GCSE German₈₆₆₂

GCSE students will be expected to develop and use their knowledge of grammar throughout their course.

The grammar requirements for GCSE are set out in two tiers: Foundation and Higher. Students are required to use their knowledge of grammar from the specified lists, appropriate to the relevant tier of entry. Students entering Higher tier assessments will be required to apply all grammar listed for Foundation tier in addition to the grammar listed for Higher tier.

Students will be expected to use the prescribed grammar across a range of contexts and assessment tasks.

The lists describe grammatical features of the most widely used standard varieties.

The lists are written from the point of view of English-speaking students of the language, and so include some reference to certain cross-linguistically complex relations with English.

Students are required to demonstrate both receptive and productive knowledge of the grammar from the list (although the derivational morphology laid out in the grammar annex can only be included for Paper 3 Reading).

‘Grammar’ is defined as including the morphology (inflectional and derivational) and syntax (rules of word order, relations between words and obligatory use of specific features). The vocabulary lists contain the lexicon that is needed to apply the grammar.

Some grammatical features can be perceived as ‘grammar’ or ‘lexicon’ – these items are listed in the vocabulary list, as stipulated in the DfE Subject Content. The vocabulary list also specifies highly irregular forms within a grammatical subsystem (ie, subparts of paradigms where only some forms are irregular), as laid out in the Grammar requirements. This is because forms, such as irregular stems, are likely to be learnt and retrieved as individual items rather than as part of a broader grammatical system. Listing them in the vocabulary list, therefore, reflects the pedagogical attention required for these highly irregular forms.

Items given in brackets in the grammar list which are prefaced with 'eg' are illustrative, ie serve only to clarify the description of the grammar features, and such items are not included in the vocabulary list. In contrast, items that are not prefaced by 'eg' are comprehensive, providing all the examples of the grammar that are included in the DfE Subject Content, and all such items are contained in the vocabulary list.

Note that the English equivalents of some of the grammar are provided. This is relevant when testing students’ ability to work from English to German (eg, in translation tasks).

3.2.1 Foundation tier

3.2.1.1 Noun phrases  

Formation of compound nouns, including final word gender rule: 

• many compounds add additional connecting letters: - e , - s /- es , - n /- en , - ens , - er (eg, Arbeitsstunden ) 
• some omit -e/-en from the first word (eg, Schulbuch , Wohnzimmer ) 

The omission or unnecessary addition of connecting letters will not be credit-bearing.  Compounds can also be adjectives (eg, dunkelgrün ) or verbs (eg, ausgehen ). 

Formation of feminine person nouns

Highly frequent irregulars will be listed in the vocabulary list as separate items, eg, Anwalt / Anwältin .

Person nouns that decline like adjectives will only be used in the nominative: 

• male person nouns add - in to make the feminine form (eg, Freund in , Lehrer in , Amerikaner in ).  

Formation of plural nouns

Highly frequent irregulars / low frequency patterns will be listed in the vocabulary list, eg, Busse , Firmen :  

• most masculine and neuter nouns add - e (with or without umlaut on the vowel ä / ö / ü )  
• article changes only for many nouns ending in - el /- en /- er  
• most feminine nouns add - n or - en   
• feminine occupation nouns ending in - in add - nen  
• some masculine and neuter nouns add - er (and umlaut on vowel ä / ö / ü ).  
• some (typically borrowed) nouns add - s   
• some mostly single-syllable feminine nouns add - e (with or without umlaut on the vowel ä / ö / ü ) 
• feminine and neuter nouns ending in - nis add - se 
• some neuter nouns add ( e ) n. 

The omission or unnecessary addition of umlauts in plurals will not be credit-bearing.  Some nouns are not used in the plural (eg, Obst , Eis ). The overgeneralised pluralisation of such nouns will not be credit-bearing. 

Nominalisation of infinitive verbs

Eg, schwimmen → ( das ) Schwimmen , wandern → ( das ) Wandern and uninflected adjectives for languages eg englisch → ( das ) Englisch.  

Determiners: Articles  

Agreement of articles with noun for gender and number ( der , die , das , ein , eine ). 

Different functions of definite and indefinite articles, including subject (nominative), direct object (accusative) and indirect object (dative). 

Negation with noun phrases, using kein (nominative, accusative). 

Other determiners 

Use of the following determiners in singular (and plural forms, where applicable) in nominative, accusative and dative cases: 

• demonstrative adjective ( dies -( er , e , es ))
• indefinite adjectives ( jed -( er , e , es )), letzt -( er , e , es )), nächst -( er , e , es ))
• interrogative adjectives ( welch -( er , e , es ))
• possessive adjectives ( mein , dein , sein , ihr , unser , euer , Ihr , ihr )
• quantifiers in uncountable singular forms only ( viel , wenig ) and plural forms ( viele , wenige , alle , einige ). 

