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All German grammar in human language!

Most important topics German grammar (topics are best studied in the order in which they are published):

1. Building a sentence:

In German, there are 3 schemes for constructing simple sentences. One way or another, any sentence of the German language fits into one of these schemes. First, let's remember a couple of terms: The subject is a noun in nominative case(answering the question who? what?). The predicate is a verb. Circumstance - answers the question how, where, when, why, .... In other words, the circumstance refines the sentence. Examples of circumstances: today, after work, in Berlin, ...

And here are the proposals themselves:

  1. Subject -> predicate -> circumstances and everything else -> second verb, if present in the sentence.
  2. Adverb -> predicate -> subject -> everything else -> second verb, if any
  3. (Interrogative word) -> predicate -> subject -> everything else -> second verb, if any

2. Times:

There are 6 tenses in German (1 present, 3 past and 2 future):

Present tense (Präsens):

This is the simplest tense in German. To build the present tense, you just need to put the verb in the correct conjugation:

Example: machen - to do

Examples:
Hans geht zur Arbeit. - Hans goes to work.
Der Computer arbeitet nicht. - Computer does not work.

Past tenses:

There are 3 past tenses in German. However, in fact, 2 times will be enough for you. The first is called "Präteritum" and the second "Perfekt". In most cases, both times are translated in the same way into Russian. In official correspondence and books, "Präteritum" is used. In oral speech, "Perfekt" is usually used, although "Präteritum" sometimes slips.

Prateritum:

Here we first encounter the concept of regular (strong) and irregular (weak) verbs. The forms of regular verbs change in a clear pattern. Forms of irregular verbs need to be memorized. You will find them in.

Correct verb: machen (Infinitiv) -> machte (Präteritum)
Conjugations of the verb machen in Präteritum:

Examples:
"Du machtest die Hausaufgabe!" - "You did your homework!"
"Du spieltest Fussball" - "You played football"

Irregular verb gehen (Infinitiv) -> ging (Präteritum)

Example:
"Du gingst nach Hause!" - "You were going home!"

Future tenses:

In German, the future tense is "Futur l" and "Futur ll". The Germans do not use "Futur ll" at all, and "Futur l" they usually replace with the present tense (Präsens) with the future as a clarification.

Example: "Morgen gehen wir ins Kino." - "Tomorrow we're going to the cinema."

If you indicate the circumstance of the future tense (tomorrow, soon, next week, etc.), then you can safely use the present tense to express plans for the future.

If, nevertheless, we consider the time "Futur l", then it is built as follows:

Subject -> auxiliary verb "werden" -> everything else -> semantic verb in the form "Infinitiv".

Example: "Wir werden ins Kino gehen." - "We'll go to the cinema."(verbatim: "We'll go to the cinema.")

Conjugations of the verb "werden"

3. Cases:

Cases]

4. Complex and compound sentences:


As mentioned in the previous lesson, the past tense includes three types of tense forms: Präteritum, Perfekt, Plusquamperfekt. This lesson will focus on the first of them.

Rules for the formation of Präteritum

As you remember, verbs in German are divided into strong and weak: the type of the verb affects how the past tense form is formed. The main forms of the verb are infinitive, preterite (Prateritum) and participle II (Partizip II), which is used to form some other temporary forms. Strong verbs change the vowel in the root, weak verbs do not change vowels and form three forms according to the model: by adding prefixes to the stem of the verb ge- and suffix -t. For example:
gehen-ging-gegangen- strong verb
machen - machte - gemacht- weak verb

If the stem of the verb ends in -t or -d, before suffix -t a connecting vowel appears "e". For example: arbeiten - arbeitete - gearbeitet. Remember, the stress falls on the first syllable after the prefix, and it is pronounced with a hard attack.

To distinguish a strong verb from a weak one, you can consult a dictionary where root vowel changes are indicated after strong verbs. For example: waschen (u,a)- wash. If you decipher it, you'll get waschen (wusch, gewaschen). In addition, the list of strong verbs is ordered in various tables; you can find one of these tables in Lesson 3.

Some verbs form the participle without adding a prefix -ge.

