Language/German/Grammar/Using-Time-Expressions

German Grammar → Time and Temporal Prepositions → Using Time Expressions

As a continuation of our German grammar lessons, we will now focus on an essential aspect of language usage: time expressions. In this lesson, you will learn how to use time expressions with verbs and other sentence elements. This knowledge will allow you to effectively communicate time-related information in German.

Time Expressions

When speaking or writing in German, it is crucial to be able to accurately convey the time at which an action occurs. Time expressions are used to indicate the time of day, week, month, year, or any other unit of time in relation to verb usage. The most common time expressions include:

• heute (today)
• morgen (tomorrow)
• gestern (yesterday)
• in der Nacht (at night)
• am Morgen (in the morning)
• am Nachmittag (in the afternoon)
• am Abend (in the evening)
• die Woche (the week)
• der Monat (the month)
• das Jahr (the year)

It is essential to understand which preposition to use with the time expression to make a grammatically correct sentence. For example:

• Ich gehe am Montag in die Schule. (I go to school on Monday.) Here, we use the preposition "am" to indicate the time on the specific day.

Time Expressions with Verbs

In German, time expressions are used with verbs to create meaningful sentences. These expressions can come at the beginning, middle or end of a sentence. Let's look at some examples:

• Heute bringe ich die Kinder zur Schule. (Today I am taking the children to school.)
• Am Wochenende gehen wir in die Berge. (On the weekend we go to the mountains.)
• Gestern habe ich viel gearbeitet. (Yesterday I worked a lot.)
• Im Sommer fahren wir immer ans Meer. (In the summer we always go to the seaside.)

Notice how the time expression corresponds to the function of the verb in each sentence. This clarity makes it easier to use time expressions effectively to convey time-related information in German.

Practice

Here are some exercises to put your new knowledge of time expressions to use:

1. Auf welchen Tag freust du dich am meisten im Jahr? (What day are you most looking forward to in the year?) 2. Was machst du heute Abend? (What are you doing tonight?) 3. Welchen Tag haben wir gestern? (What day was yesterday?) 4. Wann stehst du normalerweise auf? (What time do you usually wake up?) 5. Bist du am Wochenende viel beschäftigt? (Are you busy on the weekend?)

Sources

• German Grammar
• German Verbs

Table of Contents - German Course - 0 to A1

• Course Presentation

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Basic Sentence Structures

• Subject and Verb
• Noun and Gender

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Greetings and Introduction

• Greetings and Goodbyes
• Introducing Yourself

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Definite and Indefinite Articles

• Gender and Articles
• Plural Forms
• Cases: Nominative and Accusative

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Numbers, Dates and Time

• Numbers 1-100
• Days of the Week and Months
• Telling Time

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Verbs and Conjugation

• Verb Forms
• Present Tense
• Separable Verbs

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Family and Friends

• Family Members
• Talking About Your Friends

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Prepositions

• Using Prepositions
• Two-Way Prepositions

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Food and Drinks

• Food and Meals
• Drinks and Beverages

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Germany and German-Speaking Countries

• Geography and Landmarks
• Cuisine and Traditions

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Pronouns and Possessives

• Personal Pronouns
• Possessive Pronouns

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Travel and Transportation

• Booking a Trip
• Public Transportation

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Modal Verbs

• Expressing Abilities
• Talking About Obligations

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Shopping and Clothes

• Shopping for Clothes
• Buying Groceries

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Music and Entertainment

• Popular Musicians and Genres
• Movies, TV and Literature

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Adjectives

• Descriptive Adjectives
• Comparative and Superlative Forms

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Health and Body

• Talking About Health
• Body Parts

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Time and Temporal Prepositions

• Using Time Expressions
• Temporal Prepositions