German Grammar
84 topics from A1.1 to B2.2, each with clear English explanations, German examples, and interactive exercises.
New to German? Start with German noun genders (der, die, das) — the first A1.1 topic.
Nouns & Gender
Understand grammatical gender (der, die, das) and noun patterns.
#2 ✓Definite Articles
Master the use of der, die, das with nouns.
#3 ✓Personal Pronouns
Master ich, du, er, sie, es, wir, ihr, sie/Sie.
#4 ✓Verb "sein" (to be)
Conjugate and use the most important German verb.
#5 ✓Alphabet & Pronunciation
Learn the German alphabet, special characters, and basic pronunciation rules.
#6 ✓Verb "haben" (to have)
Conjugate and use haben in everyday contexts.
#7 ✓Indefinite Articles
Learn ein, eine, and the negation kein.
#8 ✓Present Tense (Regular)
Learn to conjugate regular verbs in present tense.
#9 ✓Possessive articles (mein, dein, sein …)
Learn mein, dein, sein, ihr, unser, euer and Ihr, the possessive articles that take the same endings as ein — and how to avoid the #1 learner mistake of matching the ending to the owner instead of the noun.
#10 ✓Separable verbs (aufstehen, anrufen, einkaufen)
Learn how separable verbs like aufstehen, anrufen, and einkaufen split their prefix to the end of the sentence.
#11 ✓Yes/no questions (Kommst du aus Italien?)
Turn statements into yes/no questions by moving the verb to the front, and answer them with ja or nein.
#12 ✓Telling the time, weekdays and dates
Tell the time in both official and everyday German, name the weekdays and months, and give the date — exactly what the Start Deutsch 1 exam asks for.
Basic Sentence Structure
Understand German word order and verb position.
#2 ✓Nominative Case
Learn the subject case and its article forms.
#3 ✓Accusative Case Intro
Introduction to direct objects and article changes.
#4 ✓Numbers & Counting
Master numbers from 0 to 1000 and beyond (Jahreszahlen), prices in euros and cents, and ordinal numbers in German.
#5 ✓Question Words
Learn wer, was, wo, wann, wie, warum.
#6 ✓Negation
Master nicht vs. kein for negating sentences.
#7 ✓Modal Verbs Intro
Introduction to können, müssen, wollen, möchten.
#8 ✓Prepositions + Accusative
Learn für, durch, gegen, ohne, um.
#9 ✓Stem-Changing Verbs (e→i, e→ie, a→ä, au→äu)
Learn 15 verbs that change their stem vowel for du and er/sie/es: sprechen, essen, fahren, lesen, nehmen, laufen and more. All other forms — ich, wir, ihr, sie/Sie — stay regular.
#10 ✓Imperative (Commands & Requests)
Learn the du/ihr/Sie imperative for polite requests — Sprechen Teil 3 Bitten and Hören Teil 3 announcements. Covers stem-changing du-forms (Nimm!, Sprich!) and separable verbs (Mach das Fenster auf!). A2.1 imperative-mood goes deeper with more verbs and contexts.
#11 ✓Perfekt: What Happened Yesterday
Learn the Perfekt tense with haben or sein plus Partizip II. Say what happened yesterday. Use war/hatte for sein and haben.
#12 ✓Dative prepositions: aus, bei, mit, nach, zu
Learn the seven prepositions that always take Dativ, the contractions zum/zur/beim/vom, and how to say where you come from, live and travel.
Dative Case
Master indirect objects and dative article changes.
#2 ✓Prepositions + Dative
Learn aus, bei, mit, nach, seit, von, zu.
#3 ✓Two-Way Prepositions
Master prepositions that take accusative or dative.
#4 ✓Possessive Articles (Accusative and Dative)
Learn mein, dein, sein, ihr and their forms.
#5 ✓Separable Verbs
Understand verbs like aufstehen, ankommen.
#6 ✓Perfect Tense (haben)
Form past tense with haben + past participle.
#7 ✓Perfect Tense (sein)
Learn which verbs use sein in perfect tense.
#8 ✓Imperative Mood
Give commands and make requests in German.
#9 ✓Adjective Endings (Basics)
Give adjectives the right ending after der/die/das and after ein/kein/mein in Nominativ, Akkusativ and Dativ. You need them to describe a flat, a job or a person in Goethe A2 Schreiben Teil 2 (E-Mail) and Sprechen Teil 2. After sein the adjective keeps no ending at all: Der Kaffee ist gut.
#10 ✓Accusative & Dative Pronouns
Use mich/dich/ihn and mir/dir/ihm as objects and after prepositions. You need them in Goethe A2 Schreiben Teil 1 (SMS) and Sprechen Teil 3, where you ask for help and make plans together. This topic adds the accusative forms, the object order (Ich gebe es ihm) and the pronoun after für, mit and von.
#11 ✓Modal Verbs in the Past
Say what you could, had to, wanted to or were allowed to do: konnte, musste, wollte, durfte, sollte, mochte. The modal takes position 2 and the infinitive stays at the end. Goethe A2 needs these forms in Schreiben Teil 1 (the SMS apology) and Sprechen Teil 2.
#12 ✓Prepositions of Time
Learn the time prepositions vor, nach, seit, bis, ab, von … bis, zwischen and gegen, with a quick recap of um, am and im. They answer wann, wie lange, seit wann, bis wann and ab wann. You need them in Goethe A2 Sprechen Teil 3 (planning something together) and in Schreiben Teil 1, the short SMS.
Reflexive Verbs
Learn sich waschen, sich freuen and similar verbs.
#2 ✓Simple Past (sein/haben)
Master war and hatte for narration.
#3 ✓Coordinating Conjunctions
Connect sentences with und, aber, oder, denn.
#4 ✓Subordinating Conjunctions
Learn weil, dass, wenn, ob and word order.
