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Separable verbs
Some verbs contain a detachable prefix. In an ordinary present-tense statement, conjugate the main part in position two and send the prefix to the end. Anrufen becomes “ich rufe … an”; einkaufen becomes “ich kaufe … ein”. With a modal, the full infinitive stays together at the end.
Who → verb stem → rest → prefix
Ich rufe morgen an.
I will call tomorrow.
Heute kaufe ich ein.
Today I am doing the shopping.
Source & sentence patterns
University of Texas · separable verbs
- Verb position
- Who → verb → rest
- Time first
- Time → verb → who → rest
- Modal verbs
- Who → modal → rest → infinitive
- Separable verbs
- Who → verb stem → rest → prefix
- Sentence brackets
- First element → conjugated verb → middle → final verb part
- The spoken past
- Who → haben / sein → rest → past participle