German Grammar A–Z
Look up German grammar topics A–Z, organized by category and level — with clear explanations and examples.
Main Clauses vs. Subordinate Clauses (Hauptsatz / Nebensatz)
In German there are two types of sentences that are used most often, namely Hauptsatz and Nebensatz, also called the main clause and the subordinate clause.
Ex: Heute gehe ich nicht zur Schule, weil ich krank bin.
Hauptsatz Nebensatz
So how do you distinguish the main clause from the subordinate clause? The article below will answer this question for you.
- Hauptsatz (Main clause)
A main clause is a complete sentence with a subject, a predicate and an object, and can therefore stand alone. In particular, the verb in the main clause usually stands in second position; in some cases such as yes/no questions and imperative sentences, the verb is in first position.
VD1: Meine Familie fährt im nächsten Urlaub nach Hawaii.
Ex2: Gib mir meine Tasche. (Imperative sentence)
VD3: Warst du gestern auf der Party? (Ja/ Nein Fragen)
- Nebensatz (Subordinate clause):
A subordinate clause must accompany a main clause, and the two clauses are separated by a comma „“. The subordinate clause is used to modify the main clause. In particular, the verb in the subordinate clause always stands at the end of the clause.
VD1: Ich mache mir Sorgen, ob er zu spät zum Treffen kommt. (I am worried whether he will be late for the meeting.)
→ In the example above, the subordinate clause that follows is used to modify the main clause. The main clause and the subordinate clause are separated by the Konjunktion (conjunction) ob.
VD2: Wenn du diese Prüfung passen wollst, sollst du fleißiger lernen. (If you want to pass this exam, you need to study harder.)
→ In the sentence above, the main clause and the subordinate clause have swapped positions; when the main clause comes after the subordinate clause, the verb in the main clause stands in 1st position. The two clauses are separated by a comma „,“ and the word Wenn here has the character of a conditional sentence.
Forming a sentence that includes both a Hauptsatz and a Nebensatz depends on many factors, for example the cause-and-effect relationship and the Konjunktion (dass, weil, nachdem, obwwohl,...).
Ex: Ich mag Hannah sehr, weil sie sehr nettt ist. (I like Hannah very much because she is very kind.)
→ The sentence above is a cause-and-effect sentence and uses the conjunction weil.