Pronouns 

Subject pronouns ( ich , du , er , sie , es , man , wir , ihr , Sie , and sie ) will be listed in the vocabulary list. Their grammar (agreement, position) is laid out here. 

Use and position of singular direct (accusative) object pronouns ( mich , dich , ihn , sie , es , Sie , einen ). 

Use of singular indirect (dative) object pronouns ( mir , dir , ihm , ihr , ihm , Ihnen , einem ). 

Indefinite pronouns ( jemand , niemand ) as subject and direct object pronouns. 

Use of relative pronouns ( der , die , das , die ) in subject relative clauses. 

Use of singular and plural accusative reflexive pronouns ( mich , dich , sich , uns , euch , sich ) with verbs used reflexively and reciprocally.  

Use of interrogative pronoun wer , including in accusative and dative questions. 

3.2.1.2 Verb phrases 

Verbs and verb forms that do not fit into the grammar detailed here can still be listed in the vocabulary list.  

Interrogatives 

Interrogatives expressed through:  

• subject verb (SV) word order 
• question words ( was, wann, wie, wer, wo, wohin, woher, warum ) followed by (SV) word order.  

Inflectional morphology  

Specific irregular inflected forms, as a minimum those specified below, will be listed in the vocabulary list.  

Weak (regular) and strong (semi-regular) verb inflections in 1st, 2nd, 3rd persons in both singular and plural for:   

• Present indicative, with simple (I walk) and ongoing (I am walking) functions, and (with time adverbs) to express future meaning, and in written texts to express past meaning. 
  • Irregular inflected forms of four very high frequency irregular verbs ( haben , sein , werden , wissen ) will be listed in the vocabulary list (including use of haben + noun where the English equivalent is ‘be + adjective’ eg, + Hunger , + Durst , + Angst , + Lust , + Schmerzen ). 
  • Small changes to stems (eg, add - e before - t and - st endings to stems ending in - d , - t , - m , - n , wartest , zeichnet ; - t not - st after stems ending in - s , - ß , - x , z , tanzt , heißt ; - el stem verbs drop - e in 1^st person singular, sammle ) will not be credit-bearing. 
• Perfect tense, as equivalent of the English simple past (I walked, he went) and present perfect (I have walked, he has gone). Perfect tense + früher for habitual (‘used to’) meaning, including past participle formation that patterns as follows: 
  • weak verbs ge - - t (eg, gemacht ); - ieren ( studiert ); with inseparable prefixes be - (eg, besucht ), ent - (eg, entdeckt ), er - (eg, erzählt ), über - (eg, übersetzt ), and ver - (eg, versucht )  
  • strong verbs ge - + infinitive (eg, gegeben , gefahren ); with inseparable prefixes be- (eg bekommen ); ent - (eg, enthalten ) er - ( erfahren ); ge - (eg, gefallen ); ver - (eg, vergessen ); where the past participle is the same as the infinitive 
  • verbs with past participle vowel changes ei → ie (eg, geblieben ); i → u (eg, gefunden ); e → o (eg, gesprochen ); ie → o (eg, geflogen ), including those with inseparable prefixes 
  • other irregular (strong) past participles will be listed in the vocabulary list; past participles of verbs with prefixes on stems which are listed on the vocabulary list will not be listed (eg, bestanden will not be listed if gestanden is already on the list). 
• Future tense: werden + infinitive as equivalent of both ‘will’ + verb and ‘be + going to’. 
• Imperfect/simple past: haben , sein.   

Impersonal verbs 

Es gibt (‘there is/are’) and es gab (‘there was/were’) are listed in the vocabulary list as multi-word phrases. 

Modals 

Use of present modals in all persons ( dürfen, können, mögen, müssen, sollen, wollen ) + infinitive. 

Use of conditional möcht - in all persons + noun, and + infinitive. 

Use of imperfect/simple past modals in 1^st , 2^nd , 3^rd persons in singular only. 

Reflexive use of verbs 

Use of all persons of verbs with accusative reflexive pronouns 

Reflexive verb forms (eg, sich waschen ) with the same meaning as a listed base verb (eg, waschen ) are not listed.

Reflexive verb forms with different meanings from a listed base verb (eg, verstehen ; sich verstehen ) will be listed on the same line. When reflexive verb forms with different meanings from a listed base verb are not listed, they will not be tested. 

