German Subordinate Clauses

Nebensätze

Subordinate clauses are dependent clauses that cannot stand alone. In German, the verb moves to the end of the clause.

Subordinate Clause Examples

Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich krank bin.I stay at home because I am sick.

Er sagt, dass er müde ist.He says that he is tired.

Ich komme, wenn ich Zeit habe.I come if I have time.

Common Mistakes

Subordinate clauses are one of the most common sources of word order errors.

Forgetting verb-final position.
Using V2 word order inside subordinate clauses.
Missing commas between clauses.
Mixing clause types incorrectly.

Main Clause vs Subordinate Clause

German distinguishes clearly between independent and dependent clauses through word order.

Type	Structure	Example
Main clause	Verb second (V2)	Ich gehe nach Hause.
Subordinate clause	Verb final	weil ich nach Hause gehe
Combined	Main + Subordinate	Ich gehe nach Hause, weil ich müde bin.

Questions to Ask Yourself

Before forming a sentence, check structure rules.

Is this a main or subordinate clause?
Do I need verb-final order?
Which conjunction am I using?
Should I invert main clause order?
Am I stacking multiple clauses correctly?

What Are Subordinate Clauses?

Subordinate clauses are dependent clauses that provide additional information and must be connected to a main clause. They cannot stand alone as a sentence.

Example Sentences

Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich krank bin.I stay at home because I am sick.

Weil es regnet, nehme ich einen Regenschirm mit.Because it is raining, I take an umbrella.

Er sagt, dass er keine Zeit hat.He says that he has no time.

Ich weiß, dass du recht hast.I know that you are right.

Wenn ich Zeit habe, komme ich vorbei.If I have time, I will come by.

Common Sentence Patterns

Ich gehe, weil ich müde bin.I go because I am tired.Main + Subordinate (weil)

Weil ich müde bin, gehe ich.Because I am tired, I go.Subordinate + Main

Ich denke, dass er kommt.I think that he is coming.Main + dass-clause

Ich weiß, dass er kommt, weil er Zeit hat.I know that he is coming because he has time.

Er sagt, dass er bleibt, weil es regnet.He says that he is staying because it is raining.

Ich glaube, dass sie kommt, wenn sie fertig ist.I think that she will come when she is ready.

Conjunction	Meaning	Example
weil	because	weil ich müde bin
dass	that	dass er kommt
wenn	if / when	wenn es regnet
ob	whether	ob er kommt
obwohl	although	obwohl es regnet
damit	so that	damit ich lerne

Weil ich müde bin, gehe ich nach Hause.Because I am tired, I go home.

Wenn es regnet, bleibe ich zu Hause.If it rains, I stay at home.

Obwohl er krank ist, arbeitet er.Although he is sick, he works.

Ich gehe schlafen, weil ich müde bin.I go to sleep because I am tired.

Wir bleiben hier, weil es regnet.We stay here because it is raining.

Sie sagt, dass sie kommt.She says that she is coming.

weil ich krank binbecause I am sick

dass er kommtthat he is coming

wenn ich Zeit habeif I have time

Verb-Final Rule

In subordinate clauses, the conjugated verb is placed at the very end of the clause.

Stacking Multiple Clauses

German allows multiple subordinate clauses in one sentence.

Main clause follows V2 rule.
Subordinate clause pushes verb to the end.
Comma separates main and subordinate clauses.
Conjunction determines clause type.

Sentence Structure Rules

Inversion After Subordinate Clauses

When a subordinate clause comes first, the main clause follows with inverted word order.

Subordinating Conjunctions

These words introduce subordinate clauses and force verb-final order.