unhöflich sein": Bist du auch mit deinen Freunden so unhöflich ? Are you that impolite with your friends, too? "zu Hause sein": Sie ist meistens zu Hause . She's usually home. In German the predicate nominative is formed not only with the verb "sein" ("to be"), but also with "werden" ("to become") and "bleiben" ("to remain"). One could, in a way, say that these three verbs take a nominative object: "mein vierter Mann werden": Er wurde nach diesem großen Abenteuer mein vierter Mann . He became my fourth husband after this great adventure. "mein bester Freund bleiben": Er bleibt trotz allem mein bester Freund . Despite everything he remains my best friend. f. Dative nouns:

The dative object of nouns does not have this complementary function and thus always comes shortly after the finite verb: Sie antwortet dem Mann sehr freundlich. She answers the man in a friendly way. Wir sind meiner Mutter in der U-Bahn begegnet. We ran into my mother in the subway. Ich glaubte meinem Vater alles. I believed everything my father said. Du solltest deinen Großeltern für das Geschenk mit einem Brief danken. You ought thank your grandparents for the present with a letter. g. Pronouns As Part of the Predicate:

Except in the reflexive, dative or accusative pronouns cannot serve as a verbal complement, and even reflexive pronouns cannot take the final position: Du widersprichst mir jedes Mal. You contradict me every time. Ich bestelle das bei meinem Weinhändler. I order that from my wine dealer. Mein Vater rasiert sich jeden Morgen. My father shaves every morning. Ich fühle mich hier in Berlin sehr zu Hause . I feel very much at home here in Berlin. (The predicate here = "sich zu Hause fühlen")

II. The Placement of Dative and Accusative Objects:

a. Again, when an accusative noun object is an obligatory part of the predicate's meaning, it is positioned at the end: Ich gebe dir bei nächster Gelegenheit ein besseres Buch . I'll give you a better book at the next opportunity. (The predicate = "ein besseres Buch geben") b. When a dative (indirect) noun object and an accusative (direct) object are next to or near each other, the dative noun comes first: Sie gibt ihrem Mann einen Kuss auf die Glatze. She gives her husband a kiss on his bald head. Er schickt seiner Mutter eine Email. He sends his mother an e-mail. c. If the accusative and dative are both pronouns, the accusative precedes: Ich zeige es dir. I'll show it to you. Sie erzählt sie ihnen. She tells it to them. d. If one object is a pronoun and the other a noun, the pronoun always precedes: Sie verspricht es ihrem Vater. She promises it to her father. Ich schlage dir etwas Besseres vor. I'll suggest something better to you. While most verbs distinguish direct and indirect objects through a combination of the accusative and dative, fragen, kosten, and lehren do not follow this pattern; both objects are accusative. However, these two objects have the order you would expect: Darf ich dich etwas Persönliches fragen? May I ask you something personal? Das hat den Mann eine Menge Geld gekostet. That cost the man a bunch of money. Sie lehrt ihren Bruder die deutsche Sprache. She's teaching her brother the German language.

III. The Position of the Nominative Subject.

The subject often precedes the verb, standing in the first position:

Der Laden bietet seinen Kunden ein echtes Schnäppchen. The store offers its customers a real bargain. Das Hotel serviert seinen Gästen jeden Morgen ein opulentes Frühstück. The hotel serves its guests an opulent breakfast every morning.

But the speaker always has the option of emphasizing some other element of the sentence (except for the verb) by putting it in the first position. In that case, the subject follows the verb (in third position):

Seinen Kunden bietet der Laden ein echtes Schnäppchen. Ein echtes Schäppchen bietet der Laden seinen Kunden. Jeden Morgen serviert das Hotel seinen Gästen ein opulentes Frühstück. Seinen Gästen serviert das Hotel jeden Morgen ein opulentes Frühstück. Ein opulentes Frühstück serviert das Hotel seinen Gästen jeden Morgen.

In German such inversions are part of ordinary spoken and written discourse.