The verb goes to the end in German in two situations: in subordinate clauses (after words like weil, dass, wenn, ob) and when a sentence has two verb parts – then the conjugated verb stays in position 2 and the second part (infinitive, participle or separable prefix) moves to the end. Linguists call this the sentence bracket (Satzklammer): the two verb parts frame the rest of the sentence.
Rule 1: the sentence bracket in main clauses
| Structure | Position 2 | Middle | End |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modal verb | Ich muss | heute lange | arbeiten. |
| Perfect tense | Wir haben | gestern Pizza | gegessen. |
| Future | Sie wird | nächstes Jahr nach Berlin | ziehen. |
| Separable verb | Der Zug kommt | um 8 Uhr | an. |
| Passive | Das Haus wurde | 1900 | gebaut. |
Rule 2: verb-final in subordinate clauses
Subordinating conjunctions push the conjugated verb to the very end of their clause:
- Ich lerne Deutsch, weil ich in Wien arbeite.
- Sie sagt, dass sie morgen nicht kommt.
- Weißt du, ob der Laden heute geöffnet hat?
- Wenn es regnet, bleiben wir zu Hause. – the whole subordinate clause counts as position 1, so the main verb comes right after the comma.
Relative clauses follow the same rule: Der Mann, der dort steht, ist mein Lehrer. See relative clauses.
Why does German do this?
Historically, older Germanic languages often put the verb late in the sentence (object–verb order). German kept this in subordinate clauses and in the bracket structure, while main clauses developed the “verb second” rule. English once had similar patterns but lost most of them. The bracket has a practical effect: the listener must wait for the end of the sentence to know the full meaning – that is why Germans rarely interrupt each other mid-sentence.
Does the verb always go at the end?
No. In normal main clauses the conjugated verb is in position 2 (the verb-second rule). In yes/no questions and commands it comes first: Kommst du? Komm her! Only the second verb part or the verb in a subordinate clause goes to the end.
Coordinating conjunctions do NOT move the verb
und, aber, oder, denn, sondern keep normal word order: Ich bleibe zu Hause, denn ich bin krank. Compare with weil ich krank bin.
Frequently asked questions
Does German use SVO or SOV?
Main clauses are verb-second (often SVO on the surface); subordinate clauses are SOV. See SVO, SOV and TeKaMoLo.
Where does the verb go with two verbs in a subordinate clause?
Both go to the end, with the conjugated one last: …, weil ich arbeiten muss.
Does “jedoch” change word order?
As a conjunctive adverb in position 1 it takes verb second: Jedoch kam er nicht. It can also stand in the middle of the sentence.
Practice and go deeper
- German conjunctions that send the verb to the end
- The verb-second rule
- German sentence structure