This:
1) all weak verbs ending in -ieren: studieren - studierte - studiert;
2) strong and weak verbs with inseparable prefixes be-, ent-, er-, miss-, ver-, zer-: bekommen - bekam - bekommen;
3) weak verbs with prefixes de(s)-, dis-, in-, re-: reparieren - reparierte - repariert.

For verbs with separable prefixes in the second form (preterite), the prefix is ​​placed after the main form, and in the third - after the prefix ge-: einladen - lud ein - eingeladen.

In the sentence, the separable prefix forms a frame structure.

Any printed text is usually written with the preterite: this form forms the narrative, while in colloquial speech the Perfekt is more often used. The preterite varies in person and number, with the 1st and 3rd person singular being the same. The forms of the 1st and 3rd person in the plural are the same too. Consider an example of the conjugation of strong and weak verbs in the preterite.

kaufen - kaufte - gekauft - buy
ich kaufte wir kaufte n
du kaufte st ihr kaufte t
er/sie/es kaufte sie/sie kaufte n

Here are some more examples of the use of verbs in the preteret:
1) Arnold lud Monika zum Tee ein. Arnold invited Monica for tea.
2) Wir arbeiteten am Samstag im Garten. On Saturday we worked in the garden.
3) Er war nothing zy Hause. - He was not home.
4) Gestern rief sie mich an. She called me yesterday.
5) Sie tanzte die ganze Nacht. — They danced all night.
6) Unsere Freunde kammen uns besuchen. Our friends came to visit us.

Now it's time to check how well you learned the lesson information. Be careful and do not hesitate to return to the rule!

Tasks for the lesson

Exercise 1. Conjugate the following verbs.(You can find forms of irregular verbs in lesson 4.)
Glauben, bekommen, fragen, denken, haben.

Exercise 2. Open the brackets using the correct verb ending in the preterite.
1. Gestern (gehen) wir ins Kino.
2. Sie (singular) (arbeiten) sehr viel.
3. Ich (lesen) ein interessantes Buch.
4. Er (trinken) viel Kaffee.
5. Ihr (sein) freundlich.
6. Es (sein) kalt.
7. (spielen) du Klavier?
8. Sie (plural) (schreiben) einen Brief.
9. Ich (wohnen) in Moscow.
10. Er (haben) eine Wohnung in Berlin.

Answer 1.

Answer 2.

1. gingen
2. arbeitete
3.las
4 trunk
5. wart
6. war
7.spieltest
8. schrieben
9. wohnte
10. hatte

The theme of the verb in German is very extensive: these are tenses, participles, and pledges. At first glance, it may seem that all this is impossible to learn on your own, but do not rush to get upset: all grammatical topics are closely related to each other.

Let's look at the theme of tenses in German.

General information about tenses in German


To begin with, it is worth noting that the theme of tenses in German is much easier to understand than in English. Firstly, there is no continuous form of the Continuous verb, and, secondly, the rules for using are not so strict.

Temporal forms in German express the same as in Russian: present, past and future.

However, if the present tense is one, then there are three forms of the past, and two of the future. It's strange, you might think, why do events in the past need three whole times?

To understand this, let's take a closer look at them.


In German it is called Präsens. You start learning a language with presence: remember the place of the verb in the sentence and learn personal endings.

For example:

The simplest sentence in Präsens would look like this:

Wirlesen ein Buch. - We are reading a book.

This tense should be used when an event or action:

  • happening right now;
  • occurs regularly or recurs;
  • still not completed, i.e. started in the past and continues;
  • will happen in the near future;
  • when it comes to schedules or schedules.

There are three of them in German. But do not worry, it is very difficult to get confused in them.

You may already know that there are a large number of past tenses in Romance languages ​​and that sometimes it is really difficult to figure out when to use one or another tense.

In German, the situation is somewhat different - there are only two main past tenses - Perfekt and Präteritum. You can also add the past tense - Plusquamperfekt.

I. Perfect

The past tense (Perfekt) is used mainly in colloquial speech to indicate the past tense, but also often found in the press and literary speech.

1. Perfect education

This tense is formed using the verbs "haben" or "sein" in personal forms and the past participle (Partizip II). When conjugated, only the auxiliary verb changes, the participle remains unchanged.

