GrammarA2· Ankommen

als oder wenn?

als and wenn: 'when' in the past

Kartoffel · your teacher

Hi! Let's look at this one together — step by step, no rush.

From what you know

Ich war zehn. Wir sind umgezogen.Als ich zehn war, sind wir umgezogen.

6 parts · about 5 min

1What & when

In one line

als: one moment or period in the past. wenn: every time, now or later.

Before

Ich bin in Hamburg angekommen. Es hat geregnet.

Watch the sentence change …

One moment in the past: als. Its verb bin goes to the end. The starts with its verb: hat es.

„Als ich in Hamburg angekommen bin, hat es geregnet.“ — When I arrived in Hamburg, it was raining.

Kartoffel

First, what is it?

English has one word, 'when'. German has two: als and wenn. Use als for one moment or one period in the past. Use wenn for things that happen again and again, and for now and the future. Both start a (a clause that can't stand alone). So the verb goes to the end.

Kartoffel

And when do you need it? More often than you'd think:

AnkommenYou need both when you tell your story: – –

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