Time conjunctions
temporale Konjunktionen
Time conjunctions say when something happens: als, wenn and wann all mean “when”, but each one is used differently.
Say wenn when you talk about your childhood and a German ear snags — that needs als. English has one little word, “when”, and German splits it in three. Once in the past, every single time, or a question — plus the conjunctions that put two events in order.
Right now: three words, one question
Every conjunction here is a subordinating conjunction — it sends the verb to the end. If that rule has not settled yet, go back to it first.
ShortcutA single event in the past? → als. Repeated, present or future? → wenn. Asking a question? → wann.
- als ONE TIME in the past ALS ICH KLEIN WAR · ALS ICH ANKAM
- wenn every time · now · future IMMER WENN · WENN ICH ZEIT HABE
- wann only in QUESTIONS WANN KOMMST DU? · ICH WEISS NICHT, WANN…
The English for all three is very often just “when”, and that is the problem. “When I was little” and “when the weather is nice” look identical in English — you sort them out from context. German makes you say which one you mean.
Als ich klein war, wohnten wir in Izmir.
When I was little, we lived in Izmir. — one period in the past.
Wenn das Wetter schön ist, gehe ich spazieren.
When the weather is nice, I go for a walk. — every time.
Wann kommst du?
When are you coming? — a question.
als or wenn: a two-question flow
Here is the flow that lets you make this call in three seconds — and the order matters: check the time first.
| 1st question | 2nd question | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Past? | Did it happen once? | als — Als ich ankam, regnete es. |
| Past? | Every single time? | immer wenn — Immer wenn ich kam, regnete es. |
| Present / future | — | wenn — Wenn ich Zeit habe, rufe ich an. |
| A question | — | wann — Wann hast du Zeit? |
Watch out: for a repeated event in the past German uses wenn — not als. To keep them from being confused, people usually put immer in front: immer wenn.
Using wenn for “when I was a child”
The classic mistake for English speakers, precisely because English has only “when”. “When I was a child” is one period, in the past, not repeated — so it needs als.
Wenn ich ein Kind war, …
Sounds wrong in German.
Als ich ein Kind war, …
When I was a child…
The same mistake shows up in these phrases: als ich nach Deutschland kam (when I came to Germany) · als ich sie kennenlernte (when I met her) · als der Krieg begann (when the war began). All of them are one-off events.
Using wann inside a statement
wann is only a question word. In an ordinary statement it is not used as a time conjunction — but it is used in an indirect question, because there is still a question inside.
Wann ich nach Hause komme, esse ich.
Not a question, just a statement — wann is wrong.
Wenn ich nach Hause komme, esse ich.
When I get home, I eat.
Ich weiß nicht, wann er kommt.
I don’t know when he’s coming. — there is still a question inside.
The structure of that second sentence is covered in detail on the indirect questions page.
Conjunctions that set the order: before or after
The als/wenn pair answers “when?”. The second group sets the order of two events — this is the backbone of the B1 writing exam.
| Conjunction | In English | Example |
|---|---|---|
| bevor | before | Bevor ich gehe, räume ich auf. |
| nachdem | after | Nachdem ich gegessen hatte, ging ich los. |
| während | while | Während ich koche, höre ich Musik. |
| seitdem / seit | since | Seitdem ich hier wohne, bin ich glücklich. |
| bis | until | Warte, bis ich fertig bin. |
| sobald | as soon as | Sobald ich ankomme, rufe ich an. |
| solange | as long as | Solange es regnet, bleiben wir hier. |
All of them are subordinating conjunctions: the verb goes to the end. If the subordinate clause comes first, the main clause starts with the verb — Bevor ich gehe, räume ich auf.
The only tricky one is nachdem, because it needs a shift in tense: the subordinate clause has to be one step further back than the main clause.
| Subordinate clause (nachdem) | Main clause | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Plusquamperfekt | Präteritum | Nachdem er gegessen hatte, ging er. |
| Perfekt | Präsens | Nachdem er gegessen hat, geht er. |
The whole shift, and how hatte/war + Partizip II is built, is on the Plusquamperfekt page.
The part nobody tells you: the second face of während
Textbooks always give während as “while”. But in written German it is used much more often in a second sense: contrast — the English “whereas” or “while” in the sense of “on the other hand”.
Während ich koche, hört sie Musik.
While I cook, she listens to music. — time.
Während mein Bruder gern liest, sehe ich lieber fern.
While my brother likes reading, I prefer to watch TV. — contrast.
Both are correct, and both use the same structure. What the sentence says tells you which one it is. In exam texts, a student who cannot recognise the second meaning reads the passage backwards.
The second unspoken thing: with als, the Präteritum is preferred, not the Perfekt. In everyday speech you use the Perfekt everywhere, but after als it sounds wrong.
