Punjab PSEB Matric German key terms

The German case used for the direct object of a verb or after certain prepositions such as durch, für, gegen, ohne and um. It changes mainly masculine articles: der becomes den.

The German case marking an indirect object, a beneficiary, or the object of prepositions like mit, nach, bei, seit, von and zu. All articles change, for example der becomes dem.

Changing a verb so it matches its subject in person and number, as in ich gehe, du gehst, er geht. Regular verbs keep the same stem; strong verbs may change their stem vowel.

The compound past tense formed with haben or sein plus the past participle, used mainly in spoken German and informal writing. Example: Ich habe gestern Fußball gespielt.

The simple past tense of German verbs, formed with one word such as ging or sprach. It appears mostly in written stories and with sein, haben and modal verbs.

The past participle of a verb, used to build the Perfekt and passive forms. Regular verbs take ge- and -t (gemacht); strong verbs often take ge- and -en (gesehen).

A helping verb used together with a main verb. Haben and sein form the Perfekt; werden forms the future and the passive voice in German sentences.

A verb such as können, müssen, dürfen, sollen, wollen or mögen that expresses ability, necessity, permission or wish. It sends the main verb to the end of the sentence as an infinitive.

The order of words in a German sentence. In a main clause the finite verb stands in second position; in a subordinate clause introduced by a conjunction it moves to the end.

A joining word that links words or clauses, for example und, aber, oder, weil, dass and wenn. Coordinating ones keep normal order; subordinating ones send the verb to the end.

A dependent clause that cannot stand alone and has its conjugated verb at the very end. It is often introduced by weil, dass, wenn or ob, as in Ich weiß, dass er krank ist.

A short word such as in, auf, mit or für that links a noun to the rest of the sentence and decides which case the noun takes, for example mit dem Bus (dative).

The placement of subject, verb and objects in a statement or question. In yes/no questions the verb comes first; in W-questions the question word comes first, then the verb.

A question beginning with an interrogative word such as wer, was, wo, wann, warum or wie. The question word takes first position and the verb follows immediately in second position.

A question that expects the answer ja or nein and starts with the conjugated verb, as in Kommst du morgen? The subject follows the verb directly.

The skill of understanding spoken German, such as short announcements, dialogues or telephone messages, and extracting details like time, place, price or speaker intention.

A spoken public announcement, for example at a station or airport, giving information about trains, gates or delays. Listeners must pick out the key facts quickly.

A listening exercise in which a text is read aloud and the learner writes it down. It tests spelling, capitalisation of nouns, punctuation and careful listening.

The way words are spoken. German features clear vowels, the ich- and ach-sounds, and final devoicing, so Tag sounds like Tak at the end of a word.

The stress placed on a syllable in a spoken word or on a word in a sentence. Correct stress helps listeners understand meaning, especially in long compound nouns.

The 26 basic letters of German plus the special characters ä, ö, ü and ß. Learners need it to spell names, fill in forms and understand letter-by-letter instructions.

The skill of reading German texts such as notices, emails, advertisements or short articles and answering questions about their main idea and specific details.

The type or genre of a text, for example Brief, E-Mail, Anzeige, Speisekarte or Zeitungsartikel. Recognising it helps readers predict content and register.

The title printed above a text. It usually summarises the topic and helps readers decide what the text is about before reading the details.

Correct spelling according to German rules. It includes capitalising all nouns, writing umlauts properly, and applying rules for ß and double consonants.

A short piece of connected writing on a given topic, such as a description of a person, a report about a trip or an opinion paragraph, organised into clear paragraphs.

A written message with a formal layout: place and date, greeting, body text, closing formula and signature. Formal letters use Sie; personal letters use du.

The words used to address someone in speech or writing. German distinguishes informal du and ihr from polite Sie, and this choice affects verb forms throughout.

Politeness in language, shown through words like bitte, danke, Entschuldigung and the polite form Sie. It matters in shops, offices and any conversation with strangers.

The words and gestures used when meeting someone, such as Guten Morgen, Guten Tag, Hallo or Auf Wiedersehen when leaving. The choice depends on time of day and formality.

The way of telling time in German. In everyday speech people say es ist halb drei for 2:30, and official timetables use the 24-hour form like 14:30 Uhr.

Number words from null to a million, including ordinal forms like erste and dritte. They are needed for prices, dates, telephone numbers and addresses.

The way a date is written and said in German, for example der 3. Oktober 2024, spoken as der dritte Oktober. Ordinal numbers and month names are required.

Giving or following directions, using phrases like geradeaus, links abbiegen, die zweite Straße rechts and an der Ampel vorbei. It combines prepositions with movement verbs.

A dialogue in a shop: asking for an item, stating quantity, asking the price, paying and saying goodbye. Typical phrases are Was kostet das? and Ich möchte bitte zwei Kilo Äpfel.

A group of words sharing the same root, such as fahren, die Fahrt, der Fahrer and die Fahrkarte. Learning families expands vocabulary quickly and shows word-building patterns.

A compound noun made of two or more words, such as Hausaufgabe or Bahnhof. The last part decides the gender, so die Aufgabe makes die Hausaufgabe feminine.

The grammatical gender of a noun: masculine, feminine or neuter, shown by der, die or das. Gender must be learned with each noun because it is often not predictable.

A word expressing an action or state, such as gehen, sein or haben. It carries the sentence and must be conjugated to agree with the subject.