German grammar lessons › Level B2 › German modal verbs

Modal verbs for likelihood and claims

Use muss, dürfte, kann, könnte for how sure you are, and soll and will for claims: Er soll reich sein, Sie will ihn gesehen haben.

Part of the free B2 German course. Press the speaker next to an example to hear it.

Modal verbs don't only express obligation and ability. They can also show how sure the speaker is that something is true, or whose claim it is. This is called the subjective use of modal verbs.

How sure are you?

Modal	Certainty	Example	Meaning
muss	almost certain	Er muss krank sein.	He must be ill.
dürfte	probable	Er dürfte krank sein.	He's probably ill.
kann	possible	Er kann krank sein.	He may be ill.
könnte	maybe	Er könnte krank sein.	He might be ill.
kann nicht	impossible	Er kann nicht krank sein.	He can't be ill.

werden + wohl (Guesses with werden: Er wird wohl krank sein; Futur II) also expresses an assumption, roughly between dürfte and muss.

Whose claim?

Modal	Who says so	Example	Meaning
soll	other people, reports	Er soll sehr reich sein.	He is said to be very rich.
will	the subject about themselves	Er will sehr reich sein.	He claims to be very rich.

Er will sehr reich sein can also mean he wants to be rich; context decides. With a past infinitive (gesehen haben) only the claim meaning is possible.

Talking about the past

For a guess or claim about the past, keep the modal in the present and use the past infinitive: participle + haben or sein.

Er muss den Zug verpasst haben. He must have missed the train.
Sie soll in Wien gewesen sein. She is said to have been in Vienna.

Das Licht brennt noch, Herr Schmidt muss noch im Büro sein.The light is still on, Mr Schmidt must still be in the office.
Sie kann den Brief noch nicht bekommen haben.She can't have received the letter yet.
Der neue Film soll sehr gut sein.The new film is supposed to be very good.
Er will den Unfall genau gesehen haben.He claims to have seen the accident clearly.
Das dürfte etwa zweihundert Euro kosten.That will probably cost about two hundred euros.
Anna könnte den Schlüssel im Auto vergessen haben.Anna might have left the key in the car.
Die Straße ist nass, es muss geregnet haben.The street is wet, it must have rained.
Der Täter soll ins Ausland geflohen sein.The perpetrator is said to have fled abroad.

Er hat krank sein müssen is not a guess: it means he had to be ill (an obligation). For he must have been ill say Er muss krank gewesen sein.

Common mistakes

~~Er muss krank gewesen haben.~~ sein forms its perfect with sein: Er muss krank gewesen sein.
~~Er soll den Unfall gesehen haben~~ when he himself says so: that's will: Er will den Unfall gesehen haben.
~~Er muss nicht zu Hause sein~~ for he can't be at home: muss nicht means doesn't have to. Say Er kann nicht zu Hause sein.
~~Er musste den Zug verpasst haben.~~ For a present guess about the past, the modal stays in the present: Er muss den Zug verpasst haben.

Practice

Jonas ist nicht im Kurs. Er _____ krank sein, er fehlt sonst nie.
He must be ill, he never misses class otherwise.
Options: muss · soll · will · darf
Show the answer
muss — Almost certain conclusion from evidence: muss.
In der Zeitung steht, der Sänger _____ heimlich geheiratet haben.
According to the paper, the singer is said to have married in secret.
Options: soll · will · muss · darf
Show the answer
soll — A claim made by others (here, the paper): soll.
Mein Nachbar behauptet, er habe einen Bären gesehen. → Mein Nachbar _____ einen Bären gesehen haben.
Options: will · soll · muss · darf
Show the answer
will — The subject makes the claim about himself: will.
Die Straße ist gesperrt, es muss ein Unfall passiert _____.
The road is closed, there must have been an accident.
Show the answer
sein — passieren forms its perfect with sein: passiert sein.

In the app, this lesson is taught one idea at a time with the examples read aloud, followed by questions that explain the rule when you get one wrong. It then comes back for review on later days, until you've answered it correctly on three separate days.

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