Genau
Topic test · A1

Separable verbs test

22questions
13minutes
60%pass mark
Start the test Read the topic first

One question at a time, the clock runs. Answers stay closed like a real exam: you see every correct answer with its explanation at the end. Score 60% to finish the topic.

Topic test

22 questions, easy to hard

Pick an option and press «Next». You can go back and change it. Anything left blank counts as wrong.

Ich dich morgen ___ . (anrufen)

I’ll call you tomorrow.

rufe … an. The conjugated part is in second position, the prefix at the end of the sentence. Everything in between (dich morgen) sits inside the brackets.

Which one is correct?

I have to call you.

Ich muss dich anrufen. With a modal verb the main verb is not conjugated — a verb that is not conjugated does not split; it goes to the end whole, as an infinitive. No zu after a modal, either.

Perfekt: früh ___ . (aufstehen)

I got up early.

Ich bin früh aufgestanden. Not only does -ge- go in the middle, the auxiliary is sein because it is a change of state.

…, weil ich um 6 . (aufstehen)

…because I get up at six.

aufstehe. In a subordinate clause the conjugated verb goes to the end and the prefix joins it — weil ich um 6 aufstehe.

Which verb does not split?

Which one keeps its prefix?

verstehen. ver- is a syllable with no meaning of its own, and the stress falls on the root (ver·STE·hen). The prefix of a separable verb is always stressed.

Der Zug um acht ___ . (abfahren)

The train leaves at eight.

fährt … ab. While the prefix goes to the end, the root conjugates normally: fahren → er fährt. Both things happen at once; neither cancels the other.

Wann du ___ ? (ankommen)

When do you arrive?

kommst … an. The rule does not change in a question: question word first, conjugated verb right behind it, prefix still at the very end.

Which verb splits?

Which one loses its prefix?

mitbringen. mit is a word on its own — “with, along”. Prefixes that split are usually prepositions and adverbs, and they take the stress. In the other three the prefix is a meaningless syllable.

Ich habe die Tür . (zumachen)

I closed the door.

zugemacht. The pieces always come in the same order: prefix + ge + root + t. There is an object here (die Tür), so the auxiliary is haben.

Ich jeden Samstag ein. (einkaufen)

I go shopping every Saturday.

kaufe. The prefix is already at the end of the sentence; what you supply is the conjugated part. The dictionary form is einkaufen, but in a main clause it splits in two.

Ich weiß nicht, wann der Film . (anfangen)

I don’t know when the film starts.

anfängt. Because it is a subordinate clause, the verb goes to the end and the prefix sticks to it. The root still conjugates: fangen → er fängt, so anfängt.

Which sentence is correct? (aufräumen · modal)

I have to tidy up my room.

Ich muss mein Zimmer aufräumen. Two rules stacked: with a modal the main verb stays an infinitive (it does not split) and the infinitive stands at the very end — the object comes before it.

Ich habe vergessen, dich . (anrufen · zu)

I forgot to call you.

anzurufen. zu goes in the middle, just like ge: an + zu + rufen. With an inseparable verb it stays in front: zu verstehen.

Ich dich ___ , wenn ich Zeit habe. (mitnehmen)

I’ll take you along if I have time.

nehme … mit. The first half of the sentence is a main clause, so the verb splits. The second half (wenn ich Zeit habe) is a subordinate clause and the verb went to the end there — two rules working side by side in one sentence.

Er ist gestern . (ausgehen)

He went out yesterday.

ausgegangen. Irregular root (gehen → gegangen) plus a separable prefix: aus moves to the front, ge stays in the middle. It is movement, so ist.

Which verb does not split?

Which one keeps its prefix?

wiederholen. It looks like an exception: wieder is a word of its own, but here the stress falls on the root (wieder·HO·len) and the verb does not split. The test is not what the prefix is, but where the stress lies.

Ich um sieben ___ . (aufwachen)

I wake up at seven.

wache … auf. Once the prefix goes to the end, what is left, wachen, does not mean “wake up” on its own; the part that completes the meaning is waiting at the end. That is why you have to listen to a German sentence all the way to its last word.

übersetzen is two different verbs — what makes the difference?

to translate / to ferry across

Stress decides. Über·setzen splits — to ferry someone across by boat. über·SET·zen does not split — to translate a text. Same letters, two verbs; only the ear tells them apart.

The dictionary says anrufen. Why does the sentence have rufe … an?

to call (by phone)

The dictionary gives the infinitive. You write anrufen in your vocabulary notebook, but you never hear it that way in speech. When you record a verb, add an example sentence — Ich rufe dich an. — otherwise you will not remember to split it when you build a sentence.

Hast du das Licht ? (ausmachen · Perfekt)

Did you turn off the light?

ausgemacht. Being a question changes nothing: the Partizip is still at the end, ge still in the middle. It is a regular verb, so it ends in -t, not -en.

“Ich einkaufe im Supermarkt.” is a correct sentence.

False. einkaufen is a separable verb. The root is conjugated and comes in second position, while the prefix (ein) has to go to the very end: Ich kaufe im Supermarkt ein.

Build the sentence: I’m turning the TV on.

Tap the pieces to build the sentence

anmachen is a separable verb. The conjugated verb takes second position and the prefix an is thrown to the very end of the sentence.
Quick rules

The rules in three lines

The full topic lives on its own page. This is only the core you need for the test.

  1. In a main clause the verb splits in two

    The conjugated part stands in second position, the prefix goes to the very end of the sentence. Everything in between — object, time, place — sits between the two.

    Ich rufe dich morgen an.

  2. A verb that is not conjugated does not split

    After a modal verb or with zu, the verb stays an infinitive — whole, one word. In a subordinate clause the verb goes to the end as well, so the prefix sticks to it.

    Ich muss dich anrufen. · …, weil ich aufstehe.

  3. Stress tells you which prefix splits

    If the prefix is stressed, it splits (AN·rufen); if the stress falls on the root, it does not (ver·STE·hen). The prefixes that never split are a short list: be- · ge- · er- · ver- · zer- · ent- · emp- · miss-.

    aufstehen ↔ verstehen

Traps

Commonly mixed up

Where a direct translation breaks. The hard questions come from here.

  • Ich anrufe dich morgen.

    Ich rufe dich morgen an.

    In a main clause the verb does not stay whole. anrufen is the dictionary form, not the spoken one.

  • Ich muss dich rufe an.

    Ich muss dich anrufen.

    With a modal verb the main verb is not conjugated, and a verb that is not conjugated does not split.

  • Ich habe geaufstanden.

    Ich bin aufgestanden.

    Two mistakes at once: ge goes in the middle, not at the front, and because it is a change of state the auxiliary is sein.

  • …, weil ich um sechs stehe auf.

    …, weil ich um sechs aufstehe.

    In a subordinate clause the conjugated verb goes to the end — the prefix finds it there and sticks to it.