The Simple Past of Modal Verbs
When talking about the past in German, you usually use the spoken past (Perfekt). However, modal verbs are a major exception! For modal verbs, Germans strongly prefer the simple past (Präteritum) even in everyday, casual conversations.
To form the simple past of a modal verb, two things happen:
- If the verb normally has an umlaut (ä, ö, ü), it loses it in the past tense.
- A -t- is added before the ending.
Here is the complete simple past conjugation. Notice that the ich and er/sie/es forms are always identical:
| Modal Verb | ich / er/sie/es | du | wir / sie/Sie | ihr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| wollen (wanted to) | wollte | wolltest | wollten | wolltet |
| können (could) | konnte | konntest | konnten | konntet |
| müssen (had to) | musste | musstest | mussten | musstet |
| dürfen (was allowed to) | durfte | durftest | durften | durftet |
| sollen (was supposed to) | sollte | solltest | sollten | solltet |
Sentence structure remains exactly the same as in the present tense: the modal verb takes the second position, and the main verb gets pushed to the very end of the sentence in its infinitive form.
Intentions and Abilities
Use wollte to talk about past plans, desires, or intentions, and konnte for past abilities (what someone could or was able to do).
| In my childhood, I always wanted to live abroad. | In meiner Kindheit wollte ich immer im Ausland leben. |
| She wanted to get her driver's license, but she couldn't buy the car. | Sie wollte den Führerschein machen, aber sie konnte das Auto nicht kaufen. |
| I wanted to pass the exam without help, but I couldn't. | Ich wollte die Prüfung ohne Hilfe schaffen, aber ich konnte es nicht. |
Permissions and Obligations
Use durfte to talk about past permissions (what someone was allowed to do), and musste for historical obligations (what someone had to do).
| My father is very strict. In the past, I was never allowed to go out late. | Mein Vater ist sehr streng. Früher durfte ich nie spät ausgehen. |
| In my childhood, I often had to clean the kitchen. | In meiner Kindheit musste ich oft die Küche putzen. |
Expectations in the Past
Use sollte to express that someone was supposed to do something.
(Note: *sollte is also the exact same form used for giving present-tense advice, translating to "should". You will usually be able to tell from the context whether it means "should" or "was supposed to".)*
| He was supposed to study abroad, but he had to start an apprenticeship. | Er sollte im Ausland studieren, aber er musste eine Ausbildung anfangen. |
| We were supposed to do the project, so we had to work together. | Wir sollten das Projekt machen, also mussten wir zusammen arbeiten. |