Word order 

Main clause word order, including word order 2 (inversion) and 2-verb rule (2^nd verb to end of main clause). 

Word order 3 (subordinate clauses, including subject relative clauses) in single-verb structures. 

Syntax of verbal negation with nie , nichts , nicht (in main clauses with single- and two-verb structures, in subordinate clauses with single verbs, and with postnominal adjectives).  

Main clause word order with separable verbs in the present tense. 

3.2.1.3 Adjectival phrases 

Singular and plural adjective endings for prenominal adjectives used after definite and indefinite articles, and plural adjective endings for prenominal adjectives used without article, in nominative, accusative and dative cases. 

Postnominal use of (uninflected) adjectives as verbal complement. 

Where the adverbial form is identical, English translations can be listed on one line in the Vocabulary List (eg, billig – cheap, cheaply). 

Comparative postnominal adjective structures with als and so… wie , including common irregular forms ( besser , höher , mehr ).  

Some comparative adjectives change their spelling (eg, teuer → teurer , dunkel → dunkler , groß → größer ). Such spelling changes will not be credit-bearing. 

3.2.1.4 Adverbs  

Position of adverbs of time, manner, place. 

Use of verb + gern to express like and verb + lieber to express preference. 

Comparative adverb structures, including common irregular forms ( besser , höher , lieber , mehr ) 

3.2.1.5 Prepositions 

Where the preposition changes or adds to the meaning of the verb, the preposition and the relevant English translations will be listed in the vocabulary list alongside the verb entry (eg, warten ‘to wait’; warten auf ‘to wait for’).  

Spelling of the word that follows: fixed case with accusative prepositions ( bis, durch , für , ohne ), dative prepositions ( aus , bei , mit , nach , von, zu ), and dual case prepositions ( an, auf, in )  

Use of contracted forms of an, bei , in, von and zu with definite article, (ie ans , am, beim , ins, im , vom , zum , zur will be listed in the vocabulary list).   Da - compounds darauf , damit , dafür , davon (and all optional da ( r )- or wo ( r )- compounds) will be listed in the vocabulary list. 

3.2.1.6 Derivational morphology  

For Reading only. Derivational morphology listed here indicates that even if only the base form (eg, möglich ) is listed in the vocabulary list, a derived form that follows one of the patterns listed here (eg, unmöglich ) may be included in reading texts (or if only the specific affixed form is listed, the base form may be included in reading texts). Note, if derived forms are included in listening material or required for production, they will be listed separately in the vocabulary list.  

Uniformly applicable derivational morphology 

Prefixes: 

• add prefix Lieblings - to nouns to mean ‘favourite’ 
• add prefix Haupt - to nouns to mean ‘main’. 

Other high frequency patterns 

3.2.2 Higher tier 

All grammar and structures listed for Foundation tier, plus:  

3.2.2.1 Noun phrases 

Nouns 

Add - n to dative plural nouns 

Add –( e ) n to pluralise some masculine people nouns and weak masculine nouns. The singular formation of these nouns will not be credit-bearing. 

Nominative and accusative use of plural adjectival nouns (eg, die Reichen ) and abstract adjectival neuter nouns with definite article (eg, das Gute ) and following viel , wenig , etwas or alles (eg, etwas Nettes ).  

The omission or unnecessary addition of umlauts in plurals will not be credit-bearing. 

Determiners: Articles  

Use of the genitive for possession and following certain prepositions (eg, trotz ), included in the vocabulary list, in Listening and Reading only.  

Pronouns 

Use of plural direct (accusative) object pronouns ( uns , euch , Sie, sie ) and reflexive pronoun sich , including reflexive and reciprocal use. 

Use of plural indirect (dative) object pronouns ( uns , euch , Ihnen , ihnen ).  

Position of indirect and direct objects in sentence (not juxtaposed) in sentences with two nouns, and with one pronoun and one noun.  

Subject and object relative clauses (word order 3) using wh - pronouns ( wo and was). 

Use of singular and plural dative reflexive pronouns ( mir , dir , sich , uns , euch , sich ) with verbs used reflexively and reciprocally. 