2. Past participles Partizip II

Let's remember how past participles are formed.

A table of irregular participles formed from strong verbs can be found here:

Regular participles are formed from weak verbs using the prefix ge-, which is placed between the separable prefix and the stem of the verb and the ending -(e)t attached to the stem of the verb:

arbeiten-gearbeitet
stellen-gestellt

If the verb has a separable prefix, then the prefix ge- is placed after the separable prefix:

kennenlernen-kennengelernt
aufhoren-aufgehort

If the prefix is ​​not separated from the verb, then ge- is not added to them:

bemahlen-bemahlt
erzahlen-erzahlt

Verbs of foreign origin ending in -ieren form a participle without the prefix ge-:

studieren-studiert
akzeptieren-akzeptiert

3. Choice of the verb "haben" or "sein"

With the auxiliary verb "sein" are used:
- intransitive verbs denoting movement or change of state;
- The verbs "sein" and "bleiben".

With the auxiliary verb "haben" are used:
- transitive verbs (verbs that control Accusative);
- reflexive verbs;
- verbs denoting the beginning and end of an action;
verbs that do not denote movement.

Some verbs can be used with both auxiliary verbs, depending on the context.

Ich bin mit dem Auto gefahren.
I was driving.
Ich habe das Auto in die Werkstatt gefahren.
I took the car to the workshop.

4. Place in the offer

It is very important to know that the auxiliary verb "sein" or "haben" is in the second place in the sentence, and the participle is in the last place.

Ich habe das Buch sehr schnell gelesen.
I read the book very quickly.

In the subordinate clause, the auxiliary verb, on the contrary, is in the last place.

Als ich nach Hause gekommen bin, habe ich gesehen, daß mein Auto nicht da war.
When I got home, I saw that my car was not there.

II. Prateritum

Präteritum is a past tense that has nothing to do with the present. It is used mainly in writing, although some verbs can also be used in colloquial speech.

1. Formation Präteritum

Weak verbs are formed by adding the endings -(e)te, -(e)test, -(e)ten, or -(e)tet to the stem:

Ich sagte es.
I said it.

Sie kauften zu viel
They bought too much.

Strong verbs have other personal endings:

For example:
Er ging, du gingst, er (sie, es) ging, wir gingen, ihr gingt, Sie (sie) gingen.

You can find a list of strong verbs in Präteritum on the website above.

Modal verbs retain the endings of weak verbs, but their root changes.

​
2. The use of certain verbs

It is very important to remember that some verbs are used in Präteritum instead of Perfect, even in colloquial speech. These are the verbs "haben", "sein" and modal verbs (wollen, dürfen, können, etc.).

For example, in colloquial speech you will find the phrase "Ich war da" much more often than "Ich bin da gewesen", or "Ich hatte einen Computer" than "Ich habe einen Computer gehabt".

3. Place in the offer

The verb in Präteritum comes second in the sentence. In the subordinate clause, it must be placed last.

Er sprach den ganzen Abend.
He talked all evening.

Wenn der Vater kam, sprachen wir immer viel.
When dad came, we always talked a lot.

III. Plusquamperfekt

Plusquamperfekt (prepast tense, analogue of the English Past Perfect) is used in cases where there is an event that happened before another event in the past tense.

Plusquamperfekt is formed according to absolutely the same rules as Perfekt, that is, for its formation, auxiliary verbs"sein" (war, warst, war, waren, wart, waren) and "haben" (hatte, hattest, hatte, hatten, hattet, hatten) in Präteritum and participle Partizip II.

Als ich ankam, haben sie schon den Unterricht beendet.
When I arrived, they had already finished the lesson.

Gestern war er schon seit 3 ​​Tagen abgereist.
According to the situation as of yesterday, he left already 3 days ago.

Past tenses in German 1
Past tenses in German 2
Past tenses in German 3:

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Tenses of German verbs

German verbs not only change in numbers and persons, but also change in time. The tenses of German verbs are quite comparable with Russian ones - there are present, past and future tenses, only the German language provides for a much richer content and complex formation of some temporary forms. There are six tenses in German, of which one reflects the present tense, two represent the future and three represent the past. Tenses of German verbs can be simple (Präsens and Präteritum, also called Imperfekt) and complex (past tense forms - Perfekt, Plusquamperfekt, future forms - Futur I, II).

