1.What this chapter is about
At C1, sollen and wollen are not used only with deontic meanings.
In reporting, they can mark source and distance:
Er soll krank sein.
→ Other people say/report that he is ill.
Er will krank gewesen sein.
→ He himself claims that he was ill.
Core distinction:
sollen
→ reported claim from another source
wollen
→ self-reported claim by the subject
2.Why this belongs to evidentiality
Evidentiality concerns the question:
Where does the information come from?
With reportative sollen:
source
→ not the speaker directly
With reportative wollen:
source
→ the grammatical subject itself
So the modal verbs encode not only modality, but also source of information.
3.sollen: basic reportative meaning
Example:
Der Minister soll zurücktreten.
Depending on context, this can mean:
deontic:
He is supposed to resign.
→ This is required of him.
reportative:
He is said to be resigning / to resign.
→ Reports say that this is happening.
Context decides.
4.sollen: who is the source
With reportative sollen, the exact source often remains unspecified.
Die Firma soll verkauft werden.
Meaning:
There are reports / statements / rumours
that the company is to be sold.
The speaker does not automatically present the information as an established fact.
5.sollen and distance
sollen marks distance from the proposition:
Er ist krank.
→ unmarked factual statement
Er soll krank sein.
→ reported information
Important:
Distance does not automatically mean disbelief.
sollen can neutrally indicate that the information comes from another source.
6.sollen is not identical to angeblich in every context
A common paraphrase is:
Er soll sehr reich sein.
≈ Angeblich ist er sehr reich.
But angeblich can sound more sceptical or evaluative depending on context.
Reportative sollen is often more neutral:
Laut Berichten soll ...
Es heißt, ...
Er soll ...
7.wollen: basic reportative meaning
With reportative wollen, the claim comes from the subject itself.
Er will nichts davon gewusst haben.
Meaning:
He himself claims
that he knew nothing about it.
The speaker marks the statement as a self-reported claim.
8.wollen and ordinary volition
Compare:
Er will gehen.
→ intention / desire
Er will nichts davon gewusst haben.
→ claim about the past
The second meaning becomes especially clear with the perfect infinitive:
past participle + haben/sein
9.wollen and speaker distance
Example:
Der Angeklagte will zur Tatzeit zu Hause gewesen sein.
The sentence means:
The defendant makes this claim himself.
The speaker does not automatically endorse it.
Depending on context, the form may sound neutral, distanced, or sceptical, but scepticism is not an obligatory grammatical meaning.
10.sollen vs wollen: source
Core contrast:
Er soll dort gewesen sein.
→ Others claim that he was there.
Er will dort gewesen sein.
→ He himself claims that he was there.
So:
sollen
→ external source
wollen
→ self-source
11.sollen vs wollen: perspective
Compare:
Die Firma soll die Daten gelöscht haben.
Source:
reports / third parties / rumours
But:
Die Firma will die Daten fristgerecht gelöscht haben.
Source:
the company itself
The grammatical perspective on the source changes.
12.Present reference with sollen
For simultaneous or present-time claims:
Er soll krank sein.
Sie soll in Berlin arbeiten.
Das System soll stabil funktionieren.
Structure:
sollen + infinitive I
The claim typically concerns the present or general validity.
13.Past reference with sollen
For anteriority:
Er soll dort gewesen sein.
Sie soll den Bericht geschrieben haben.
Die Daten sollen manipuliert worden sein.
Structure:
sollen
+ perfect infinitive
14.Active perfect infinitive after sollen
Examples:
Er soll den Vertrag unterschrieben haben.
Sie soll früh abgereist sein.
Pattern:
past participle + haben
or
past participle + sein
The choice of haben or sein follows the normal perfect system.
15.Passive perfect infinitive after sollen
Example:
Die Daten sollen verändert worden sein.
Structure:
past participle
+ worden
+ sein
Meaning:
It is reported
that the data were altered.
16.Present reference with wollen
Reportative wollen can also occur with the simple infinitive:
Er will unschuldig sein.
Sie will die Lösung kennen.
Meaning:
He / she claims personally that ...
With some verbs, ordinary volitional meaning may compete.
17.Past reference with wollen
Very typical:
Er will nichts bemerkt haben.
Sie will die Nachricht nicht erhalten haben.
Der Zeuge will früh gegangen sein.
Structure:
wollen + perfect infinitive
This pattern is especially characteristic in reports.
18.Passive after wollen
Passive self-reported claims are also possible:
Er will falsch informiert worden sein.
Sie will bedroht worden sein.