#5 ✓Word Order in Subordinate Clauses
Master verb-final position in subordinate clauses.
#6 ✓Comparative
Compare things using -er forms and als.
#7 ✓Superlative
Express the highest degree with am -sten.
#8 ✓Future Tense
Express future with werden + infinitive.
#9 ✓Polite Forms (Konjunktiv II)
Make polite requests, wishes and suggestions with würde, könnte, hätte and wäre — the polite twins of konnte, hatte and war. You need these forms for Goethe A2 Sprechen Teil 3 (making a suggestion and reacting to one) and Schreiben Teil 2 (a polite request in a semi-formal e-mail).
#10 ✓Verbs with Prepositions
Learn the fixed preposition and case that go with everyday A2 verbs: warten auf, sich freuen über, sich interessieren für and more, plus the wo(r)-/da(r)- questions and answers for things. Goethe A2 needs these in Sprechen Teil 1–3 and Schreiben Teil 2.
#11 ✓Indirect Questions: ob & W-Word
Ask politely without repeating a question word for word: Wissen Sie, ob der Zug pünktlich ist? or Können Sie mir sagen, wo der Bahnhof ist? The verb moves to the end, exactly like in the weil- and dass-clauses you already know. Goethe A2 needs this in Schreiben Teil 2 (asking for information) and Sprechen Teil 1.
#12 ✓Infinitive with zu
Say what you feel like doing, forgot to do, or plan to do: Lust haben, vergessen, versuchen, vorhaben and more, each followed by a comma and zu + infinitive. Goethe A2 needs this in Schreiben Teil 1 (SMS invitations and Absagen) and Sprechen Teil 2-3.
Genitive Case
Express possession and use genitive endings.
#2 ✓Genitive Prepositions
Master wegen, trotz, während, statt.
#3 ✓Relative Clauses (Nom/Acc)
Use der, die, das as relative pronouns.
#4 ✓Relative Clauses (Dat/Gen)
Master dem, dessen, deren in relative clauses.
#5 ✓Konjunktiv II (würde)
Express polite requests and conditionals.
#6 ✓Konjunktiv II (wäre/hätte)
Express wishes and hypothetical situations.
#7 ✓Infinitive with "zu"
Use zu + infinitive constructions correctly.
#8 ✓um...zu / ohne...zu
Express purpose and manner with infinitive clauses.
#9 ✓Time Clauses: als vs. wenn
Master als vs. wenn, bevor, nachdem (plus the Plusquamperfekt), während, bis and seit for putting events in order. telc B1 rewards this in Sprachbausteine Teil 1, the halbformelle Brief in Schreiben, Sprechen Teil 1-3 and Hören Teil 2.
#10 ✓obwohl, damit, sodass & falls
obwohl, damit, um … zu, sodass and falls connect two ideas in one sentence. obwohl marks a contrast, damit and um … zu a purpose, sodass a result and falls a condition. You need all four in telc B1 Sprachbausteine Teil 1, the halbformeller Brief, and Sprechen Teil 2.
#11 ✓Connectors with Inversion
Link two ideas without a Nebensatz: deshalb, trotzdem, außerdem, sonst, dann, danach, dabei and dagegen open (or sit inside) a normal main clause, so the verb only moves to position 2 — never to the end. telc B1 tests this in Sprachbausteine Teil 1, in the halbformeller Brief (Schreiben) and whenever you justify an opinion in Sprechen Teil 2–3.
#12 ✓Two-Part Connectors
Connect ideas with five two-part connector pairs: entweder … oder, nicht nur … sondern auch, sowohl … als auch, weder … noch and zwar … aber. Learn what each pair connects and how word order shifts after the first part. The telc B1 exam rewards this in Sprachbausteine Teil 1, in Schreiben when you make suggestions, and in Sprechen Teil 2 when you weigh Vor- und Nachteile.
Passive Voice (Present)
Form passive with werden + past participle.
#2 ✓Passive Voice (Past)
Use wurde + past participle for past passive.
#3 ✓Verbs with Prepositions
Master warten auf, denken an, and more.
#4 ✓Adjective Declension (Strong)
Decline adjectives without articles.
#5 ✓Adjective Declension (Weak/Mixed)
Decline adjectives with definite/indefinite articles.
#6 ✓Simple Past (Narrative)
Use Präteritum for written narratives.
#7 ✓Indirect Questions
Report questions with ob and W-words.
#8 ✓N-Declension Nouns
Master weak masculine nouns like der Student.
Konjunktiv II (Past)
Express past hypotheticals with hätte/wäre + participle.
#2 ✓Konjunktiv I (Reported Speech)
Report speech formally with er sei, er habe.
#3 ✓Passive Alternatives
Use man, sich lassen, -bar constructions.
#4 ✓Participial Adjectives
Use participles as adjectives: der lachende Mann.
#5 ✓Extended Attributes
Build complex noun phrases in formal German.
#6 ✓Double Infinitive
Use modal verbs in perfect tense correctly.
#7 ✓Causative Constructions
Master lassen + infinitive for causatives.
#8 ✓Nominalization
Turn verbs and adjectives into nouns.
Advanced Conjunctions
Master je...desto, sowohl...als auch.
#2 ✓Modal Particles
Use doch, mal, ja, halt, eben naturally.
#3 ✓Functional Verb Structures
Master zur Verfügung stellen and similar.
#4 ✓Subjunctive in Fixed Expressions
Learn Sei es..., Wie dem auch sei.
#5 ✓Complex Sentence Building
Construct nested and multi-clause sentences.
#6 ✓Register & Style
Distinguish formal vs. informal German.
#7 ✓Future Perfect
Express completed future actions.
#8 ✓Review & Integration
Bring together all cases, tenses, and structures.
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