When adding multiple details to a German sentence—such as when, why, how, and where an action happens—they usually go in the middle of the sentence (the Mittelfeld).
To keep this information organized, German uses a strict default word order known by the acronym TeKaMoLo.
The TeKaMoLo Rule
The acronym stands for four types of adverbial phrases, in the exact order they should appear:
- Temporal (Time): When? or How often? (e.g., morgen, heute)
- Kausal (Cause): Why? (e.g., wegen des Sturms, sicherheitshalber)
- Modal (Manner): How? (e.g., sicher, zusammen)
- Lokal (Place): Where? or Where to? (e.g., im Hafen, auf das Deck)
Notice how the adverbs in this example are perfectly sequenced between the conjugated verb (muss) and the infinitive at the end (ankern):
| The cruise ship must anchor safely in the port tomorrow because of the storm. | Das Kreuzfahrtschiff muss morgen wegen des Sturms sicher im Hafen ankern. |
The sequence is exactly TeKaMoLo:
- Time: morgen
- Cause: wegen des Sturms
- Manner: sicher
- Place: im Hafen
This rule applies to all sentences, including those with separable verbs:
| The cruise ship is sailing slowly into the port at a quarter to eight for safety reasons. | Das Kreuzfahrtschiff fährt um Viertel vor acht sicherheitshalber langsam in den Hafen. |
| The shore excursion is taking place on schedule in the city today despite the rain. | Der Landgang findet heute trotz des Regens planmäßig in der Stadt statt. |
(Note: If a sentence doesn't need all four types of information, simply skip the missing ones and keep the rest in their relative TeKaMoLo sequence.)
The TeKaMoLo logic strictly dictates the flow even with longer adverbial phrases, such as using vor der Ankunft (before arrival) instead of a single word:
| We are putting the tools onto the deck together for safety reasons before the arrival. | Wir legen das Werkzeug vor der Ankunft sicherheitshalber zusammen auf das Deck. |