Die Firma will unfair behandelt worden sein.
Meaning:
The subject claims
that something happened to it.
19.Present sollen does not always mean present time
Example:
Er soll morgen zurückkehren.
Reportative meaning:
It is reported that he will return tomorrow.
Finite soll is present tense, but the embedded event is future.
Time is determined by context and adverbials.
20.sollen + sein: current property
Examples:
Das Restaurant soll sehr gut sein.
Die Methode soll besonders zuverlässig sein.
Er soll äußerst erfahren sein.
Here, sollen reports another person's assessment.
The speaker may simply relay the claim neutrally.
21.wollen + sein: self-characterisation
Example:
Er will Experte auf diesem Gebiet sein.
Possible reportative reading:
He claims to be an expert in this field.
Depending on context, this can sound sceptical, especially if the claimed property is questionable.
22.sollen and rumour-like information
Typical:
Das Unternehmen soll vor einer Übernahme stehen.
Der Schauspieler soll die Stadt verlassen haben.
The source may be informal or unspecified.
This makes sollen useful for:
rumours
press reports
unconfirmed reports
23.But sollen does not necessarily mean rumour
A reliable source can also be reported with sollen.
Example:
Nach Angaben der Behörde soll die Maßnahme nächste Woche beginnen.
The source is explicit.
sollen still marks the statement as attributed rather than presented as the speaker's own unmarked fact.
24.wollen in legal and administrative style
Typical:
Der Antragsteller will die Unterlagen fristgerecht eingereicht haben.
or:
Der Beschuldigte will zur fraglichen Zeit nicht am Ort gewesen sein.
The construction records a self-claim compactly and with distance.
25.wollen in journalistic prose
Example:
Der Manager will von den Vorgängen nichts gewusst haben.
This is a typical journalistic compression of:
The manager stated that he had known nothing about the events.
The construction is concise but source-sensitive.
26.sollen in journalistic prose
Example:
Mehrere Mitarbeiter sollen interne Dokumente weitergegeben haben.
The form says:
This information is being reported.
It does not automatically say:
The writer personally verified it.
27.Combining with explicit source attribution
Very common:
Laut Medienberichten soll ...
Nach Angaben der Polizei soll ...
Dem Bericht zufolge soll ...
Wie aus internen Unterlagen hervorgeht, soll ...
The source can be named explicitly while sollen additionally marks the reportative perspective.
28.Do you need both a source phrase and sollen?
Not always.
Compare:
Laut Bericht ist die Lage stabil.
Laut Bericht soll die Lage stabil sein.
The second adds extra distance.
Depending on the text, this double marking may be useful or redundant.
29.Konjunktiv I as an alternative to sollen
Compare:
Er soll krank sein.
with:
Es heißt, er sei krank.
Both mark reported information.
Difference:
sollen
→ very compact source marking
Konjunktiv I
→ classic indirect speech
30.Konjunktiv I as an alternative to wollen
Compare:
Er will nichts gewusst haben.
with:
Er sagt, er habe nichts gewusst.
The second explicitly names the reporting verb.
The first compresses:
source = subject
+
claim status
31.sollen vs Konjunktiv I: degree of compression
Compare:
Nach Angaben von Zeugen habe der Fahrer das Signal übersehen.
with:
Der Fahrer soll das Signal übersehen haben.
The second is syntactically more compact.
The first can develop source attribution and indirect-speech marking more explicitly.
32.wollen vs behaupten + Konjunktiv I
Compare:
Der Manager behauptet, er habe davon nichts gewusst.
and:
Der Manager will davon nichts gewusst haben.
The second is denser.
The first is more transparent when the text contains:
several speakers
several time layers
complex quotations
33.sollen vs epistemic müssen
Compare:
Er soll zu Hause sein.
→ other sources say so
Er muss zu Hause sein.
→ the speaker infers this from evidence
Core difference:
sollen
→ reportative evidence
müssen
→ strong inference by the speaker
34.sollen vs epistemic dürften
Compare:
Die Kosten sollen bei zehn Millionen Euro liegen.
→ this is what reports say
Die Kosten dürften bei zehn Millionen Euro liegen.
→ cautious estimate by the speaker
The first marks source; the second marks probability.
35.sollen vs können
Compare:
Das Medikament soll Nebenwirkungen verursachen.
→ there are corresponding reports or claims
Das Medikament kann Nebenwirkungen verursachen.
→ this possibility exists
So:
sollen
→ source of information
können
→ possibility / ability / potential
36.wollen vs epistemic modal verbs
Er will den Fehler nicht bemerkt haben.
