GermanSentence Structure, Subjunctive Mood In German, conditional sentences are “if-then” sentences: expressing a condition that must be met in order for a certain result to happen. These sentences are composed of two parts: the conditional clause (what needs to happen), and the consequence (the result).
conditional clauseconsequence
Wenn ich im Lotto gewinnen würde, würde ich die Welt bereisen.
If I won the lottery, I would travel the world.
Just like in English, there are three main types of conditional clauses in German:
Type 1: describe real possibilities (e.g. If I win the lottery…)
Type 2: describe hypothetical possibilities (e.g. If I won the lottery…)
Type 3: describe hypothetical pasts (e.g. If I had won the lottery…)
In this post, we’ll discuss how to form the different types of conditionals, as well as some other reasons why you might form a conditional clause in German, such as to give advice, express a wish, or to make a request. Let’s have a look!
What are the types of conditional sentences in German?
In German, there are three main types of conditional sentences, which we usually just call Type 1 (“likely”), Type 2 (“unlikely”), and Type 3 (“impossible”). In the following, we'll explore each of the three types: how to form them and how to use them. Let’s dive in!
What are Type 1 conditionals in German?
Type 1 conditionals are used when you think it is possible and likely that the condition in the conditional clause will be met. We are not speaking hypothetically, but we are talking about real possibilities.
In German type 1 conditional sentences, the condition and the consequence will both be in the indicative moodNo definition set for indicative moodLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., the mood we use for expressing facts, opinions, or questions.
condition (indicative)consequence (indicative)
Falls ich Zeit habe, helfe ich dir bei deinen Hausaufgaben.
If I have time, I will help you with your homework.
Wenn es regnet, nehmen wir den Bus.
If it rains, we will take the bus.
Rufst du mich an, falls du morgen kommst?
Will you call me in case you come tomorrow?
There are a few things to note here.
The condition can be introduced by either wenn or falls.
→ Note that falls is only used in Type 1 conditionals, and adds an additional feeling of uncertainty about whether the condition will be met, compared to wenn.
The condition is a subordinate clauseNo definition set for subordinate clauseLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., and so therefore the finite verb is all the way at the end, as in other German subordinate clauses.
condition (subordinate clause)
Ich helfe dir bei deinen Hausaufgaben, falls ich Zeit habe.
I will help you with your homework, if I have time.
The clause expressing the consequence is the main clauseNo definition set for main clauseLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.. The consequence can either precede the conditional clause or follow it. However, as is usual in German, if the subordinate clause comes first, it will be immediately followed by the main verb.
condition (subordinate clause)consequence (main clause)
Falls ich Zeit habe, helfe ich dir bei deinen Hausaufgaben.
If I have time, I will help you with your homework.
If the consequence comes second, though, you can add the word dann(then) after the comma. The rest of the word order remains unchanged.
The conditional clause is always in the present tense. The main clause can be either present tense, as in the examples above, or future tense, as follows:
conditionconsequence (main clause)
Wenn wir es nicht aufschreiben, werden wir es bestimmt vergessen.
If we don’t write it down, we will surely forget it!
But though you can use the future tense in the main clause, we often use present tense forms to talk about the future in conditional clauses.
Wenn and falls both translate to “if” and they are often interchangeable. However, while falls is used exclusively in a causal sense (condition and consequence), wenn holds a second, temporal meaning:
Falls du morgen zum Training kommst, bring bitte deine Fussballschuhe mit.
If you come to practice tomorrow, please bring your soccer shoes.
→ This is a basic condition, we don’t know whether it will happen or not.
Wenn du morgen zum Training kommst, bring bitte deine Fussballschuhe mit.
When you come to practice tomorrow, please bring your soccer shoes.
→ This implies some additional certainty, as, if we read wenn as temporal, the two parties have already committed to attending the training.
Uses for Type 1 conditionals
We often use type 1 conditionals for other functions such as:
Giving advice
conditionconsequence
Wenn du deine Lehrerin fragst, hilft sie dir bestimmt.
If you ask your teacher, I'm sure she'll help you
Giving a warning
conditionconsequence
Wenn Sie noch einmal zu spät kommen, dann war’s das mit Ihrem Job.
If you're late one more time, there goes your job!
Making a polite request
conditionconsequence
Wenn du mir dabei hilfst, dann werde ich dir ewig dankbar sein.
If you help me with this, I will be eternally grateful.
What are Type 2 conditionals in German?
A type 2 conditional clause represents a situation that is unlikely to take place. Use these to discuss a hypothetical present or future situation.
