8. Modal Verbs
The German modal verbs are a group of six verbs which affect the mood of a sentence, approximating to words like "can", "must" and "will" in English. Their combinations with German infinitive and their broad range of usage are discussed in Chapter 8 of this course.
In the present tense, the modal verbs:
- have a zero ending on the "er/sie/es" form of the verb, i.e. there is no final -t
- have a zero ending on the "ich" form of the verb, i.e. there is no final -e
- apply any change to the stem vowel to the "ich" form of the verb, as well as to the "du" and "er/sie/es" forms. (N.B. The modal verb "sollen" does not modify its stem vowel at all.)
Table 1: Present tense of "dürfen" |
Singular |
|
|
ich darf |
I am allowed to |
|
du darfst
Sie dürfen |
You are allowed to (informal/formal) |
|
er/sie/es darf |
He/she/it is allowed to |
Plural |
|
|
wir dürfen |
We are allowed to |
|
ihr dürft
Sie dürfen |
You are allowed to (informal/formal) |
|
sie dürfen |
They are allowed to |
|
Table 2: Present tense of "können" |
Singular |
|
|
ich kann |
I can |
|
du kannst
Sie können |
You can (informal/formal) |
|
er/sie/es kann |
He/she/it can |
Plural |
|
|
wir können |
We can |
|
ihr könnt
Sie können |
You can (informal/formal) |
|
sie können |
They can |
|
Table 3: Present tense of "mögen" |
Singular |
|
|
ich mag |
I like |
|
du magst
Sie mögen |
You like (informal/formal) |
|
er/sie/es mag |
He/she/it likes |
Plural |
|
|
wir mögen |
We like |
|
ihr mögt
Sie mögen |
You like (informal/formal) |
|
sie mögen |
They like |
|
Table 4: Present tense of "müssen" |
Singular |
|
|
ich muss |
I must |
|
du musst
Sie müssen |
You must (informal/formal) |
|
er/sie/es muss |
He/she/it must |
Plural |
|
|
wir müssen |
We must |
|
ihr müsst
Sie müssen |
You must (informal/formal) |
|
sie müssen |
They must |
|
Table 5: Present tense of "sollen" |
Singular |
|
|
ich soll |
I am meant to |
|
du sollst
Sie sollen |
You are meant to (informal/formal) |
|
er/sie/es soll |
He/she/it is meant to |
Plural |
|
|
wir sollen |
We are meant to |
|
ihr sollt
Sie sollen |
You are meant to (informal/formal) |
|
sie sollen |
They are meant to |
|
Table 6: Present tense of "wollen" |
Singular |
|
|
ich will |
I want |
|
du willst
Sie wollen |
You want (informal/formal) |
|
er/sie/es will |
He/she/it wants |
Plural |
|
|
wir wollen |
We want |
|
ihr wollt
Sie wollen |
You want (informal/formal) |
|
sie wollen |
They want |
|
This pattern of present tense formation also applies to the German verb "wissen" (to know). It also:
- has a zero ending on the "er/sie/es" form of the verb, i.e. there is no final -t
- has a zero ending on the "ich" form of the verb, i.e. there is no final -e
- applies the change to the stem vowel to the "ich" form of the verb, as well as to the "du" and "er/sie/es" forms.
Table 7: Present tense of "wissen" |
Singular |
|
|
ich weiß |
I know |
|
du weißt
Sie wissen |
You know (informal/formal) |
|
er/sie/es weiß |
He/she/it knows |
Plural |
|
|
wir wissen |
We know |
|
ihr wisst
Sie wissen |
You know (informal/formal) |
|
sie wissen |
They know |
|
German Present Tense: Separable Verbs
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