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Questions & Answers about Kommunikation ist wichtig.
Why is Kommunikation capitalized in German?
All German nouns are capitalized, whether they appear at the beginning of a sentence or not. Kommunikation is a noun meaning “communication,” so it always starts with a capital letter.
Why is there no article before Kommunikation?
When you refer to a concept in general—as an uncountable or abstract idea—German often omits the article. Saying Kommunikation ist wichtig expresses the general truth “communication is important.” You could add a definite article for specificity (Die Kommunikation ist wichtig), but it shifts the meaning to “the communication” you have in mind.
What does ist mean, and why is it used here?
ist is the third-person singular present form of the verb sein (“to be”). Here it functions as a linking verb (copula) that connects the subject Kommunikation to the adjective wichtig, forming a predicative construction.
What part of speech is wichtig?
wichtig is an adjective meaning “important.” In this sentence, it’s used predicatively (after sein) to describe the subject.
Why doesn’t wichtig take an ending like wichtig**e?
Predicative adjectives in German (those that follow verbs like sein, bleiben or werden) remain in their base form and do not take adjective endings. You only inflect adjectives attributively (e.g., eine wichtige Nachricht).
Why is the word order subject–verb–adjective? Does it always stay like that?
In a declarative main clause, German uses the V2 rule: the finite verb (ist) must appear in the second position. Here the subject (Kommunikation) is first and ist is second, followed by wichtig. You could front other elements (e.g., Heute ist Kommunikation wichtig), but ist would still occupy slot two.
Can I strengthen the sentence with sehr? How would I do that?
Yes. To add emphasis, insert sehr before wichtig:
Kommunikation ist sehr wichtig.
You can also use other adverbs of degree like absolut, besonders, or extrem.
Can I say Die Kommunikation ist wichtig instead?
Absolutely. Adding the definite article die makes it specific: “The communication is important.” Without the article, it’s a general statement about the concept of communication.
What’s the difference between Kommunikation (noun) and kommunizieren (verb)?
Kommunikation is the noun “communication.” kommunizieren is the corresponding verb “to communicate.” In German, many nouns ending in -tion come from verbs ending in -ieren (e.g., korrigieren → Korrektur).