Breakdown of Die Mauer wurde gebaut, obwohl niemand sie wollte.
sie
she
wollen
to want
bauen
to build
niemand
no one
obwohl
although
werden
to be (passive auxiliary + past participle)
die Mauer
the wall (exterior, brick or stone)
Questions & Answers about Die Mauer wurde gebaut, obwohl niemand sie wollte.
How does the passive voice work in wurde gebaut?
This is the passive voice in the simple past (Präteritum). To form it, we use the simple past of werden (which is wurde for a singular subject like die Mauer) plus the past participle of the main verb (gebaut). It focuses on the action of the wall being built.
Why do we use wurde instead of war?
Using wurde gebaut focuses on the action or process of building. If you said Die Mauer war gebaut, it would focus on the finished state (meaning the wall was already standing there), which is a different type of passive.
Why is the verb wollte at the very end of the sentence?
The word obwohl (although) is a subordinating conjunction. It introduces a dependent clause, which forces the conjugated verb (in this case, the simple past modal verb wollte) to move to the very end of the clause.
Does sie mean 'they' or 'she' in this context?
Actually, it translates to 'it'. In German, pronouns must match the grammatical gender of the noun they replace. Because die Mauer (the wall) is a feminine noun, you use the feminine pronoun sie to refer back to it.
Learn Die Mauer wurde gebaut, obwohl niemand sie wollte 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