Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.

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Breakdown of Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.

• haben: to have
• schreiben: to write
• wenn: when
• eine: a; (feminine, accusative)
• die E‑Mail: the email
• eine: an; (feminine, accusative)
• die Rückfrage: the follow-up question

Questions & Answers about Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.

Why does the verb habe come at the end of the first part: „Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe …“?

In German, „wenn“ introduces a subordinate clause (Nebensatz). In subordinate clauses, the conjugated verb goes to the end of the clause.

Structure of the first clause:

• wenn (subordinating conjunction)
• ich (subject)
• eine Rückfrage (object)
• habe (conjugated verb at the end)

So:

• Main clause order: Ich habe eine Rückfrage. (verb in 2nd position)
• Subordinate clause order: Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe … (verb at the end)

This is a standard German word order rule for many conjunctions like weil, dass, wenn, obwohl etc.

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Why is it „schreibe ich eine E‑Mail“ and not „ich schreibe eine E‑Mail“ after the comma?

The second part is a main clause (Hauptsatz): „… schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.“

German main clauses almost always have the verb in 2nd position. However, the entire „wenn“-clause counts as position 1 for the sentence as a whole. That means the verb of the main clause must come next:

• Position 1: Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe,
• Position 2: schreibe
• Then comes the subject: ich
• Then the rest: eine E‑Mail

If you start the sentence with the subject instead, you can say:

• Ich schreibe eine E‑Mail, wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe.

Both orders are correct; the difference is which part is emphasized first.

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Can I also say „Ich schreibe eine E‑Mail, wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe“ instead?

Yes, that is completely correct:

• Ich schreibe eine E‑Mail, wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe.

This version starts with the main clause and puts the „wenn“-clause at the end. The meaning does not change in any important way; both sentences describe a general condition/habit.

The only difference is a slight emphasis:

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, … → emphasis on the condition.
• Ich schreibe eine E‑Mail, wenn … → emphasis on what I do.

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Why is it „wenn“ and not „wann“ or „als“?

These three words are tricky for English speakers because they can all relate to “when” in some way:

• wenn

  • Used for conditions: if / whenever
  • Also for repeated events in the past or present.
  • Example: Wenn ich Zeit habe, lese ich. (If/whenever I have time, I read.)

• wann

  • Used for questions about time (direct or indirect).
  • Example: Wann kommst du? (When are you coming?)
    Ich weiß nicht, wann er kommt. (I don’t know when he’s coming.)

• als

  • Used for a single event in the past.
  • Example: Als ich klein war, wohnte ich in Berlin. (When I was little, I lived in Berlin.)

In your sentence, we have a condition that can be true at any time:

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.
  → If / whenever I have a follow-up question, I write an email.

So „wenn“ is the correct choice.

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Why is there a comma before „schreibe“?

German requires a comma between a subordinate clause and a main clause.

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, ← subordinate clause
• schreibe ich eine E‑Mail. ← main clause

Whenever you have a conjunction like wenn, weil, dass, obwohl, als that introduces a subordinate clause, you put a comma between that clause and the rest of the sentence.

So the comma here is mandatory, not optional.

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Why is it present tense „habe, schreibe“ and not future tense like „werde haben, werde schreiben“?

In German, the present tense (Präsens) is very often used to talk about the future, especially:

• for general truths or habits
• for conditions with „wenn“

Your sentence describes a general rule or habit:

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.
  → If I have a follow-up question (in general), I send an email.

You could say:

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage haben werde, werde ich eine E‑Mail schreiben.

But this sounds unnatural and overly formal in everyday German. Native speakers strongly prefer the present tense here.

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What exactly does „Rückfrage“ mean, and how is it different from „Frage“?

• Frage = question (any question, very general).
• Rückfrage = literally a “back-question”, usually:
  • a follow‑up question, or
  • a question you ask to clarify something that was already explained/said.

Typical usage:

• Haben Sie noch Rückfragen?
  → Do you have any (follow‑up) questions? (e.g. after a presentation)
• Ich hätte eine Rückfrage zu Ihrem Angebot.
  → I have a follow‑up question about your offer.

In your sentence, „Rückfrage“ suggests:

• not just any random question,
• but a question related to something you already received (instructions, information, an offer, etc.)

You could also say:

• Wenn ich eine Frage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.
  That’s fully correct, just a bit more general.

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Why is it „eine Rückfrage“? What case is „Rückfrage“ in here?

„Rückfrage“ is a feminine noun in German: die Rückfrage.

In this sentence, it is the direct object of the verb haben:

• ich (subject)
• habe (verb)
• eine Rückfrage (direct object)

Direct objects in German normally take the accusative case. For feminine nouns:

• Nominative: eine Rückfrage
• Accusative: eine Rückfrage

They look the same in singular, which can be confusing, but here it is accusative.

So „eine Rückfrage“ is correct because:

• feminine noun,
• singular,
• indefinite article,
• accusative object of haben.

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Can I also say „Rückfragen“ in the plural?

Yes, you can. The plural is „Rückfragen“:

• Wenn ich Rückfragen habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.
  → If I have follow‑up questions, I write an email.

The choice between singular and plural is mostly about nuance:

• eine Rückfrage → focuses on having a (one) follow‑up question in a given situation.
• Rückfragen (no article, plural) → more general: if there are any follow‑up questions.

Both are grammatically correct and natural; which you use depends on the context and style.

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Why is it written „E‑Mail“ with a capital E and a hyphen?

In standard German (per Duden), the recommended spelling is:

• die E‑Mail (singular)
• die E‑Mails (plural)

Notes:

• It’s capitalized because all nouns in German are capitalized.
• The „E“ stands for „elektronisch“ (electronic).
• The hyphen E‑Mail is the usual dictionary form, although in practice you also see Email or eMail. Those variants are common but not the most “correct” according to standard spelling rules.

In your sentence, „eine E‑Mail“ is the direct object (accusative singular feminine).

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Can I add „dann“ like in English “if … then …”:
„Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, dann schreibe ich eine E‑Mail“?

Yes, that is perfectly correct:

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, dann schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.

Here:

• wenn = if/when (condition)
• dann = then

The word „dann“ is optional. Adding it can make the structure feel a bit closer to English and can add a slight emphasis to the result:

• Without: Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.
• With: Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, dann schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.

Both are natural and grammatical.

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Is „Habe ich eine Rückfrage, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail“ also possible?

Yes, that’s also grammatical:

• Habe ich eine Rückfrage, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.

Here, „Habe ich eine Rückfrage“ is not a subordinate clause; it’s an inverted main clause with the verb first. German can use this structure to express a conditional idea, similar to English:

• Should I have a question, I send an email.
• If I have a question, I send an email.

This style sounds a bit more formal or literary than the version with „wenn“, and it’s less common in everyday speech. But it is correct and idiomatic, especially in written German.

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How would the sentence look if I wanted a more hypothetical “if … would …” meaning?

For a more hypothetical or less likely condition, German often uses Konjunktiv II:

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage hätte, würde ich eine E‑Mail schreiben.

Breakdown:

• hätte = Konjunktiv II of haben
• würde … schreiben = conditional form of schreiben

This is similar in tone to:

• If I had a follow‑up question, I would write an email.

Your original sentence:

• Wenn ich eine Rückfrage habe, schreibe ich eine E‑Mail.
  describes a more realistic, general habit or rule.