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What is a modal verb?

Modal verbs – Modalverben – are a special group of verbs.

Use them to say:

Usage	German	English
what you must do	müssen	to have to, must
what you are able to do	können	to be able to, can
what you want to do	wollen	to want (to)
what you are supposed to do/what you should do/what you ought to do (It often means 'shall', eg shall/should I help you?)	sollen	to be supposed to, ought, should
what you may do/what you are allowed to do	dürfen	to be allowed to, may
what you like	mögen	to like

How to form modal verbs

Modal verbs are not conjugated in the same way as other verbs in the present tense.

Whereas in the regular present tense, each person in the singular forms have different endings, the first person singular form (ich) and the third person singular form (er, sie, es, man) in modal verbs are the same and have no endings. This applies to all modal verbs in the present tense, eg

er muss – he must or he has to
man kann – one/you/they can
sie darf – she may/is allowed

Modals: müssen and können

The verb 'müssen'

This is the present tense pattern for müssen – to have to, or must.

German	English
ich muss	I have to, I must
du musst	you have to, you must (singular, informal)
er muss	he has to, he must
sie muss	she has to, she must
es muss	it has to, it must
wir müssen	we have to, we must
ihr müsst	you have to, you must (plural, informal)
Sie müssen	you have to, you must (singular or plural, formal)
sie müssen	they have to, they must

The verb 'können'

Now look at the pattern for können - to be able to, or can. Again, the first person singular form (ich) and the third person singular form (er, sie, es) are the same. Remember that man will behave in the same way as the third person singular forms.

German	English
ich kann	I am able to, I can
du kannst	you are able to, you can (singular, informal)
er kann	he is able to, he can
sie kann	she is able to, she can
es kann	it is able to, it can
wir können	we are able to, we can
ihr könnt	you are able to, you can (plural, informal)
Sie können	you are able to, you can (singular or plural, formal)
sie können	they are able to, they can

Modals: wollen and sollen

The verb 'wollen'

This is how to conjugate wollen – to want:

German	English
ich will	I want to
du willst	you want to (singular, informal)
er will	he wants to
sie will	she wants to
es will	it wants to
wir wollen	we want to
ihr wollt	you want to (plural, informal)
Sie wollen	you want to (singular or plural, formal)
sie wollen	they want to

The verb 'sollen'

This is how to conjugate sollen - to be supposed to, ought to, should:

German	English
ich soll	I am supposed to, ought to, should
du sollst	you are supposed to, ought to, should (singular, informal)
er soll	he is supposed to, ought to, should
sie soll	she is supposed to, ought to, should
es soll	it is supposed to, ought to, should
wir sollen	we are supposed to, ought to, should
ihr sollt	you are supposed to, ought to, should (plural, informal)
Sie sollen	you are supposed to, ought to, should (singular or plural, formal)
sie sollen	they are supposed to, ought to, should

Modals: dürfen and mögen

The verb 'dürfen'

Here is the pattern for dürfen – to be allowed, may:

German	English
ich darf	I may, I am allowed to
du darfst	you may, you are allowed to (singular, informal)
er darf	he may, he is allowed to
sie darf	she may, she is allowed to
es darf	it may, it is allowed to
wir dürfen	we may, we are allowed to
ihr dürft	you may, you are allowed to (plural, informal)
Sie dürfen	you may, you are allowed to (singular or plural, formal)
sie dürfen	they may, they are allowed to

The verb 'mögen'

Here is the pattern for mögen – to like:

German	English
ich mag	I like
du magst	you like (singular, informal)
er mag	he likes
sie mag	she likes
es mag	it likes
wir mögen	we like
ihr mögt	you like (plural, informal)
Sie mögen	you like (singular or plural, formal)
sie mögen	they like

Modal Verbs

Modal verbs are very useful in German. They help you talk about what you have to do, want to do or are allowed to do and can be used in the present, past and conditional tenses.