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Grammar

Short lessons with tables, examples with Otti and his friends, and a few gaps to fill. A lesson takes five minutes.

Level A1

  1. Der, die, das: every noun has a gender
    Every German noun is masculine, feminine or neuter, and the article der, die or das shows which. Learn each noun together with its article.
  2. The plural: ein Tisch, zwei Tische
    German has several ways to make a plural, but the article is always die. Learn each noun with its plural, just like with its article.
  3. Ich, du, Sie: pronouns, sein and haben
    Who is speaking to whom? Learn the personal pronouns, when to say du and when Sie, and the two most important verbs, sein (to be) and haben (to have).
  4. The present tense: ich lerne, du lernst
    A German verb changes its ending with the person. Learn the six endings once, and most verbs follow them.
  5. Verb second: Heute trinkt Otti Tee
    In a German statement the verb always comes second. If you start with a time or a place, the subject (who does it) moves behind the verb.
  6. Questions: Wo wohnst du?
    A W-question starts with a question word, and the verb comes second. A yes/no question starts with the verb.
  7. Nicht or kein?
    German has two words for "not". Kein goes with nouns that have ein or no article, nicht with everything else. To say yes to a negative question, answer doch.
  8. The accusative: einen Apfel, den Kaffee
    What you buy, have or see is in the accusative. Good news: only masculine words change (der → den, ein → einen).
  9. Possessive articles: mein, dein, unser
    Mein, dein, sein and the others say whose something is. They take the same endings as ein: mein Bruder, meine Schwester, meinen Bruder.
  10. Modal verbs: können, müssen, wollen
    Modal verbs say if you can, must or want to do something. The modal verb comes second, the other verb goes to the end: Ich kann gut kochen.
  11. Separable verbs: ich stehe früh auf
    Some verbs have a prefix that breaks off: aufstehen → Ich stehe um sieben auf. With a modal verb it stays on: Ich muss früh aufstehen.
  12. The imperative: Komm! Kommt! Kommen Sie!
    With the imperative you tell or ask someone to do something. It has three forms: for du, for ihr and for Sie. With bitte it sounds friendly.
  13. Time and place: um, am, im, nach, bei
    Small words say when and where: um acht Uhr, am Montag, im Mai. You go nach Berlin or zu Frida, and you are in Berlin or bei Frida.