German Language B2 Upper Intermediate (Selbständige Sprachverwendung) Syllabus

B2 Upper Intermediate (Selbständige Sprachverwendung) syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for B2 Upper Intermediate (Selbständige Sprachverwendung) in German Language, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Advanced Verb Tenses and Moods

   4 topics

   • Plusquamperfekt (Past Perfect)
   • Futur II
   • Konjunktiv I for Indirect Speech
   • Indirect/Reported Speech (Indirekte Rede)
2. 2

   Nominalization and Verbalization

   3 topics

   • Converting Verbs to Nouns
   • Converting Clauses to Noun Phrases
   • Functional Verb Structures (Funktionsverbgefüge)
3. 3

   Participles and Extended Modifiers

   3 topics

   • Present and Past Participles as Adjectives
   • Extended Participle Constructions (Partizipialattribute)
   • Gerundive (Gerundivum) zu + Participle
4. 4

   Connectors and Cohesion

   3 topics

   • Two-Part Connectors (entweder...oder, sowohl...als auch)
   • Adverbial Connectors (dennoch, folglich, hingegen)
   • Prepositional Phrases Replacing Clauses
5. 5

   Idiomatic and Abstract Vocabulary

   4 topics

   • Idioms and Fixed Expressions (Redewendungen)
   • Modal Particles (doch, mal, eben, ja)
   • Abstract and Academic Vocabulary
   • Synonyms and Nuance
6. 6

   Reading and Writing B2

   4 topics

   • Analyzing Newspaper and Journal Texts
   • Writing Argumentative Essays
   • Formal Letters and Complaints
   • Summarizing (Zusammenfassung)
7. 7

   Discourse and Debate B2

   3 topics

   • Structured Argumentation
   • Presentations and Public Speaking
   • Handling Disagreement Diplomatically
8. 8

   Goethe-Zertifikat B2 Exam Prep

   4 topics

   • Lesen Module
   • Hören Module
   • Schreiben Module
   • Sprechen Module

B2 Upper Intermediate (Selbständige Sprachverwendung) flashcards for German Language

23 of 50 cards from the B2 Upper Intermediate (Selbständige Sprachverwendung) deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is the Plusquamperfekt used to express, and how is it formed?

   It expresses an action completed before another past action. Formed with the past tense (Präteritum) of 'haben' or 'sein' + past participle: e.g. 'Ich hatte gegessen' (I had eaten), 'Sie war gegangen' (she had gone).

2. In a typical sentence combining Plusquamperfekt and Präteritum, which tense marks the earlier event?

   The Plusquamperfekt marks the earlier event; the Präteritum marks the later one. Often linked by 'nachdem': 'Nachdem er gegessen hatte, ging er ins Bett.'

3. How is Futur II formed and what does it express?

   Formed with 'werden' + past participle + 'haben' or 'sein' (infinitive): 'Ich werde gegessen haben.' It expresses an action that will be completed by a point in the future, or a probable past assumption.

4. Give the two main uses of Futur II with example markers.

   1) Completed future action, often with 'bis'/'bis dann': 'Bis morgen werde ich es beendet haben.' 2) Assumption about the past, often with 'wohl': 'Er wird wohl den Zug verpasst haben.'

5. What is Konjunktiv I primarily used for in German?

   For indirect speech (indirekte Rede) to report what someone said neutrally without taking a stance on its truth: 'Er sagt, er sei krank.'

6. How is the Konjunktiv I of 'sein' conjugated (all persons)?

   ich sei, du seist/seiest, er/sie/es sei, wir seien, ihr seiet, sie/Sie seien.

7. How do you form Konjunktiv I for regular verbs, using 'haben' as an example?

   Take the verb stem and add Konjunktiv endings: ich habe, du habest, er habe, wir haben, ihr habet, sie haben.

