Adverbs: Time, Place and Manner
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Learn common German adverbs for time, frequency, place, direction, and manner. Practise their unchanging form, meaning, and position in a sentence.
Explanation
What are adverbs?
Adverbs specify when, how often, where, where to, where from, or how something happens. They never take an ending: heute, oft, hier, and gern remain unchanged.
| Function | Question | Examples |
|---|
| time | wann? | gestern, heute, morgen, später |
| frequency | wie oft? | immer, oft, manchmal, selten, nie |
| place | wo? | hier, dort, oben, unten, links, rechts |
| direction | wohin? | nach links, nach rechts, geradeaus |
| origin | woher? | von links, von oben, von unten |
| manner | wie? | gern, leider, anders, besonders |
| degree | how strongly / to what extent? | sehr, kaum, ein bisschen |
Time and sequence
Use zuerst, dann, danach, anschließend, zuletzt to order steps. These words can occupy the first position. The conjugated verb remains in position 2:
- Zuerst öffne ich das Fenster.
- Danach mache ich das Licht an.
- Zuletzt verlasse ich den Raum.
An adverb in first position
When an adverb occupies position 1, the conjugated verb comes immediately after it and the subject follows:
- Heute arbeitet Lina zu Hause.
- Später rufe ich dich an.
- Dort wartet der Bus.
If the subject comes first, the verb is still in position 2: Lina arbeitet heute zu Hause.
Opposites
Useful opposite pairs include oben/unten, links/rechts, früh/spät, oft/selten, sehr/kaum, and morgens/abends.
Notice the question: wo? - links; wohin? - nach links; woher? - von links.
Note: Alongside single-word adverbs, this lesson practises fixed adverbial expressions such as nach rechts and von links. They answer the same questions about direction or origin.
Exercises
- Build correct sentences. Remember that the conjugated verb occupies position 2. (11)
- Insert the suitable adverbs of time and frequency from the word bank. (10)
- Complete each sentence with the opposite of the highlighted adverb. (10)
- Turn the cue into a complete sentence using the given sequence or direction adverb. (10)
A2 · German · Grammar