Als ich klein gewesen bin, …
Grammatically possible, but Germans do not say it that way.
Als ich klein war, …
This is the natural one.
Take this as a rule: wherever you see als, think war · hatte · konnte · ging · kam. This is one of the few places where the Präteritum survives in spoken German.
What you just learned
When I came home, we ate. (one time in the past) _____ ich nach Hause kam, haben wir gegessen.
Show the answer
Als, als — It is a one-off event in the past, so als is used.
___ ich gegessen hatte, ging ich los.
Show the answer
Nachdem. Plusquamperfekt in the subordinate clause (hatte gegessen), Präteritum in the main clause — only nachdem asks for that tense shift.
Which one is correct?
Show the answer
Bevor ich gehe, räume ich auf. — The first one. The verb goes last in the subordinate clause (gehe), and because that clause comes first, the main clause starts straight with its verb (räume). The whole subordinate clause fills the first slot.
What to do this week
This topic sticks by telling your own life — not by solving exam questions. Five minutes a day:
- Write down a one-off memory from your childhood, starting with als: Als ich sechs war, …
- Turn the same memory into a habit and build it with immer wenn: Immer wenn wir nach Izmir fuhren, …
- Put two things you will do tomorrow in order with bevor and nachdem.
- Describe your day with während: a moment when you did two things at once.
- Once a week, build one sentence three times: als · wenn · wann — and write down why the other two do not work.
Next up is the Plusquamperfekt: the second half of a nachdem sentence and “the past of the past”.
Build the sentence yourself
Tap the words and put them in order. This is the hardest part of German — and there are no options to pick from, you build it.
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tap the words
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tap the words
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tap the words
Know this before the test
The core of the topic in three lines, then the mistakes people make most often.
- als for one time, wenn for every time
A one-off event in the past takes als. A repeated or future event takes wenn. wann is only for questions.
Als ich ein Kind war, … · Immer wenn ich sie sah, …
- Order: bevor · während · nachdem
bevor is before, während is at the same time, nachdem is after. All three are subordinating conjunctions; the verb goes last.
Bevor ich gehe, räume ich auf.
- nachdem separates the tenses by one step
In a nachdem sentence the subordinate clause is one step earlier than the main clause: main clause in the Präteritum, subordinate in the Plusquamperfekt; main clause in the Präsens, subordinate in the Perfekt.
Nachdem er gegessen hatte, ging er ins Bett.
- Subordinate clause first: the verb comes right after it
When the subordinate clause comes first, it fills position one; the verb of the main clause follows right after the comma and the subject moves behind it.
Als ich klein war, spielte ich viel.
Wenn ich ein Kind war, …
Als ich ein Kind war, …
Childhood is a period that happened once in the past; that takes als. wenn means it repeats.
Ich weiß nicht, wenn er kommt.
Ich weiß nicht, wann er kommt.
An indirect question keeps its question word: wann. wenn is the conditional conjunction.
Nachdem er gegessen hat, ging er ins Bett.
Nachdem er gegessen hatte, ging er ins Bett.
The main clause is in the Präteritum, so the subordinate clause steps back one tense, to the Plusquamperfekt.
Bevor ich gehe, ich räume auf.
Bevor ich gehe, räume ich auf.
The subordinate clause in front fills position one; in the main clause the verb takes second position, in front of the subject.
Test yourself
Tap an answer — we will look at why together.
ich ein Kind war, wohnten wir in Izmir.
When I was a child, we lived in Izmir.
ich Zeit habe, rufe ich dich an.
When I have time, I’ll call you.
Ich weiß nicht, er kommt.
I don’t know when he’s coming.
ich gegessen hatte, ging ich los.
After I had eaten, I set off.
Immer ich sie sah, lachte sie.
Whenever I saw her, she laughed.
Which one is correct?
Practice done — –
To finish the topic, take the full test: score 60% and it is marked as done on your level path.
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Time conjunctions worksheet
This whole page — tables, traps, examples — as one PDF. Download it, print it, run through it before the exam.
Related topics
weil · dass · wenn
weil ich müde bin
weil, dass and wenn are German subordinating conjunctions: they start a subordinate clause and send the conjugated verb to the end (weil ich müde …
Präteritum
war · hatte · konnte · musste
The Präteritum is the German simple past, used mostly in writing and with a handful of very common verbs: war, hatte, konnte, musste.
Word order
Heute gehe ich ins Kino
German word order puts the conjugated verb in second position, whatever comes first: Heute gehe ich ins Kino.
The preposition um
um acht Uhr · um den Tisch
um is a German preposition that always takes the Akkusativ: um acht Uhr (at eight o’clock), um den Tisch (around the table).
seit
seit zwei Jahren
seit is a preposition that always takes the Dativ and describes something that is still going on: seit zwei Jahren, seit Montag.