→ he claims this himself
Er dürfte den Fehler nicht bemerkt haben.
→ the speaker considers this probable
Er muss den Fehler bemerkt haben.
→ the speaker considers this almost certain based on evidence
The source of the assessment differs in each case.
37.sollen and deontic obligation
Classic deontic use:
Du sollst den Bericht heute abschicken.
Meaning:
instruction / expectation / norm
Reportative:
Der Bericht soll bereits abgeschickt worden sein.
Meaning:
It is reported that this has happened.
The two readings must be kept separate.
38.wollen and intention
Classic volitional use:
Sie will den Vertrag kündigen.
Meaning:
She intends to do so.
Reportative:
Sie will den Vertrag bereits gekündigt haben.
Meaning:
She claims to have already done so.
39.The perfect infinitive helps identify reportative wollen
Compare:
Er will die Tür schließen.
→ intention
Er will die Tür geschlossen haben.
→ depending on context:
he claims to have closed it
With a clearly completed past event, the reportative reading becomes much more likely.
40.Präteritum sollte is not a simple past equivalent of reportative sollen
To report a claim about the past, the typical form is:
Er soll dort gewesen sein.
Not simply:
Er sollte dort sein.
Er sollte dort sein may mean:
He was expected to be there.
or
According to the plan, he should be there.
That is a different modal meaning.
41.Präteritum wollte usually expresses intention
Example:
Er wollte gehen.
normally means:
He intended to leave.
For a self-reported claim about an earlier event, the typical form is:
Er will gegangen sein.
or:
Er behauptete, gegangen zu sein.
42.Negation with sollen
Example:
Er soll nicht dort gewesen sein.
Meaning:
According to reports, he was not there.
The negation belongs to the reported proposition:
not have been there
not to the fact that reporting exists.
43.Negation with wollen
Typical:
Er will nichts davon gewusst haben.
Sie will den Hinweis nicht gesehen haben.
Meaning:
He claims: I knew nothing about it.
She claims: I did not see the notice.
44.Scope of negation
Compare:
Er soll nicht rechtzeitig informiert worden sein.
This may mean:
He was informed,
but apparently not in time.
By contrast:
Er soll überhaupt nicht informiert worden sein.
means:
The passive event itself is negated.
At C1, the scope of nicht matters.
45.sollen + present passive
Example:
Die Firma soll derzeit verkauft werden.
Possible reportative reading:
It is reported
that the company is currently being sold.
Structure:
soll
+ past participle
+ werden
46.sollen + perfect passive
Example:
Die Firma soll bereits verkauft worden sein.
Structure:
soll
+ past participle
+ worden
+ sein
Meaning:
According to reports, the sale has already taken place.
47.wollen + perfect passive
Example:
Er will unfair behandelt worden sein.
Structure:
will
+ past participle
+ worden
+ sein
Meaning:
He himself claims
that he was treated unfairly.
48.worden vs geworden matters here too
Reportative passive:
Er soll entlassen worden sein.
Not:
*Er soll entlassen geworden sein.
worden belongs to the perfect event passive.
geworden belongs to lexical werden:
Er soll sehr ruhig geworden sein.
→ Reports say that he became very calm.
49.sollen + state
Example:
Die Tür soll offen sein.
Reportative:
It is reported that the door is open.
Compare:
Die Tür soll geöffnet worden sein.
→ reported opening event
50.sollen + past state
Example:
Die Tür soll die ganze Nacht offen gewesen sein.
Meaning:
According to reports, the state
“open” existed in the past.
Do not confuse with:
geöffnet worden sein
→ event
51.wollen + past state
Example:
Er will zu diesem Zeitpunkt bereits krank gewesen sein.
Meaning:
He himself claims
that he was already ill at that time.
The source remains the subject.
52.Time adverbials clarify the relation
Typical markers:
bereits
zuvor
damals
gestern
vorher
zu diesem Zeitpunkt
bis dahin
Examples:
Sie soll bereits abgereist sein.
Er will damals nichts bemerkt haben.
Die Daten sollen zuvor geändert worden sein.
53.Questions with reportative sollen
Possible, but highly context-dependent:
Soll er wirklich dort gewesen sein?
This can mean:
Is it really being claimed
that he was there?
Without context, sollen may also be interpreted deontically.
54.Questions with wollen
A form such as:
Will er das wirklich gesehen haben?
can be read reportatively and sceptically:
Does he really claim
to have seen that?
Context and intonation strongly shape the interpretation.
