German A2.32 Listening Practice: Set A Condition After The Main Clause
Listen to a A2 German dialogue about set a condition after the main clause, with audio, transcript, and grammar notes for language learning.
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Level
A2.32
Audio
Segmented audio
Transcript
12 segments
A short German listening chapter with transcript.
Say the planned action first, then add the condition after wenn with the finite verb held until the end.
Read while you listen.
1. Hanna · Teacher
Welcome to today's German lesson! Today, we are focusing on how to set a condition after a main clause using 'wenn'. Let's listen to a quick conversation between Felix and Clara.
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2. Felix · Native Speaker 1
Hallo Clara, kommst du heute Abend zum Café?
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3. Clara · Native Speaker 2
Ich komme, wenn ich Zeit habe.
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4. Felix · Native Speaker 1
Hast du heute viel zu tun?
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5. Clara · Native Speaker 2
Ich rufe dich an, wenn ich Zeit habe.
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6. Felix · Native Speaker 1
Super, ich warte auf deinen Anruf!
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7. Hanna · Teacher
Let's look at Clara's sentence: 'Ich komme, wenn ich Zeit habe.' This means 'I'll come if I have time.' The main clause 'Ich komme' stays first, and 'wenn' sends the finite verb 'habe' to the end of the condition.
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8. Lukas · Student
So 'wenn' always sends the conjugated verb like 'habe' to the very end of its clause?
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9. Hanna · Teacher
Exactly, Lukas. 'Wenn' is a subordinating conjunction, so the verb always closes that conditional phrase.
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10. Hanna · Teacher
Now consider Clara's second sentence: 'Ich rufe dich an, wenn ich Zeit habe.' This means 'I will call you if I have time.' Notice how 'anrufen' uses the accusative pronoun 'dich'.
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11. Lukas · Student
Why does the prefix 'an' come before 'wenn' instead of at the end of the whole sentence?
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12. Hanna · Teacher
Because 'an' closes its own main clause, 'Ich rufe dich an', before the new 'wenn' clause begins.
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