German grammar by topic › Konjunktiv I and reported speech, explained

Konjunktiv I and reported speech, explained

News reports and formal writing report what someone said with the Konjunktiv I: Der Minister sagte, er sei nicht informiert worden. The form shows that the writer is passing on a claim, not stating a fact.

In everyday speech most people use the indicative or the Konjunktiv II instead, so you need the Konjunktiv I mainly to read and to write formally.

The essentials

The Konjunktiv I is built on the infinitive stem: er habe, sie komme, es gebe.
Sein is irregular in every person: ich sei, du seist, er sei, wir seien, sie seien.
Where the Konjunktiv I looks like the indicative (wir haben), the Konjunktiv II takes over: Sie sagten, sie hätten keine Zeit.
Past events: er habe gesagt, sie sei gekommen.
Reported questions use ob or a question word: Sie fragte, ob er mitkomme.

Every lesson on this topic

Each lesson has a full explanation, examples you can listen to, and exercises with answers.

B2 (the B2 course)

Konjunktiv I: reporting what someone said: Use Konjunktiv I (er sei, sie habe, man wisse) to report other people's words neutrally, as newspapers and reports do.
Reported questions, requests and the switch to Konjunktiv II: Report questions with ob or a question word, commands with sollen or mögen, and use Konjunktiv II when Konjunktiv I looks like the indicative.

C1 (the C1 course)

Konjunktiv I in news and academic writing: How written German keeps reported claims at a distance, across whole paragraphs, without repeating 'he said'.

In the app, these lessons are taught one idea at a time with audio, practised with questions that explain the rule when you slip, and brought back for review on later days.

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Konjunktiv I and reported speech, explained

The essentials

Every lesson on this topic

B2 (the B2 course)

C1 (the C1 course)

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