Breakdown of Er lebt, als ob er ein Millionär wäre.
sein
to be
ein
a, an (eine)
er
he
leben
to live (be alive, exist)
der Millionär
the millionaire
als ob
as if
Questions & Answers about Er lebt, als ob er ein Millionär wäre.
Why do we use wäre instead of ist here?
The phrase als ob (as if) sets up an unreal comparison, which is a hypothetical situation. Because he isn't actually a millionaire, we must use the Konjunktiv II form wäre instead of the normal present tense ist. This is very similar to English, where we use the subjunctive to say as if he were instead of as if he is.
Why is wäre at the very end of the sentence?
The phrase als ob acts as a subordinating conjunction. This means it kicks the conjugated verb—in this case, wäre—all the way to the end of its clause.
Why is it ein Millionär and not einen Millionär?
Even though it comes after the subject, ein Millionär is in the nominative case, not the accusative. This is because the verb sein (here in its Konjunktiv II form, wäre) acts like an equal sign linking the subject to a noun, rather than an action happening to a direct object.
Can I say this without the ob?
Yes, but it changes the word order! If you drop ob and just use als (as if), the conjugated verb moves right next to als. The sentence would then be: Er lebt, als wäre er ein Millionär. Both versions are very common and mean the exact same thing.
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