1.Verb first
A yes/no question asks whether a whole statement is true. It has no question word, and the answer is ja or nein. In German the signal is word order: the finite verb, the form that agrees with the subject, moves to the very front of the sentence, and the subject follows it.
Wohnst du in Berlin?
The question is built from the statement by swapping the first two elements. The verb form itself stays the same; only its position changes.
| Statement | Yes/no question |
|---|---|
| Du wohnst in Berlin. | Wohnst du in Berlin? |
| Anna ist zu Hause. | Ist Anna zu Hause? |
| Ihr arbeitet morgen. | Arbeitet ihr morgen? |
Pattern: finite verb + subject + the rest +
?
The first word must be the conjugated form (lernst, kommt, arbeiten), not the infinitive (lernen, kommen). A word-for-word copy of the statement with rising intonation is not the standard German question at this level.
2.Verb endings still follow the subject
Moving the verb to the front does not cancel agreement. Each subject keeps its own ending, so both the position and the form have to be right. The verb lernen shows the full set.
| Subject | Statement | Question |
|---|---|---|
| ich | Ich lerne. | Lerne ich? |
| du | Du lernst. | Lernst du? |
| er / sie / es | Er lernt. | Lernt er? |
| wir | Wir lernen. | Lernen wir? |
| ihr | Ihr lernt. | Lernt ihr? |
| sie (plural) / Sie | Sie lernen. | Lernen sie? / Lernen Sie? |
With the polite Sie, the verb has the same form as the infinitive. The capital letter in writing separates polite Sie from sie (they). The statement Sie wohnen hier. and the question Wohnen Sie hier? contain the same words; only the order tells them apart.
Wohnen Sie hier?
3.Regular verbs, sein and haben
Every verb follows the same pattern. Regular verbs, the irregular sein (to be) and haben (to have) all go to the front in their conjugated form. sein and haben are especially frequent in everyday questions.
The subject after the verb can be a pronoun (du, wir, Sie) or a noun with its article or possessive (Anna, der Bus, deine Schwester). The pattern does not change.
| Verb | Subject | The rest |
|---|---|---|
| Kommt | Anna | heute? |
| Fährt | der Bus | nach Bonn? |
| Wohnt | deine Schwester | in Hamburg? |
| Beginnt | der Kurs | um neun? |
Time, place and objects stand after the subject, in the same positions as in a statement. At A1 it is enough to place verb and subject correctly at the start and attach the remaining information behind them.
4.Answering with ja and nein
The shortest answer is a single word. A full sentence is also possible, and in a full sentence the verb stands in second position, as in any statement.
Kommst du heute? – Ja.
Ist das Geschäft offen? – Nein.
Kommst du heute? – Ja, ich komme heute.
Wohnst du hier? – Nein, ich wohne in Bonn.
Short answers are often expanded with a few common additions:
| Ja, gern. | Ja, natürlich. | Nein, danke. | Vielleicht. |
5.Question mark and intonation
In writing, a direct question ends with ?. In speech, the voice usually rises at the end of a yes/no question, which helps the listener. Intonation supports the question, but the order verb + subject is what makes the sentence a question in standard German: Du kommst heute. is a statement, Kommst du heute? is a question.
6.Common mistakes
| Mistake | Correct | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Du wohnst in Berlin? | Wohnst du in Berlin? | The verb has to come first. |
| Wohnen du in Berlin? | Wohnst du in Berlin? | du needs the ending -st, not the infinitive. |
| Kommt wir heute? | Kommen wir heute? | The verb must still agree with the subject. |
| Bist du müde. | Bist du müde? | A direct question ends with ?. |
A yes/no question is also different from a question with a question word. Wohnst du in Berlin? expects ja or nein, while Wo wohnst du? asks for a place.
7.Building a question from a statement
Starting from Du arbeitest heute., the question is built in four steps:
- Find the finite verb:
arbeitest. - Put it at the beginning:
Arbeitest … - Place the subject right after it:
Arbeitest du … - Add the remaining information and the question mark.
Arbeitest du heute?