Breakdown of Das Wetter war total schlecht.
sein
to be
das Wetter
the weather
schlecht
bad
total
totally, completely
Questions & Answers about Das Wetter war total schlecht.
How could I add an attitude adverb like unglücklicherweise (unfortunately) to this sentence?
You can place it right after the verb: Das Wetter war unglücklicherweise total schlecht. You could also put it at the very beginning for emphasis, which pushes the subject after the verb: Unglücklicherweise war das Wetter total schlecht.
Could I say totalerweise instead of just total?
No. The suffix -weise is added to adjectives to express a speaker's attitude or opinion about the whole sentence (like glücklicherweise for 'fortunately'). The word total in this sentence just describes the intensity of how bad the weather was, so it acts as a simple adverb and does not take a suffix.
Why doesn't schlecht get an adjective ending here?
Because it comes after the verb war and describes the subject, making it a predicate adjective. In German, adjectives only get endings when they are placed directly in front of the noun they describe, rather than later in the sentence.
Learn Das Wetter war total schlecht 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