One of the trickiest aspects of learning German is mastering word order in sentences. While English sentence structure is relatively straightforward, German has stricter rules that can be confusing for beginners. Fortunately, there's a helpful rule that makes sentence structuring easier to understand: TEKAMOLO, which I will explain in this blog post.
So what does TEKAMOLO stand for?
“Tekamolo” represents the position of adverbs in a German sentence and stands for temporal (time), kausal (cause), modal (manner), lokal (place), which are the four elements that come into play when constructing sentences with multiple pieces of information. Understanding the TEKAMOLO rule is key to building well-structured, natural-sounding sentences in German. In this blog post, we'll break down how it works, when to apply it, and how to practice it so you can start crafting grammatically correct German sentences. I find the question words associated with those adverbs more helpful. They are wann (when), warum (why), wie (how), wo (where)?
T – Time (Wann?): When did the action happen?
Example: Gestern (yesterday), heute (today), um 8 Uhr (at 8 o'clock).
E – Explanation (Warum?): Why did it happen? (also called Cause or Reason)
Example: wegen des Wetters (because of the weather), deshalb (therefore).
K – Manner (Wie?): How did it happen?
Example: schnell (quickly), laut (loudly), mit dem Auto (by car).
O – Place (Wo/Wohin?): Where did it happen?
Example: im Park (in the park), nach Hause (home).
Why is TEKAMOLO important?
While in English, you can often be flexible with sentence order (e.g., "I went to the park yesterday" or "Yesterday, I went to the park"), German sentence structure is much more rigid. If you don't follow the correct word order, your sentence will sound awkward to native speakers, or worse, it might be completely misunderstood. TEKAMOLO ensures that you maintain clarity and flow when constructing more complex sentences. It's especially important in main clauses (Hauptsätze), where the verb usually takes the second position and all additional information follows in the TEKAMOLO order.
Examples of Tekamolo in German
Let’s apply "tekamolo" to a few sentences now to see how it plays out. Please note that English sentences tend to be shorter and usually contain less information, so the translations may sound very clunky.
TEMPORAL KAUSAL MODAL LOKAL
Ich bin gestern wegen des schönen Wetters zu Fuß zu Hampstead Heath gegangen.
(Yesterday, I walked by foot to Hampstead Heath because of the nice weather)
TEMPORAL KAUSAL MODAL LOKAL
Sie geht jedes Wochenende wegen ihrer Tanzleidenschaft mit Freunden in verschiedene Clubs.
(She goes with friends to clubs every weekend because of her passion for dancing)
Er fährt oft wegen Verspätungen der U-Bahn mit einem Taxi zu einem Kunden
(He often takes a taxi to go to clients due to delays on the underground)
As you see from the above, time comes before the reason, then followed by the manner and ends on the spatial information.
Of course, you don’t always need to have that many different pieces of information in one sentence. Then you simply skip the other bits. Also for reasons of emphasis, you might want to put the time, location or any other information at the start. The only absolutely strict rule is that the time cannot come after the location.
How does TEKAMOLO work in practice?
Let’s take a closer look at how TEKAMOLO works in different types of sentences. We’ll use common sentence structures to show how time, cause, manner, and place elements interact.
3.1. Simple Sentence (Time and Place)
When a sentence only contains time and place information, the time comes first, followed by the place.
Example:
Morgen gehe ich in den Park.
(Tomorrow, I am going to the park.)
Time: Morgen Place: in den Park
3.2. Adding Manner
Now, let’s add manner to the sentence. In this case, "Manner" answers the question "how?" and appears after the cause but before the place.
Example:
Morgen fahre ich mit dem Fahrrad in den Park
(Tomorrow, I will ride my bike to the park.)
Time: Morgen Manner: mit dem Fahrrad Place: in den Park
3.3. Adding Cause/Reason
Finally, we add the cause (reason) to explain why you are doing the action. In this case, the reason comes after time but before manner and place.
Example:
Morgen fahre ich wegen des schönen Wetters mit dem Fahrrad in den Park.
(Tomorrow, I am riding my bike to the park because of the nice weather.)
Time: Morgen Cause: wegen des schönen Wetters Manner: mit dem Fahrrad Place: in den Park
This shows how the TEKAMOLO rule ensures that each element of the sentence is positioned correctly to create a clear and grammatically sound structure.
Common variations in TEKAMOLO
While TEKAMOLO is a general guideline, German sentence structure can sometimes vary depending on emphasis. You can shuffle the order of some elements to emphasize different parts of the sentence. However, the verb-second rule remains crucial in main clauses, meaning that the conjugated verb must always stay in the second position.
Variation Example: Emphasising Time
If you want to emphasize time, you can start your sentence with it while still following TEKAMOLO for the rest of the sentence:
Example:
Am Sonntag werde ich mit meinen Freunden in die Stadt gehen.
(On Sunday, I will go to the city with my friends.)
This sentence emphasises when the action will take place while still following the overall structure for the other elements.
Variation Example: Emphasising Cause
You can also move the cause to the start of the sentence for emphasis. However, the verb still stays in the second position.
Example:
Wegen des schlechten Wetters fahren wir mit dem Bus nach Hause.
(Because of the bad weather, we are taking the bus home.)
In this sentence, the cause is emphasized, but the overall structure remains logical and clear.
Whenever you have several words that belong to either time or location, use the following order:
Temporal information (from general to specific or big to small)
Ihr seid vor 10 Jahren im September an einem Samstag in London angekommen.
Spatial information (from specific to general or small to big)
Wir fahren zu unserer Familie auf das Land im Westen von Deutschland.
5. How to practice TEKAMOLO
Mastering TEKAMOLO requires practice, especially because it differs from English word order. Here are a few strategies to help you get comfortable with German sentence structure:
5.1. Practice Writing Sentences
Start by writing simple sentences with two components (time and place), and then gradually add more elements like manner and cause as you become more confident. Be mindful of the verb position and apply TEKAMOLO.
Example Practice Sentences:
Heute gehe ich ins Kino.(Today, I’m going to the cinema.)
Heute gehe ich mit meinen Freunden ins Kino.(Today, I’m going to the cinema with my friends.)
Heute gehe ich wegen des Regens mit meinen Freunden ins Kino.(Today, I’m going to the cinema with my friends because of the rain.)
5.2. Read and Analyse German Sentences
When reading German texts (such as short stories or news articles), try to identify the TEKAMOLO structure. Highlight where time, cause, manner, and place appear in sentences, and compare how it differs from how you might say it in English.
Conclusion
The TEKAMOLO rule is a powerful tool that helps German learners construct sentences with multiple components in the right order. While it can feel rigid compared to English, once you get the hang of it, TEKAMOLO ensures your sentences are clear, natural, and grammatically correct.
By practicing regularly and applying TEKAMOLO in your conversations, writing, and reading exercises, you’ll find that constructing German sentences becomes second nature. So, dive in, and start building those well-structured sentences—Viel Erfolg! (Good luck!)
You will find more information on German word order in main and subordinate clauses on our blog. There we also have posts on coordinating conjunctions, relative clauses in German, direct and indirect questions in German, on the difference between als and wenn, as well as um...zu vs. damit, nach vs. nachdem, vor vs. bevor, aber vs. sondern, dass in German subordinate clauses, and when to use zu in German sentences.
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