German grammar: Subjekt- und Objektstellung

What this grammar point covers

In German, the subject and object positions in a sentence are important for understanding who is doing what. The subject is usually the person or thing doing the action, and the object is the person or thing receiving the action.

When to use it

You use these rules in most German sentences to show who does the action and who receives it. Changing the order can change the focus or emphasis in a sentence.

Key forms

• Subject usually comes before the verb: Ich sehe den Hund.
• Object comes after the verb: Ich sehe den Hund.
• Sometimes, the object can come before the subject for emphasis: Den Hund sehe ich.

Examples

Tips

• In German, the verb is always in the second position in main sentences.
• If you start the sentence with something other than the subject, the subject usually comes right after the verb.
• Pay attention to the cases (nominative for subject, accusative/dative for objects) to understand the roles.

Exceptions and edge cases

• In subordinate clauses, the verb goes to the end, but subject and object order can still change for emphasis.
• Some verbs always take a certain case for their object (accusative or dative).