German Language A2 Elementary (Grundlegende Kenntnisse) Syllabus

What is the Präteritum (simple past) of sein for ich, du, er/sie/es, wir, ihr, sie/Sie?

ich war, du warst, er/sie/es war, wir waren, ihr wart, sie/Sie waren.

What is the Präteritum (simple past) of haben for all persons?

ich hatte, du hattest, er/sie/es hatte, wir hatten, ihr hattet, sie/Sie hatten.

What is the Präteritum of the modal können (all persons)?

ich konnte, du konntest, er/sie/es konnte, wir konnten, ihr konntet, sie/Sie konnten (note: no umlaut in the past).

Give the Präteritum ich-forms of the modals müssen, dürfen, wollen, sollen, and mögen.

müssen to musste, dürfen to durfte, wollen to wollte, sollen to sollte, mögen to mochte (umlauts drop in the Präteritum).

How does a separable verb form its past participle in the Perfekt? Give an example.

The prefix is placed before ge-: aufstehen to aufgestanden, einkaufen to eingekauft, ankommen to angekommen. E.g. Ich habe eingekauft.

How does an inseparable verb (be-, ver-, er-, ent-, ge-, zer-, emp-) form its past participle?

No ge- is added: besuchen to besucht, verstehen to verstanden, erklären to erklärt, bekommen to bekommen.

In the Präteritum, how does a separable verb like 'aufstehen' behave in a main clause?

The prefix separates and goes to the end: Ich stand um 7 Uhr auf (I got up at 7). In subordinate clauses it stays together: ..., weil ich aufstand.

What are the adjective endings after a definite article (der/die/das) in the nominative singular for all three genders?

Masculine: -e (der gute Mann), Feminine: -e (die gute Frau), Neuter: -e (das gute Kind). All take -e in nominative singular.

After a definite article, what adjective ending is used in the accusative masculine singular, and why does it differ?

Accusative masculine takes -en: den guten Mann. All other definite-article forms in accusative singular keep -e (die/das gute).

After a definite article, what is the adjective ending in the dative (all genders) and in the plural (all cases)?

Dative singular all genders: -en (dem guten Mann, der guten Frau). Plural in all cases: -en (die guten Kinder, den guten Kindern).

What adjective endings follow an indefinite article (ein/eine) in the nominative singular for the three genders?

Masculine: -er (ein guter Mann), Feminine: -e (eine gute Frau), Neuter: -es (ein gutes Kind). These carry the gender signal the article lacks.

After an indefinite article, what is the adjective ending in the accusative masculine singular?

-en: einen guten Mann. Feminine (eine gute) and neuter (ein gutes) remain unchanged from nominative.

After an ein-word, what are the adjective endings in the dative singular for masculine, feminine, and neuter?

All take -en: einem guten Mann, einer guten Frau, einem guten Kind.

What adjective endings are used without any article (strong declension) in the nominative singular?

The adjective takes the ending the article would have had: guter Wein (m), gute Milch (f), gutes Bier (n).

Without an article, what adjective ending is used in the dative singular (all genders) and how does it differ from other cases?

Dative singular: -em (m/n) and -er (f): mit gutem Wein, mit guter Milch. The adjective mirrors the missing article's ending.

How are the comparative and superlative of a regular adjective like schnell formed?

Comparative: adjective + -er (schneller). Superlative: am + adjective + -sten (am schnellsten) or der/die/das ...-ste.

Give the comparative and superlative of the irregular adjectives gut, viel, and gern (hoch).

gut to besser to am besten; viel to mehr to am meisten; gern to lieber to am liebsten; hoch to höher to am höchsten.

Which short adjectives take an umlaut in the comparative and superlative? Give three examples.

Many one-syllable adjectives: alt to älter to am ältesten; jung to jünger to am jüngsten; gross to grösser to am grössten (also lang, kalt, warm, stark).

How do you express equality and inequality in comparisons (as...as / than)?

Equality: so + adjective + wie (so gross wie = as tall as). Inequality: comparative + als (grösser als = taller than).

What effect do subordinating conjunctions like weil, dass, and wenn have on word order?

They send the conjugated verb to the end of the clause: Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich krank bin.

What do the subordinating conjunctions weil, dass, and wenn mean?

weil = because (reason), dass = that (content clause), wenn = if/when/whenever (condition or repeated time).

In a subordinate clause introduced by weil, where does the conjugated verb go? Give an example.

At the very end of the clause: Ich lerne Deutsch, weil ich in Deutschland arbeiten will.

When a subordinate clause comes first in a sentence, what happens to the main clause word order?

The subordinate clause counts as position 1, so the main-clause verb comes immediately after the comma (verb-second overall): Weil ich müde bin, gehe ich ins Bett.

In a subordinate clause with a separable verb and a modal, how are the verbs ordered at the end?

The conjugated verb goes last: ..., weil ich früh aufstehen muss. The finite modal 'muss' stands at the very end, after the infinitive.

What is the difference between a causal clause and a temporal clause, and give a typical conjunction for each?

A causal clause states a reason (why), typically 'weil' or 'da'. A temporal clause states time (when), typically 'wenn', 'als', or 'während'.

What is the difference between 'wenn' and 'als' for past time reference?

'als' is used for a single, completed event in the past (Als ich jung war...); 'wenn' is used for repeated past events or present/future conditions (Immer wenn...).

Vocabulary — the body: give the German words for head, hand, eye, and foot with their articles.

der Kopf (head), die Hand (hand), das Auge (eye), der Fuss (foot). Plurals: die Hände, die Augen, die Füsse.

Health: how do you say 'I have a headache' and 'I am sick' in German?

Ich habe Kopfschmerzen (I have a headache); Ich bin krank (I am sick). At the doctor: Ich habe Halsschmerzen / Bauchschmerzen (sore throat / stomachache).

Travel and transportation: give the German words for train, plane, car, and bicycle with articles.

der Zug (train), das Flugzeug (plane), das Auto (car), das Fahrrad (bicycle). Also: der Bus, die Strassenbahn, das Schiff.

Which preposition and case are used to say you travel 'by' a means of transport, e.g. 'by train'?

Use 'mit' + dative: mit dem Zug, mit dem Bus, mit dem Auto, mit dem Fahrrad (but note: zu Fuss = on foot, without mit).

Work and professions: how do you ask 'What do you do for a living?' and state a profession in German?

Ask: Was sind Sie von Beruf? / Was machen Sie beruflich? Answer without article: Ich bin Lehrer / Ärztin / Ingenieur. Feminine often adds -in (Lehrer to Lehrerin).