Verb Placement & V2 Rule
Spoken Description
Lerne die V2-Regel im Deutschen: Wo steht das Verb im Satz? Erkläre die Standardposition, Satzteile, zum Beispiel bei Nebensätzen und Fragen. Verbpositionen beim Hauptsatz, Inversion und mit Modalverben. Übungen helfen, den Überblick zu behalten.
Learn the V2 rule in German: where does the verb go in the sentence? Explains standard position, word order after sentence adverbs, in questions, and with modal verbs. Practice exercises reinforce direction.
-:- / -:-
In German the position of the verb shapes meaning and guides attention. The so-called V2 rule keeps the main verb in second position in main clauses, making sentences predictable and clear.
V2 Rule
The V2 rule means the conjugated verb takes the second position in main clauses. Whatever counts as "position one" can be the subject, an adverb, a phrase, or even a whole clause, but the verb must come immediately after it.
Position One
Position one is the element that comes before the conjugated verb and sets the sentence's focus. It can be the subject, time expression, place, or any other constituent that you want to highlight.
Examples
German sentences follow the V2 rule strictly, so moving elements to position one changes what comes immediately after. The verb always stays in second position, and the rest of the sentence follows.
Adverbs and Time Expressions
Adverbs and time expressions often take position one to set the scene, pushing the subject to position three while the verb remains second. This allows you to emphasize when, where, or how something happens.
Questions
In yes/no questions the verb moves to position one, triggering an immediate response, while in question-word questions the question word takes position one and the verb follows in second position.
Subordinate Clauses
Subordinate clauses introduced by conjunctions like weil, dass, or wenn send the conjugated verb to the end, so the V2 rule does not apply within these clauses and the sentence rhythm changes accordingly.
Summary
The V2 rule keeps the conjugated verb in second position in main clauses, making sentences clear and predictable. Position one can be any element that sets focus, questions reorder the verb depending on type, and subordinate clauses push the verb to the end.
Key Vocabulary
| German Word(s) | English Translation(s) | |
|---|---|---|
| die Stellung | position | |
| das Verb | verb | |
| das Subjekt | subject | |
| die Zeitangabe | time expression | |
| der Nebensatz | subordinate clause | |
| die Hauptsatz | main clause | |
| die Frage | question | |
| die Konjunktion | conjunction | |
| das Adverb | adverb | |
| das Satzglied | sentence element | |
| der Satz | sentence | |
| die Betonung | emphasis | |
| das Beispiel | example | |
| die Regel | rule |
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