8. Why is Konjunktiv II sometimes substituted for Konjunktiv I in indirect speech?

   When the Konjunktiv I form is identical to the indicative (e.g. 'sie haben'), Konjunktiv II ('sie hätten') is used instead to keep the reported-speech meaning clear.

9. In indirect speech, how does a present-tense statement get reported?

   With Konjunktiv I (present): Direct 'Ich bin müde' becomes 'Er sagt, er sei müde.'

10. In indirect speech, how are all past tenses (Perfekt, Präteritum, Plusquamperfekt) reported?

    They collapse into the Konjunktiv I perfect (Konjunktiv der Vergangenheit): 'sei/habe + Partizip II'. E.g. 'Ich war/bin gegangen' becomes 'Er sagt, er sei gegangen.'

11. How is a direct yes/no question turned into indirect speech?

    It becomes a subordinate clause introduced by 'ob' with verb at the end in Konjunktiv: 'Kommst du?' becomes 'Er fragt, ob ich komme.'

12. How is a direct w-question (with question word) reported in indirect speech?

    The question word acts as the conjunction and the verb goes to the end in Konjunktiv: 'Wo wohnst du?' becomes 'Er fragt, wo ich wohne.'

13. What is nominalization (Nominalisierung) of a verb, and give a productive suffix?

    Turning a verb into a noun. The infinitive can become a neuter noun ('das Lesen'), or use suffix '-ung': 'informieren → die Information/die Informierung', 'lösen → die Lösung'.

14. When a verb is nominalized, what happens to its object case marking? Example with 'einen Vertrag prüfen'.

    The accusative object typically becomes a genitive attribute or a 'von'-phrase: 'einen Vertrag prüfen' → 'die Prüfung des Vertrags' / 'die Prüfung von Verträgen'.

15. How do you convert the subordinate clause 'Weil er krank war, blieb er zu Hause' into a noun phrase?

    'Wegen seiner Krankheit blieb er zu Hause.' The 'weil'-clause becomes a 'wegen' + genitive/nominal phrase.

16. Convert 'Nachdem der Film zu Ende war, gingen wir' into a prepositional noun phrase.

    'Nach dem Ende des Films gingen wir.' The temporal clause becomes 'nach' + noun phrase.

17. What is a Funktionsverbgefüge (functional verb structure)?

    A fixed combination of a semantically 'light' verb + a noun (often prepositional), where the noun carries the main meaning: 'zur Verfügung stellen', 'in Frage stellen', 'Kritik üben'.

18. Give the full-verb equivalent of the Funktionsverbgefüge 'eine Entscheidung treffen' and 'in Betracht ziehen'.

    'eine Entscheidung treffen' = 'entscheiden'; 'in Betracht ziehen' = 'berücksichtigen/erwägen'.

19. Complete these common Funktionsverbgefüge: 'zur Verfügung ___', 'in Kraft ___', 'Abschied ___'.

    'zur Verfügung stellen', 'in Kraft treten', 'Abschied nehmen'.

20. How is a present participle (Partizip I) formed, and what meaning does it carry as an adjective?

    Infinitive + '-d': 'lachen → lachend'. As an adjective it expresses an ongoing/active action, equivalent to a relative clause with 'der...gerade tut': 'das lachende Kind' = the child who is laughing.

21. What does a past participle (Partizip II) express when used as an adjective? Give an example.

    It expresses a completed or passive action: 'die geöffnete Tür' (the opened/opened-up door) = 'die Tür, die geöffnet wurde/worden ist'.

22. Compare the meaning of 'das kochende Wasser' vs 'das gekochte Ei'.

    'kochende' (Partizip I) = active/ongoing: water that is boiling. 'gekochte' (Partizip II) = passive/completed: an egg that has been boiled.

23. What is an extended participle construction (erweitertes Partizipialattribut)?

    A participle used as an adjective with its own modifiers placed between the article and the noun, replacing a relative clause: 'das gestern von ihm gelesene Buch' = 'das Buch, das gestern von ihm gelesen wurde'.

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