Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden.

The course can be booked online.

Breakdown of Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden.

• können: can
• online: online
• der Kurs: the course
• gebucht werden: to be booked

Questions & Answers about Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden.

What is the overall grammatical structure of Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden?

This is a passive voice sentence with a modal verb in the present tense.

• Der Kurs – subject (nominative)
• kann – modal verb (können, 3rd person singular)
• online – adverb
• gebucht – past participle of buchen (“to book”)
• werden – infinitive of werden, used to form the passive

So the structure is: Subject + conjugated modal + (adverb) + past participle + werden.
Meaning: “The course can be booked online.”

Why is werden at the very end of the sentence?

In German main clauses, the conjugated verb goes in second position, and any other verb forms (infinitives or participles) go to the end of the clause.

Here, kann is the conjugated verb (modal, present, 3rd person singular), so it takes position 2.
The passive is built with werden + past participle, but because a modal is present, werden has to appear as an infinitive at the end:

• Without modal, passive: Der Kurs wird online gebucht.
• With modal, passive: Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden.

Why is it Der Kurs and not Den Kurs?

Because in the passive voice, the logical object of the action becomes the grammatical subject and therefore takes the nominative case.

• Active: Jemand bucht den Kurs online.
  
  • den Kurs = accusative object
• Passive: Der Kurs wird online gebucht.
  
  • Der Kurs = subject in the nominative

In Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden, Der Kurs is the subject in the nominative, so the article must be der, not den.

What exactly does the passive here express compared to an active sentence?

Passive focuses on the action and the thing affected, not on who does it.

• Passive: Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden.
  Focus: The course & the possibility of booking it online.
• Active (more explicit): Man kann den Kurs online buchen.
  Focus: What people (general “one/you”) can do.

English often uses the passive in the same way: “The course can be booked online” avoids mentioning who does the booking.

What is the difference between Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden and Man kann den Kurs online buchen?

Both mean essentially the same thing in practice: the course is available for online booking.

• Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden.

  • Passive
  • More neutral and formal
  • Focus on the course

• Man kann den Kurs online buchen.

  • Active with impersonal man (“one”, “you”, “people”)
  • Slightly more conversational
  • Focus on what people can do

Both are correct; style and context decide which is more natural.

Why is it gebucht werden and not wird gebucht?

wird gebucht is the normal passive in the present tense without a modal:

• Der Kurs wird online gebucht. – “The course is (being) booked online.”

When a modal verb (like können) appears, the structure changes:

• Conjugated modal: kann (takes 2nd position)
• Past participle: gebucht
• Passive auxiliary as infinitive: werden

So with a modal you need gebucht werden, not wird gebucht:

• Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden. – “The course can be booked online.”

What tense is kann here, and does it refer to present or future?

kann is present tense, 3rd person singular of können.

German present tense is often used for general facts and also for near future.
So the sentence can mean:

• right now: “At present, the course can be booked online.”
• more generally/future: “The course (for this semester, etc.) can be booked online.”

Context tells you whether it’s about now, always, or an upcoming period.

Does kann express permission or possibility here?

It primarily expresses possibility / availability:

• “The course can be booked online” = “It is possible to book this course online.”

It can also be understood as permission in many contexts (“you may”), but in this sentence, the usual reading is simply that the online booking option exists.

How is the form gebucht built, and what does it mean?

gebucht is the past participle of the regular verb buchen (“to book”).

For most regular -en verbs:

• take the stem: buch-
• add ge- at the front, -t at the end → gebucht

It functions like English “booked”:

• ein Hotelzimmer buchen – to book a hotel room
• ein Hotelzimmer ist gebucht – a hotel room is (has been) booked

What part of speech is online, and can it change form?

online is an adverb here.

• It does not change form (no case, gender, or plural endings).
• It is written lowercase.
• It can be used with many verbs:
  online kaufen, online lernen, online bezahlen, online buchen, etc.

So you never say things like onliner or onlineen; it always stays online.

Can I change the position of online in the sentence?

There is some flexibility, but not all positions are natural.

✅ Natural:

• Der Kurs kann online gebucht werden.
• Der Kurs kann noch heute online gebucht werden.
• Online kann der Kurs gebucht werden. (emphasis on online)

❌ Not natural:

• Der Kurs kann gebucht online werden.
• Der Kurs kann online werden gebucht.

In this kind of structure, online normally stands right before the past participle (gebucht) or at the very beginning for emphasis.

How would I turn this into a simple active sentence in the present tense?

A common active version with a generic subject is:

• Man kann den Kurs online buchen. – “You/one can book the course online.”

With a concrete subject:

• Die Studenten können den Kurs online buchen. – “The students can book the course online.”
• Du kannst den Kurs online buchen. – “You can book the course online.”

Pattern: Subject + conjugated modal + object + (adverb) + main verb (infinitive).

How would I say this in the past tense: “The course could be booked online”?

Use the preterite of können in passive:

• Der Kurs konnte online gebucht werden.

Structure stays the same; only kann changes to konnte (simple past of können).