The present tense of Präsens displays processes, states or actions that are taking place, existing or taking place at a given moment in time. Präsens is a simple tense in form, that is, it consists of one verb in the corresponding form of person and number, and in almost all cases is formed by adding a personal ending to the stem of the semantic verb. Naturally, the German language cannot do without a number of exceptions to the general rule, since the stem of the verb can end in different letters (such as -t, -d, -tm, -dm, -chn), and then an additional vowel “e” is inserted after them in the second person of both numbers and in the third person Singular (singular), which is dictated by the facilitation of the pronunciation of these words; strong verbs, the three main forms of which are to be memorized, may show the acquisition of an umlaut by the vowel in the second and third person Singular; and the verbs werden, haben, sein, which are very widely used in German, generally conjugate without any rules.

For example:

Dein Trainer hat mir gesagt, dass du im Wasser richtig atmest. - Your trainer told me that you breathe correctly in the water. (In the verb "atmest", an additional vowel "e" is added due to the peculiarity of the stem).

Du rechnest sehr gut, aber zu langsam. Die Ziffern schreibst du richtig. - You think very well, but too slowly. You write the numbers correctly. (In the first case, an additional vowel appears in "rechnest", and in the second, everything happens according to the standard scheme - nothing is added).

Du lässt mir überhaupt keine Hoffnung. You leave me no hope at all. (In the strong verb "lassen", the second and third person Singular are characterized by the acquisition of the vowel "a" of the umlaut).

Du hast eine sehr schöne Mütze, sie hat aber eine, die noch viel schöner ist. You have a very beautiful hat, but her hat is even more beautiful. (Here we see a peculiar formation of the verb "haben - to have" forms of the second and third person Singular).

Duwirst Lehrer, und wird Mechaniker. You will become a teacher, and he will become a mechanic. (The formation of the verb "werden - to become" forms of the second and third person Singular).

Dein Kleid ist ein absoluter Hinguker—ich bin begeistert. Bist du endlich zufrieden? - Your dress is so eye-catching - I'm delighted. Are you finally satisfied? (All three personal forms of the Singular verb "sein" are represented here.)

Wir sind heute im Theater, ihr seid morgen im Theater und sie sind bestraft. - We are going to the theater today, you are going to the theater tomorrow, and they are punished. (Three personal forms of the verb "sein" in the plural (Plural) are also not formed according to the rule).

A feature of the present tense of German verbs is the ability to convey the future tense. In the latter case, the orientation of the action to the future is often emphasized by the corresponding phrases and adverbs (bald - soon, danach - then, später - later, morgen - tomorrow, etc.).

For example:

Ich lese die Zeitschrift, welche mein Mann gestern gekauft hat. I am reading a magazine that my husband bought yesterday. (This reflects the process of reading that takes place in currently time).

Morgen spielen wir wieder Schach. Tomorrow we will play chess again. (In this case, the form Präsens conveys an action that is destined to happen in the future).

The tenses of German verbs boast another simple form, consisting of one semantic verb without auxiliary words - this is the past tense Präteritum (Imperfekt). This form is used in German mainly in monologue speech. Weak verbs form Präteritum according to the general, standard scheme for all of them (by adding the ending -te to the stem of the infinitive of a particular verb), and strong verbs form it according to rules that are no longer used in modern German, and therefore must be memorized. The conjugation of verbs in Präteritum is also accompanied by the addition of a personal ending to the stem, but not an infinitive, as happens in Präsens, but the second of the main forms of the verb. A feature of Präteritum is the absence of personal endings in the first and third person Singular, in other cases they coincide with the endings in Präsens).

For example:

Mein Kind wiederholte das Gedicht gestern. - My child repeated this poem yesterday. (The weak verb "wiederholen" forms Präteritum in the standard pattern.)

Gestern verbrachte ich zwei Stunden in der Schwimmhalle. - Yesterday I spent two hours in the pool. (The second form of the strong verb "verbringen" - "verbrachte" - must be remembered).