In German, type 2 conditional sentences, the condition and the consequence are both in the present tense of the subjunctive II.
condition (present subjunctive II)consequence (present subjunctive II)
Wenn ich mehr Zeit hätte, würde ich dir bei den Hausaufgaben helfen.
If I had more time, I would help with your homework.
Wenn es nicht regnen würde, könnten wir zu Fuß gehen.
If it wasn’t raining, we could walk.
In the examples above, the conditional clause is introduced with wenn — it is not possible to use falls in this type of sentence. It is, however, possible to omit wenn and start the conditional clause with the verb:
conditionconsequence
Hätte ich mehr Zeit, würde ich dir bei den Hausaufgaben helfen.
Had I more time, I would help with your homework.
It’s also possible for the condition and consequence in type 2 conditional sentences to swap places. If the condition comes second, wenn is usually not omitted:
conditionconsequence
Ich würde ich dir bei den Hausaufgaben helfen, wenn ich mehr Zeit hätte.
I would help with your homework, If I had more time.
It is rather unusual for a sentence in German to start with the verb. This really only happens in a few cases:
A conditional clause omitting wenn(if):
Hätte ich mehr Zeit, würde ich dir bei den Hausaufgaben helfen.
Had I more time, I would help with your homework.
In yes/no questions:
Gehst du morgen zur Schule?
Are you going to school tomorrow?
If a main clause follows a subordinate clause:
Wenn du nichts von uns hörst, werden wir kommen.
If you don’t hear back from us, then we’re coming.
In colloquial speech, if the subject is omitted:
Uses for Type 2 conditionals
Type 2 conditional clauses are often used in the following situations:
Expressing an abstract wish for the future or present
conditionconsequence
Wenn ich die Möglichkeit hätte, würde ich mehr Zeit mit meiner Familie verbringen.
If I had the opportunity, I would spend more time with my family.
Wenn wir älter wären, müssten wir nicht so früh zu Bett gehen.
If we were older, we wouldn’t have to go to bed so early.
Making very polite requests
conditionconsequence
Ich wäre Ihnen sehr dankbar, wenn Sie diese Aufgabe bis zum Ende des Tages erledigen könnten.
I would be very grateful if you could complete this task by the end of the day.
Giving advice, using an “if I were you…” structure
conditionconsequence
Wenn ich du wäre, würde ich mir die Überstunden auszahlen lassen.
If I were you, I’d get paid the overtime.
What are Type 3 conditionals in German?
Type 3 conditionals are used when it is impossible for the condition to be met. We use these to discuss hypothetical pasts, things that could have happened, but did not.
In German, type 3 conditional sentences use the past subjunctive II in the conditional clause. The form of the verb in the consequence clause (main clause) depends on the meaning you’re trying to achieve:
Use the past subjunctive II in the main clause if meeting the condition would have impacted the past.
condition (past subjunctive II)consequence (past subjunctive II)
Hätte ich meine Hausaufgaben rechtzeitig gemacht, hätte ich keine Strafarbeit schreiben müssen.
Had I done my homework on time, I wouldn't have had to write extra homework.
Hätte es nicht geregnet, hätten wir zu Fuß gehen können.
Had it not rained, we could have walked.
Use the present subjunctive II in the main clause if meeting the condition would have impacted the present.
condition (past subjunctive II)consequence (present subjunctive II)
Hättest du mehr geübt, könntest du jetzt besser Latein.
Had you practiced more, you would know Latin better now.
Notice the absence of wenn in our examples? This is because it is common to form this type of conditional clause without the conjunction, with the verb at the beginning of the conditional clause.
However, it is still possible to add wenn for emphasis.
conditionconsequence
Wenn Sie das Kleingedruckte gelesen hätten, wüssten Sie über unser Rückgaberecht Bescheid.
If you had read the fine print, you would know about our return policy.
Once again, it is possible to switch the position of the conditional clause and the consequence.
Careful:Falls also cannot be used in type 3 conditionals!
Uses of Type 3 conditionals
Type 3 conditionals are often used to express disappointment, regret or relief that something has not occurred as planned or hoped.
conditionconsequence
Wären wir doch nur früher losgefahren, dann würden wir jetzt nicht im Stau stecken.
If only we had left earlier, we wouldn't be stuck in traffic now!
Wenn ich den Ofen nicht ausgeschaltet hätte, wäre das Brot verbrannt.
If I hadn't turned off the oven, I would have burned the bread.
You can also use it to justify certain actions:
conditionconsequence
Wir wären pünktlich angekommen, wenn es nicht so viel Stau gegeben hätte!
We would have arrived on time if there hadn't been so much traffic!
Lastly, you can use this type to criticize someone:
conditionconsequence
Wenn du mich nicht dauernd geärgert hättest, würde ich dich jetzt auch spielen lassen!
