Modals: wollen and sollen
The verb 'wollen'
This is how to To form the different endings of a verb.wollen – to want:
| German | English |
| ich will | I want to |
| du willst | you want to (singular, informal) |
| er will | he wants to |
| sie will | she wants to |
| es will | it wants to |
| wir wollen | we want to |
| ihr wollt | you want to (plural, informal) |
| Sie wollen | you want to (singular or plural, formal) |
| sie wollen | they want to |
| German | ich will |
|---|---|
| English | I want to |
| German | du willst |
|---|---|
| English | you want to (singular, informal) |
| German | er will |
|---|---|
| English | he wants to |
| German | sie will |
|---|---|
| English | she wants to |
| German | es will |
|---|---|
| English | it wants to |
| German | wir wollen |
|---|---|
| English | we want to |
| German | ihr wollt |
|---|---|
| English | you want to (plural, informal) |
| German | Sie wollen |
|---|---|
| English | you want to (singular or plural, formal) |
| German | sie wollen |
|---|---|
| English | they want to |
Der Hund will spazieren gehen. – The dog wants to go for a walk.
Wie süß. Sie wollen heiraten. – How sweet. They want to get married.
The verb 'sollen'
This is how to conjugate sollen - to be supposed to, ought to, should:
| German | English |
| ich soll | I am supposed to, ought to, should |
| du sollst | you are supposed to, ought to, should (singular, informal) |
| er soll | he is supposed to, ought to, should |
| sie soll | she is supposed to, ought to, should |
| es soll | it is supposed to, ought to, should |
| wir sollen | we are supposed to, ought to, should |
| ihr sollt | you are supposed to, ought to, should (plural, informal) |
| Sie sollen | you are supposed to, ought to, should (singular or plural, formal) |
| sie sollen | they are supposed to, ought to, should |
| German | ich soll |
|---|---|
| English | I am supposed to, ought to, should |
| German | du sollst |
|---|---|
| English | you are supposed to, ought to, should (singular, informal) |
| German | er soll |
|---|---|
| English | he is supposed to, ought to, should |
| German | sie soll |
|---|---|
| English | she is supposed to, ought to, should |
| German | es soll |
|---|---|
| English | it is supposed to, ought to, should |
| German | wir sollen |
|---|---|
| English | we are supposed to, ought to, should |
| German | ihr sollt |
|---|---|
| English | you are supposed to, ought to, should (plural, informal) |
| German | Sie sollen |
|---|---|
| English | you are supposed to, ought to, should (singular or plural, formal) |
| German | sie sollen |
|---|---|
| English | they are supposed to, ought to, should |
Es ist schon spät - sie soll aufstehen. – It's late (already) - she ought to get up.
Wir sollen einen Salat essen, weil er gesünder ist. – We should eat a salad, because it's healthier.
Question
Using the modal verbs wollen and sollen, how would you say the following?
- you ought to (singular, informal)
- he wants to
- you want to (familiar, plural)
- du sollst
- er will
- ihr wollt
Ich kann, weil ich will, was ich muss - I can, because I want what I have to do.
