![]() "werden" + infinitive),īut a future meaning is not necessarily implied. Note that constructions with "würden" resemble theįuture tense (i.e. If it weren't raining, we would go swimming. Wenn es nicht regnete, würden wir schwimmen gehen. In conditional sentences ("if.then"), "würde" is normally part of the "then-clause": Wenn ich dieses Lied wüsste, würde ich es singen. Similar to English's use of "would," colloquial German most comfortably employs "würde", the subjunctive form of "werden". If my boyfriend broke as many promises as the chancellor, I'd throw him out. If your grandmother had wheels, she'd be a trolleycar. Wenn deine Großmutter Räder hätte, wäre sie eine Straßenbahn. If I were a little bird,/ And had two little wings,/ I'd fly to you. Wenn ich ein Vöglein wär',/ Und auch zwei Flüglein hätt'/ flöge ich zu dir'. If it weren't for the little word "if," my father would be a millionaire (~ "If wishes were horses, then beggars could ride."). Wenn das Wörtchen "wenn" nicht wär', wär' mein Vater Millionär. I'd take flowers along if the stores weren't closed. Ich brächte Blumen mit, wenn die Geschäfte nicht zu hätten. I'd buy the book if I could read Italian. Ich kaufte das Buch, wenn ich Italienisch lesen könnte. Wenn es nicht regnete, gingen wir schwimmen. Thus we can construct sentences like: Wenn ich dieses Lied wüsste, sänge ich es. Thus "helfen" traditionally becomes "hülfe." However, these forms now seem pedantic, and we increasingly find "hälfe." You can click here for a listing of the subjunctive forms of the more common strong verbs). (Some verbs have retained subjunctive forms that reflect archaic constructions. "Sollen" and "wollen," however, do not add an umlaut: sollte, wollte. If you could kiss only one person in your life, who would it be?.Īdd an umlaut to the imperfect form: brächte, dächte, hätte, wüsste,Īlthough some of them substitute an "-e-" for the "-ä-": brennte, kennte, nennte, rennte, sendete, wendete.Īlso add an umlaut to the imperfect form - if there was one in the infinitive: dürfte, könnte, möchte, müsste. Together with the same endings that follow the "-t-" of the weak The strong verbs also use the simple past, adding an umlaut where possible, If I wanted to have this car, I would buy it immediately. Simple past: Wenn ich diesen Wagen haben wollte, kaufte ich ihn sofort. In fact, the subjunctive form of weak verbs is indistinguishable from the ![]() Just like English, German uses the simple past forms as a basis for the general subjunctive. ![]() The General Subjunctive Mood in German (Konjunktiv II). To talk about an unreal situation in the past, we would have to say, "If I had been rich." In fact, "If I were rich." refers to an undetermined time not in the past - it could be in the present or the future. The general subjunctive is sometimes called the "past subjunctive"īecause it builds off past tense forms, but it does not necessarily refer to the past. "If I'm the coach, I'm happy with the way the game is going."Ĭolloquial speech is most comfortable with constructions employing "would" (the subjunctive form of "will"): We hear toughs say, "If I was you, I'd keep my mouth shut," and sports commentators claim, These forms are very common, but speakers are not always conscientious about using them correctly:
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