If you hadn’t been constantly teasing me, I’d let you play now, too!
Other ways to introduce a conditional clause
In the sections above, we saw that you can introduce a conditional clause using wenn and falls. Let’s look at some of the other words and phrases you can use:
‘Es sei denn’ (unless)
We use es sei denn in German like you would use “unless” in English: to describe a situation that will prevent the consequence, rather than one that will lead to it. We generally use this in type 1 conditionals.
consequencecondition
Wir gehen morgen die Filmpremiere schauen, es sei denn, der Film ist ausverkauft.
We’re going to see the movie premiere tomorrow, unless it’s sold out.
Notice that this has the same meaning as negating the condition in a normal type 1 conditional sentence:
consequencecondition
Wir gehen morgen die Filmpremiere schauen, falls der Film nicht ausverkauft ist.
We’re going to see the movie premiere tomorrow, if it’s not sold out.
However, unlike wenn and falls, which introduce subordinate clauses, the phrase es sei denn introduces an independent clause This means that:
The verb in the conditional clause comes in second position, not the end.
When using this phrase, the conditional will always come after the consequence.
The longer phrase es sei denn, dass… does introduce a subordinate clause, so if you extend the phrase, the verb will come at the end. This phrase should still always be used after the consequence clause, though!
consequencecondition
Wir gehen morgen die Filmpremiere schauen, es sei denn, dass der Film ausverkauft ist.
We're going to see the movie premiere tomorrow, unless it's sold out.
‘Vorausgesetzt’ (provided that)
You can also use the word vorausgesetzt(provided that) between the two clauses of a type 1 conditional, when the condition comes second. This is most common in written German, but can also be done in spoken language. Both the conditional clause and the consequence form independent clauses:
consequencecondition
Die Reisegruppe kommt um 17 Uhr an, vorausgesetzt, der Zug ist pünktlich.
The tour group arrives at 5 p.m., provided that the train is on time.
While less common, it is grammatically correct to place the condition first. Note that when this takes place, the condition acts like a subordinate clause. Look at the position of the underlined verbs!
conditionconsequence
Vorausgesetzt der Zug ist pünktlich, kommt die Reisegruppe um 17 Uhr an.
Provided the train is on time, the tour group will arrive at 5 pm.
The modal verb ‘sollen’
You can form a type 1 conditional clause by using the modal verb sollen(should) in its subjunctive II form instead of the conjunctions wenn or falls. Compare the following two sentences:
conditionconsequence
Wenn es morgen regnet, nehmen wir den Bus.
If it rains, we will take the bus.
Sollte es morgen regnen, nehmen wir den Bus.
Should it rain, we will take the bus.
Did you notice that the word order stays the same? The only difference is that the verb at the end of the conditional clause is in its dictionary form since it appears together with a modal verb. Although the order of the conditional phrase and the main clause can be switched, it is more typical for the condition to occur first when sollen is used.
Using no conjunction
As we saw above, it’s possible to use word order change rather than a conjunction to introduce the conditional clause. Just start the clause with a verb!
You can use this word order change with any type of conditional, but the condition has to stand before the consequence. In a conditional sentence without a conjunction, you can (but you don’t have to) insert so or dann both meaning “then,” after the comma.
conditionconsequence
Gibt es zu viel Stau, (so / dann) drehen wir um.
If there is too much traffic, we will turn around.
lit. Gives it too much traffic, (then) we turn around.
Könnte ich mehr schlafen, (so / dann) wäre ich weniger müde.
Could I sleep more, (then) I would be less tired.
Hättet ihr uns angerufen, wären wir gekommen.
Had you called us, we would have come.
If the conditional clause comes after the consequence, wenn or falls cannot be omitted:
consequencecondition
✅Wir kommen, wenn ihr uns anruft.
❌Wir kommen, ihr uns anruft.
Summary
In this article, we looked at the use of conditional clauses in German. The main types of conditionals are summarized in this handy table:
| indicative (present tense) | indicative (present or future tense) |
| | |
| | past subjunctive II / present subjunctive II |
Remember, also, these points about conjunctions:
You can use wenn(if) to introduce the condition in any type of conditional clause.
You can use falls(if) to introduce the condition in type 1 conditionals.
In any type of conditional you can skip the conjunction, but start the conditional with the verb.
You can use other phrases like, es sei denn(unless), vorausgesetzt(provided that) or the modal verb sollen(should) in type 1 conditionals, but these have some special grammar rules to remember.
Ready to take on German conditional clauses like a pro? Let's get conditional-ing! Don't worry — just solve our German conditional exercises and condition yourself to succeed!
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