Separable Prefixes, Compound Verbs, and Time Expressions

1. Introduction

This lesson covers verbs that consist of two parts, as well as common time expressions.

In German, one part of a verb can separate and move to the end of the sentence.

The lesson also covers forms that answer these questions:

2. Verbs with separable prefixes

Verbs with separable prefixes consist of two parts:

In the infinitive, the verb is written as one word.

• aufstehen — to get up
• anrufen — to call
• mitkommen — to come along
• weggehen — to leave, to go away

When the verb is conjugated, the verb part changes. The prefix usually stands at the end of a simple main clause.

• Ich stehe früh auf. — I get up early.
• Du rufst deine Mutter an. — You call your mother.
• Er kommt heute mit. — He is coming along today.
• Sie geht um acht Uhr weg. — She leaves at eight o'clock.

3. The separable prefix in a simple sentence

In a simple declarative sentence, the finite verb form stands in second position.

The separable prefix stands at the end of the sentence.

• Ich stehe um sieben Uhr auf. — I get up at seven o'clock.
• Sie ruft ihre Freundin an. — She calls her friend.
• Wir kommen heute mit. — We are coming along today.

4. Separable prefixes with modal verbs

If a sentence has a modal verb, the modal verb is the finite verb form.

The verb with the separable prefix stands at the end of the sentence in the infinitive.

The prefix does not separate.

• Ich muss früh aufstehen. — I have to get up early.
• Sie will heute weggehen. — She wants to leave today.
• Wir können mitkommen. — We can come along.

5. Common verbs with separable prefixes

• Der Unterricht fängt um neun Uhr an. — The class begins at nine o'clock.
• Sie hört mit der Arbeit auf. — She stops working.
• Ich bringe ein Buch mit. — I bring a book along.

6. Compound verbs

Compound verbs also consist of two parts.

The first part can be a noun, an adjective, an adverb, or another verb.

Some compound verbs are written as one word: fernsehen.

Some compound verbs can be written separately: spazieren gehen, stehen bleiben.

7. Word order with compound verbs

In a simple sentence, the variable part of the verb stands in second position.

The other part often stands at the end of the sentence.

• Sie sehen abends fern. — They watch television in the evening.
• Wir gehen im Park spazieren. — We go for a walk in the park.
• Der Bus fährt morgen zurück. — The bus goes back tomorrow.

With a modal verb, the compound verb usually stands at the end of the sentence in the infinitive.

• Sie wollen abends fernsehen. — They want to watch television in the evening.
• Wir möchten spazieren gehen. — We would like to go for a walk.

8. Ordinal numbers in the dative

Ordinal numbers answer the question "which one in the sequence?"

In the dative, they take the ending -en after an article or another determiner.

• Sie hilft dem dritten Kind bei den Hausaufgaben. — She helps the third child with the homework.
• Ich spreche mit dem ersten Studenten. — I speak with the first student.
• Er schreibt der zweiten Schülerin. — He writes to the second schoolgirl or student.

9. Time: the question Wann?

For time expressions, German often uses the prepositions in and an, and the contracted form am.

Years

With years, German usually uses im Jahre or the year without a preposition.

• im Jahre 2018 — in 2018
• 2018 — in 2018
• im Jahre 1999 — in 1999

Seasons

With seasons, German uses im.

• Im Sommer fahren wir ans Meer. — In summer we go to the sea.
• Im Winter bleibt sie oft zu Hause. — In winter she often stays at home.

Months

With months, German uses im.

Im September beginnt das Studium. — The degree program begins in September.

Dates

With dates, German uses am.

• am ersten Juni — on the first of June
• am zweiten Mai — on the second of May
• am einunddreißigsten Dezember — on the thirty-first of December

Ich komme am ersten Juni. — I am coming on the first of June.

Days of the week

With days of the week, German uses am.

• Am Montag haben wir Unterricht. — We have class on Monday.
• Am Wochenende fahren sie nach Hause. — They go home on the weekend.

10. Times of day

With times of day, German often uses am.

• Am Morgen trinke ich Kaffee. — In the morning I drink coffee.
• Am Abend liest sie ein Buch. — In the evening she reads a book.

The word Nacht is used with in der.

In der Nacht schläft das Kind. — The child sleeps at night.

There are also forms without a preposition:

• Morgens lernt er Deutsch. — In the mornings he studies German.
• Abends sehen sie fern. — In the evenings they watch television.

11. The question Um wie viel Uhr?

The question Um wie viel Uhr? is used when you need to give an exact time.

Um wie viel Uhr stehst du auf? — At what time do you get up?

The answer uses the preposition um.

• Ich stehe um sieben Uhr auf. — I get up at seven o'clock.
• Der Unterricht beginnt um neun Uhr. — Class begins at nine o'clock.
• Wir treffen uns um halb elf. — We meet at half past ten.
• Sie kommt um Viertel nach vier. — She comes at quarter past four.

12. The preposition seit

The preposition seit marks the beginning of an action or state in the past.

Seit is followed by the dative.

• seit dem 15. August — since August 15
• seit September — since September
• seit Mittwoch — since Wednesday
• seit einer Woche — for one week

• Ich lerne seit September Deutsch. — I have been learning German since September.
• Sie wohnt seit einem Jahr hier. — She has been living here for one year.
• Wir arbeiten seit Montag. — We have been working since Monday.

With names of months and days of the week, the article is often not used.

• seit April — since April
• seit Freitag — since Friday

13. What to remember

• Verbs with separable prefixes consist of a prefix and a verb part.
• In a simple sentence, the prefix stands at the end: Ich stehe früh auf. — I get up early.
• With a modal verb, the infinitive stands at the end, and the prefix does not separate: Ich muss früh aufstehen. — I have to get up early.
• Compound verbs can be written as one word or separately: Sie sieht abends fern. — She watches television in the evening. Wir gehen spazieren. — We go for a walk.
• For months and seasons, German often uses im: im Januar — in January, im Sommer — in summer.
• For days of the week and dates, German uses am: am Montag — on Monday, am ersten Mai — on the first of May.
• For exact times, German uses um: um acht Uhr — at eight o'clock.
• The preposition seit requires the dative: seit September — since September, seit dem ersten Juni — since the first of June.