55.sollen with impersonal passive
Example:
Es soll bereits darüber gesprochen worden sein.
Meaning:
It is reported
that the matter has already been discussed.
This structure is especially typical of formal, impersonal prose.
56.Reportative wollen is limited with inanimate subjects
Because reportative wollen marks a self-reported claim, it typically requires an entity capable of making a claim, including institutions.
Natural:
Der Zeuge will ...
Das Unternehmen will ...
Die Regierung will ...
Unnatural reportatively:
*Der Stein will dort gelegen haben.
A stone cannot make a claim.
57.sollen with an explicit source
Even with an explicit source, sollen is possible:
Nach Angaben der Polizei soll der Fahrer zu schnell gefahren sein.
Source marking operates on two levels:
Nach Angaben der Polizei
→ explicit source
soll
→ reportative distance
This can be useful in formal reporting.
58.wollen with an institutional subject
Institutions can grammatically function as the source of a self-claim:
Das Unternehmen will alle Vorgaben eingehalten haben.
Die Behörde will rechtzeitig reagiert haben.
Meaning:
The institution states or claims about itself that ...
This is especially common in public statements and reports.
59.wollen and self-exculpatory claims
In real usage, reportative wollen often appears in self-exculpatory claims:
Er will nichts bemerkt haben.
Die Firma will keine Kenntnis davon gehabt haben.
This helps explain why the form often sounds distanced.
However, scepticism usually comes from context and pragmatics, not from wollen alone.
60.Source is not the same as truth value
Important:
sollen
→ external source
wollen
→ self-source
This marking by itself does not establish:
whether the claim is true
whether the source is reliable
whether the speaker agrees
Additional context is required.
61.How to make scepticism explicit
If scepticism needs to be explicit, use additional markers:
angeblich
nach eigener Darstellung
nach eigenen Angaben
seiner Darstellung zufolge
ohne dass dies bestätigt wäre
diese Behauptung ist umstritten
Example:
Er will nach eigener Darstellung nichts gewusst haben; bestätigt ist das bislang nicht.
62.How to make reporting more neutral
For maximally neutral reporting:
Nach Angaben von X ...
X zufolge ...
Laut X ...
X erklärte, ...
X gab an, ...
Depending on context, sollen or wollen may then be unnecessary.
At C1, source markers should not be stacked without purpose.
63.Common mistake 1: treating sollen as always deontic
Example:
Er soll den Bericht manipuliert haben.
This normally does not mean:
He was required to manipulate the report.
It means:
It is claimed that he manipulated it.
The perfect infinitive helps identify the reportative reading.
64.Common mistake 2: treating wollen as always volitional
Example:
Er will das nicht gesehen haben.
The typical reading is not:
He wants not to have seen it.
but:
He claims not to have seen it.
65.Common mistake 3: confusing the sources of sollen and wollen
Incorrect interpretation:
Er soll dort gewesen sein.
as:
He himself says so.
That would be closer to:
Er will dort gewesen sein.
Remember:
sollen = others say
wollen = subject says about itself
66.Common mistake 4: treating distance as denial
From:
Er soll dort gewesen sein.
it does not follow that:
The speaker believes this is false.
And from:
Er will dort gewesen sein.
it does not necessarily follow that:
The speaker thinks he is lying.
The forms primarily mark source and degree of commitment.
67.Common mistake 5: using sollte instead of soll + perfect infinitive
For reported past events:
Er soll die Stadt verlassen haben.
Do not simply replace it with:
*Er sollte die Stadt verlassen.
The second typically expresses expectation, obligation, or a plan.
68.Common mistake 6: using wollte as past reportative wollen
Er wollte nichts wissen.
normally means:
He was unwilling to know or hear anything.
For the claim:
Er will nichts gewusst haben.
69.Common mistake 7: incorrect perfect infinitive
Correct:
geschrieben haben
gegangen sein
informiert worden sein
offen gewesen sein
Thus:
Er soll geschrieben haben.
Sie soll gegangen sein.
Er will informiert worden sein.
Die Tür soll offen gewesen sein.
The infinitive complex carries the tense and passive information.
70.Common mistake 8: wrong verb order
Correct in a main clause:
Er soll den Bericht geschrieben haben.
Die Daten sollen verändert worden sein.
Er will nichts gewusst haben.
The finite modal verb occupies position 2; the infinitive complex is placed at the right edge.
71.Common mistake 9: overusing allegedly as a translation
Translating:
Er soll krank sein.
→ allegedly he is ill
may sound more sceptical than the German original in some languages.
A more neutral rendering may be:
It is reported that he is ill.