3.2.2.2 Verb phrases 

• Present tense with seit (as equivalent of ‘have been + ing’ for ‘x time’).  
• Imperfect/simple past for written narrative use in 1^st , 2^nd , 3^rd persons, singular and plural, for weak and highly frequent strong verbs (where the 1^st /3^rd person singular form is listed in the vocabulary list). Simple past verbs with prefixes on stems which are listed on the vocabulary list will not be listed (eg, empfand will not be listed if fand is already on the list). 
• Imperative in 2^nd person singular and plural, formal and informal forms, for weak and strong verbs, and sein . The omission or unnecessary addition of an ‘ e ’ ending in 2^nd person singular will not be credit-bearing. 
• Infinitive constructions ohne / statt … zu …; um ... zu ...; verbs with zu …,  eg beginnen , hoffen , versuchen . 
• Passive voice avoidance structure man + active verb. 
• Imperfect subjunctive in conditional clauses: haben ( hätte ) and sein ( wäre ), and würde , sollte + infinitive, 1^st , 2^nd , 3^rd persons, singular and plural. 

Modals 

Use of imperfect modals in all persons + infinitive. 

Reflexive use of verbs 

Use of all persons of verbs with dative reflexive pronouns. 

Word order 

• Word order 3 (subordinate clauses, including subject relative clauses) in two-verb structures 
• Word order 3 with separable verbs in single-verb and two-verb structures.
• Syntax of sentence and element negation with nicht , including use of sondern .  

3.2.2.3 Adjectival phrases 

• Regular pre- and postnominal superlative adjective structures and common irregulars ( der / die / das beste , am besten , der / die / das höchste , am höchsten , am liebsten , der / die / das meiste , am meisten , der / die / das nächste , am nächsten ). 
• Some superlative adjectives change their spelling (eg, those ending in - d , - t , - s , - ß , - sch , - x , - z add - e ). Such spelling changes will not be credit-bearing.  
• Where comparative adjectives change their spelling (eg, teuer → teurer ; dunkel → dunkler ; groß → größer ), such spelling changes will be credit-bearing. 

3.2.2.4 Adverbial phrases 

Regular superlative adverb structures (and common irregulars as listed in the vocabulary list). 

3.2.2.5 Prepositions 

Spelling of the word that follows:  

• fixed case with accusative prepositions ( gegen, um ), dative prepositions ( laut, seit ), and dual case prepositions ( zwischen, über, unter, hinter, vor, neben ).  
• use of bei or am ) + nominalised verb infinitive to mean ‘while/when doing something’ eg, Beim Essen trinke ich nie . 

Use of listed prepositions in da ( r )- and wo ( r )- compounds in main clauses (eg, Sie steht daneben ; Worauf wartest du? ). 

3.2.2.6 Derivational morphology  

For Reading only. Derivational morphology listed here indicates that even if only the base form (eg, krank ) is listed in the vocabulary list, a derived form that follows one of the patterns listed here (eg, Krankheit ) may be included in reading texts. Or if only the specific affixed form is listed, the base form may be included in reading texts.

Note, if derived forms are included in listening material or required for production, they will be listed separately in the vocabulary list.  

Uniformly applicable derivational morphology 

Suffixes: 

• add - chen , - lein to create nouns, only where the English equivalent meaning is ‘little’ (eg, Häuschen , Kätzchen ), or implies endearment (eg, Brüderchen ). 

Other high frequency patterns 

3.2.3 German sound symbol correspondences.  

The list which follows specifies key differences in sound spelling correspondences between German and English which students will need to learn at GCSE to be able to read out loud and transcribe with sufficient accuracy at this level. 

It is not an exhaustive list of the all sound-spelling correspondences in the German language.  Where a letter or combination of letters is pronounced (or a sound spelt) in approximately the same way in German as in English, it is not listed. 

The use of hyphens indicates the position of the letters in a word, when position is relevant to the sound: xx- (at the beginning of a word); -xx- (in the middle of a word); -xx (at the end of a word).  

• long [a], including [ah], [aa] and short [a] 
• long [e] including [eh], [ee] and short [e] 
• [ei/ai] 
• [z] 
• [w] 
• [ie] 
• long [o], including [oh], and short [o] 
• long [i], including [ih] and short [i] 
• hard and soft [ch] 
• long [u], including [uh] and short [u] 
• long [ü/y], including [üh] and short [ü/y] 
• long [ä], including [äh] and short [ä] 
• long [ö], including [öh] and short[ö] 
• [äu] 
• [sch] 
• [sp-] 
• [st-] 
• [s-, -s-] 
• [ß] [ss] [-s] 
• [er] 
• unstressed [-er] 
• [v] 
• [au] 
• consonantal [r] 
• vocalic [r] 
• [eu] 
• [th] 
• unvoiced [-b], [-d], [-g] 
• [-ig] 
• [j] 
• [-tion] 
• [qu] 

Please see Appendix 1 for examples of German words demonstrating the sound symbol correspondences.