A1 · Modal verbs
The six modal verbs
können, müssen, dürfen, sollen, wollen, mögen
One irregular pattern, six verbs, and the main verb waiting at the end of the sentence.
A modal verb says something about the main verb rather than describing an action itself: whether it is possible, necessary, permitted, advisable or wanted. The modal takes the personal ending and the main verb stands at the end of the clause as a bare infinitive.
All six share an irregular pattern in the singular: the vowel changes and the ich and er forms take no ending at all. Ich kann, du kannst, er kann — not er kannt. The plural is regular and looks like the infinitive.
They also keep their simple past in ordinary speech, unlike almost every other German verb: ich konnte, ich musste, ich wollte. Nobody says ich habe gekonnt in conversation, so these are among the first past forms a learner actually needs.
Die Form
| können | ich kann, du kannst, er kann, wir können |
| müssen | ich muss, du musst, er muss, wir müssen |
| dürfen | ich darf, du darfst, er darf, wir dürfen |
| wollen | ich will, du willst, er will, wir wollen |
| past | konnte, musste, durfte, wollte, sollte, mochte |
Die Regeln im Einzelnen
The modal is conjugated and the main verb stands at the end as an infinitive, without zu.
Ich kann heute nicht kommen.I cannot come today.
The ich and er forms take no ending, and the vowel changes in the singular.
Er muss noch arbeiten.He still has to work.
The simple past is used in speech: konnte, musste, wollte.
Wir konnten nicht anrufen.We could not call.
A modal can stand alone when the main verb is obvious.
Ich muss jetzt nach Hause.I have to go home now.
Genauer hingesehen
Why the modals are irregular in exactly this way
The German modals and the English ones descend from the same small group of verbs whose present tense was, historically, a past tense. That is why ich kann has no ending and "he can" has no -s: both are behaving like a past form, because that is what they once were.
The consequence for a learner is that the irregularity is shared. Kann is "can", muss is "must", soll is "shall", will is "will" — though that last pair is a trap, since German wollen means "to want" and not the English future. The resemblance is real and it is exactly one word too generous.
Ausnahmen und Sonderfälle (2)
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the modal stands in the perfect together with a main verb
both appear as infinitives at the end: ich habe nicht kommen können.
Ich habe gestern nicht kommen können.I was not able to come yesterday.
The double infinitive is the German solution to two verbs needing the last position at once. In speech the simple past is used instead, which avoids it entirely.
-
you want to say "I would like"
use möchte, which is the subjunctive of mögen and is far more common than mögen itself.
Ich möchte einen Kaffee, bitte.I would like a coffee, please.
Ich will is a demand rather than a wish, and sounds it.
Woran man es erkennt
- kann
- muss
- darf
- soll
- will
- mag
- konnte
- musste
- möchte
Beispielsätze
Kannst du mir das erklären?Can you explain that to me?
Wir müssen um sieben los.We have to leave at seven.
Hier darf man nicht rauchen.You are not allowed to smoke here.
Was willst du trinken?What do you want to drink?
Du solltest zum Arzt gehen.You should go to the doctor.
Noch 8 Beispielsätze
Ich kann leider nicht länger bleiben.Unfortunately I cannot stay any longer.
Musst du wirklich schon gehen?Do you really have to go already?
Darf ich Sie kurz stören?May I disturb you for a moment?
Sie will nächstes Jahr studieren.She wants to study next year.
Wir sollen uns um acht treffen.We are supposed to meet at eight.
Er mochte den Film nicht.He did not like the film.
Das kann nicht stimmen.That cannot be right.
Ich wollte dich gerade anrufen.I was just about to call you.
Besonderheiten (2)
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A modal can stand without a main verb
When the main verb is obvious from the context, German simply leaves it out: <z>Ich muss nach Hause</z>, <z>Ich kann kein Französisch</z>, <z>Willst du auch einen?</z> English does this too — "I must go home" keeps the verb, but "can you drive?" — "yes I can" drops it. German drops it further and more often, and it sounds natural rather than clipped.
Ich kann kein Französisch.I do not speak any French.
-
sollen is not should
<z>Sollen</z> reports somebody else's instruction or expectation: <z>Ich soll um acht da sein</z> means somebody told me to be. English "should" — advice — is the subjunctive <z>sollte</z>. The two are one letter apart and mean quite different things, which makes this the most useful small distinction in the section.
Ich soll um acht da sein. / Du solltest früher gehen.I am supposed to be there at eight. / You should leave earlier.
Die typisch deutsche Falle
Aufgepasst
The third-person -t is on every other German verb and on none of the modals, so it gets added by habit. The reason it is missing is historical: the modals were once past-tense forms, and a German past tense has no ending in the third person singular. Same explanation as the missing -s in English "he can".
ich and er are identical. No ending, no -t.
Jetzt selbst
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