Breakdown of Sie wollte den Führerschein machen, aber sie konnte das Auto nicht kaufen.
sie
she
machen
to make, to do
kaufen
to buy
das Auto
the car
aber
but
nicht
not
können
can / to be able to
wollen
to want
der Führerschein
the driver's license
Questions & Answers about Sie wollte den Führerschein machen, aber sie konnte das Auto nicht kaufen.
Why use wollte and konnte instead of the spoken past (Perfekt) tense?
Even in casual spoken German, where you normally use the Perfekt tense (with haben or sein) for past events, native speakers strongly prefer the simple past (Präteritum) for modal verbs. Saying sie wollte (she wanted) sounds much more natural than the Perfekt form sie hat gewollt.
Why did können lose its umlaut when it became konnte?
When forming the simple past (Präteritum) of modal verbs, you always drop the umlaut from the stem. So können becomes konnte, müssen becomes musste, and dürfen becomes durfte.
Why does the sentence use machen (to make/do) instead of a word for 'get'?
In English, you 'get' a driver's license, but in German, the standard phrase is den Führerschein machen. You will often see machen used in German for completing courses, passing tests, or earning certificates.
Why is the verb konnte in the second position after aber? Doesn't aber push the verb to the end?
No, words like aber (but), und (and), and oder (or) are coordinating conjunctions, which sit in 'position zero'. They connect two main clauses without counting as the first element in the new sentence. Therefore, the subject sie takes position 1, and the conjugated verb konnte stays in its normal spot at position 2.
Learn Sie wollte den Führerschein machen, aber sie konnte das Auto nicht kaufen and more in German
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free