He is said to be ill.
72.Common mistake 10: too many distancing markers
Overloaded:
Angeblich soll er nach eigenen Angaben möglicherweise nichts gewusst haben.
Multiple markers can serve different functions, but without a reason they make the statement unclear.
First decide:
source?
degree of certainty?
scepticism?
and use only the markers you need.
73.When sollen is the better choice
sollen is especially suitable when:
the information comes from an external source
the exact source is irrelevant or already named
the claim should be reported compactly
the speaker does not want to present it as an unmarked personal fact
Typical genres:
news
reports
analysis
summaries
74.When wollen is the better choice
wollen is especially suitable when:
the subject itself makes the claim
that source perspective matters
the statement should be reported compactly and at a distance
Typical contexts:
witness statements
self-descriptions
justifications
public statements
journalistic reports
75.When Konjunktiv I is the better choice
Konjunktiv I is often better when:
a longer stretch of indirect speech follows
several claims from the same source are reported
subjects change
time relations are complex
the whole passage is consistently framed as indirect speech
Then forms such as:
er habe ...
sie sei ...
man könne ...
are often clearer.
76.When explicit source attribution is better
If the source itself matters, explicit attribution is often better:
Laut dem Bericht ...
Nach Angaben der Behörde ...
Der Studie zufolge ...
Wie die Autorin erklärt, ...
This allows clearer separation of:
source
content
degree of certainty
your own evaluation
77.Selection algorithm
Practical scheme:
1. Who is the source?
other / external source
→ sollen or explicit source attribution
the subject itself
→ wollen or behaupten/angeben
2. Do I need extended indirect speech?
→ consider Konjunktiv I
3. Is the reported event past?
→ perfect infinitive
4. Is it passive?
→ past participle + worden + sein
5. Do I want to mark doubt explicitly?
→ use separate scepticism markers
78.Reading algorithm
When you see sollen or wollen:
1. First test the ordinary meaning:
obligation? intention?
2. Then inspect the infinitive:
simple? perfect? passive?
3. Ask:
Who is making the claim?
4. Decide:
reportative or deontic/volitional?
5. Separate source marking from truth evaluation.
79.Quick reference: sollen
Er soll krank sein.
→ he is said to be ill
Er soll krank gewesen sein.
→ he is said to have been ill
Er soll den Bericht geschrieben haben.
→ he is said to have written the report
Er soll informiert worden sein.
→ he is said to have been informed
Die Tür soll offen gewesen sein.
→ the door is said to have been open
80.Quick reference: wollen
Er will Experte sein.
→ he claims to be an expert
Er will dort gewesen sein.
→ he claims to have been there
Er will nichts gewusst haben.
→ he claims to have known nothing
Er will unfair behandelt worden sein.
→ he claims to have been treated unfairly
81.Quick reference: source
sollen
→ source outside the subject
wollen
→ subject itself as source
Konjunktiv I
→ indirect reporting of a named or inferable source
laut / zufolge / nach Angaben
→ source named explicitly
82.Quick reference: time and voice
simultaneous / present:
soll arbeiten
will Experte sein
anterior active:
soll gearbeitet haben
will gearbeitet haben
anterior with sein:
soll gegangen sein
will dort gewesen sein
anterior passive:
soll informiert worden sein
will informiert worden sein
83.What should become automatic at C1
You should reliably be able to:
distinguish reportative sollen from obligation
distinguish reportative wollen from intention
separate external source from self-source
form perfect infinitives correctly
build passive forms with worden
separate source from truth value
recognise Konjunktiv I as an alternative
combine explicit source attribution appropriately
mark scepticism separately only when needed
consider register and genre
84.The core idea
The central distinction is:
sollen
→ “Other people say that ...”
wollen
→ “The subject itself claims that ...”
Both forms are tools of reporting and distancing.
They do not automatically express a truth judgement.
At C1, source, degree of commitment, and temporal relation should be controlled separately.
85.Summary
Reportative sollen and wollen primarily mark sources of information.
Er soll krank sein.
→ external source
Er will krank sein.
→ self-claim
Er soll dort gewesen sein.
→ external claim about the past
Er will dort gewesen sein.
→ self-claim about the past
Die Daten sollen verändert worden sein.
→ reported passive event
Er will unfair behandelt worden sein.
→ self-reported passive event
Important:
sollen ≠ automatically doubt
wollen ≠ automatically falsehood
distance ≠ refutation
Remember:
sollen points to an external claim; wollen marks a claim made by the subject about itself or its own actions.