What are common mistakes with Konnektoren: und, aber, oder?

Learners sometimes invert the subject and verb after und/aber/oder, but these conjunctions do not cause inversion. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English speakers may invert after 'und/aber/oder' since some English conjunctions like 'so' do trigger inversion in German. 🇷🇺 Russian speakers: Russian speakers handle und/aber/oder well since Russian и/но/или work similarly, but may add unnecessary commas before und. 🇨🇿 Czech speakers: Czech speakers generally handle these well since Czech a/ale/nebo work identically, but may forget that German requires a comma before aber.

Konnektoren: und, aber, oder | German Grammar A1

Konnektoren: und, aber, oder

A1 — Satzbau

Basic connectors that don't change word order

Can connect simple sentences with und, aber, oder

Basic connectors that don't change word order

Examples

Ich trinke Kaffee und er trinkt Tee. — I drink coffee and he drinks tea.
Das Hotel ist schön, aber teuer. — The hotel is nice but expensive.
Kommst du mit oder bleibst du hier? — Are you coming along or are you staying here?

Sentence StructureA1

Konnektoren: und, aber, oder

Basic connectors that don't change word order

Learning Goal

Can connect simple sentences with und, aber, oder

Exam Skills:ReadingWriting

Look at these examples. Can you spot the grammar pattern?

Ich trinke Kaffee und er trinkt Tee.

I drink coffee and he drinks tea.

Das Hotel ist schön, aber teuer.

The hotel is nice but expensive.

Kommst du mit oder bleibst du hier?

Are you coming along or are you staying here?

Pay attention to the highlighted parts. What do they have in common?

Die koordinierenden Konjunktionen und, aber, oder verbinden zwei Hauptsätze, ohne die Wortstellung zu ändern.

Konjunktion	Bedeutung	Beispiel
und	and	Ich lerne Deutsch und* er lernt Spanisch.*
aber	but	Sie ist nett, aber* ein bisschen schüchtern.*
oder	or	Kommst du mit oder* bleibst du hier?*
denn	because	Ich bleibe zu Hause, denn* ich bin müde.*

Wortstellung: Nach und, aber, oder, denn bleibt das Verb an Position 2 im zweiten Satz — die Wortstellung ändert sich nicht.

Tipp: Denn (Position 0) vs. weil (Verb am Ende): ..., denn ich bin müde vs. ..., weil ich müde bin.

Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises

Practice Exercises

Learners sometimes invert the subject and verb after und/aber/oder, but these conjunctions do not cause inversion. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English speakers may invert after 'und/aber/oder' since some English conjunctions like 'so' do trigger inversion in German.

Common Error Patterns

Verb not in second position in main clause

Count positions: element 1 + VERB + rest. The verb is always second.

Wrong word order in subordinate clause

In subordinate clauses (weil, dass, wenn...) the verb goes to the END

Wrong connector or connector type used

Review: coordinating (und, aber, oder) vs subordinating (weil, dass, wenn) conjunctions

Ich trinke Kaffee und er trinkt Tee.

I drink coffee and he drinks tea.

Und connects two clauses — word order stays the same in both.

Das Hotel ist schön, aber teuer.

The hotel is nice but expensive.

Aber (but) shows contrast without changing word order.

Kommst du mit oder bleibst du hier?

Are you coming along or are you staying here?

Oder (or) presents alternatives, word order unchanged.

Practice in course

Apply this grammar in A1 course exercises

A1 Course

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Put it into practice

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Frequently asked questions

When is Konnektoren: und, aber, oder used?: Die koordinierenden Konjunktionen und, aber, oder verbinden zwei Hauptsätze, ohne die Wortstellung zu ändern.
How is Konnektoren: und, aber, oder formed?: Wortstellung: Nach und, aber, oder, denn bleibt das Verb an Position 2 im zweiten Satz — die Wortstellung ändert sich nicht . Tipp: Denn (Position 0) vs. weil (Verb am Ende): ..., denn ich bin müde vs. ..., weil ich müde bin .
What are common mistakes with Konnektoren: und, aber, oder?: Learners sometimes invert the subject and verb after und/aber/oder, but these conjunctions do not cause inversion. 🇬🇧 English speakers: English speakers may invert after 'und/aber/oder' since some English conjunctions like 'so' do trigger inversion in German. 🇷🇺 Russian speakers: Russian speakers handle und/aber/oder well since Russian и/но/или work similarly, but may add unnecessary commas before und. 🇨🇿 Czech speakers: Czech speakers generally handle these well since Czech a/ale/nebo work identically, but may forget that German requires a comma before aber.