Du machtest keine Fehler in deinem Aufsatz. You didn't make any mistakes in your essay.

All other tenses of German verbs are complex and are formed using semantic and corresponding auxiliary verbs. In addition to Präteritum, the past tense is expressed by Perfect and Plusquamperfekt. There are no rigid boundaries for the use of the three past tenses; here we can only talk about the frequency of their use.

The next representative of the tenses of German verbs is Perfect, which is formed using one of the auxiliary verbs - sein or haben - and Partizip II (the third of the main forms of the verb).

When conjugated, only the auxiliary verb is changed, which is taken to form Perfect in the present tense. The main areas of application of this tense are dialogic speech and short messages. The choice of an auxiliary verb is dictated by the meaning conveyed by the verb. Thus, verbs denoting the process of transition from one state to another or movement directly form Perfect (and Plusquamperfekt) with the help of the verb "sein". Always form Perfekt (and Plusquamperfekt) with the verb "sein" the verbs folgen - to follow, begegnen - to meet, bleiben - to stay, geschehen - to occur, gelingen - to succeed, werden - to become, sein - to be. With “haben”, a complex structure Perfekt (and Plusquamperfekt) is formed by transitive, reflexive, modal verbs, as well as those that convey a long state (such as schlafen - sleep, warten - wait, stehen - stand, etc.). Due to the lack of form in German verbs, Perfect can convey both completed and incomplete actions in the past, and can also be used to convey actions in the future (a possible, but rare use in speech).

For example:

Ich habe viele verschiedene Kuchen für meine Gäste gebacken. — I baked many different pies for my guests.

Gestern hat er sich endlich rasiert. He finally shaved yesterday.

Wir haben auf euch ewig lange gewartet. We've been waiting for you for ages.

Wir sind mit einem sehr komfortablen Bus gefahren. - We went on a very comfortable bus.

Ich bin gespannt, was dir gelungen ist. - I'm very interested in what you did.

Bis Freitag ist es mir gelungen. I'll be able to do it by Friday.

Plusquamperfekt is another representative of the tense system of German verbs - like Perfekt, it is formed using one of the auxiliary verbs - sein or haben - and Partizip II (the third of the three main forms of the verb). However, here, instead of the Präsens of the corresponding auxiliary verb, as happens in the formation of Perfekt, its Präteritum is taken. In fact, this is its only significant difference from Perfect. At its core, Plusquamperfekt represents an action that precedes Perfect, some call it “prepast”. Unlike the other two German past tenses, Plusquamperfekt denotes a relative action, that is, an action that took place in the past before any other. Most often, the ratio of actions is performed in a pair of Präteritum - Plusquamperfekt. In colloquial speech, this time is rarely used, much more often it can be found in fiction.

For example:

Wir hatten wahnsinnigen Durst, weil wir innerhalb von 10 Stunden nichts getrunken hatten. We were terribly thirsty as we hadn't had anything to drink for 10 hours. (In the colloquial part, it would not be a mistake at all to replace the verb "hatten" with "haben").

Als es zu regnen begann, war sie aus dem Bus bereits ausgestiegen. By the time it started to rain, she had already got off the bus.

The future tenses of German verbs are represented by the common Futur I and practically not used at all in modern language Future II. Futur I is formed using the auxiliary verb "werden", which changes in numbers and persons, and the infinitive (Infinitiv I) of the semantic verb. Futur I is often replaced by the simple present Präsens, one of the functions of which is to convey an action that will happen in the future. The construction Futur II consists of the conjugated verb "werden" and the Infinitiv II semantic verb. Futur II conveys the relativity of action, namely the completion of one action in the future before another (also in the future).

For example:

Im nächsten Jahr werde ich an das Schwarze Meer fahren. — Im nächsten Jahr fahre ich an das Schwarze Meer. - On next year I will go to the Black Sea. (Futur I - Präsens)

Wenn wir eine neue Arbeit schreiben, werden wir alle Fehler berücksichtigt haben. When will we write new job, we will take into account all errors.

Tenses in German - examples of usage

In complex temporary constructions, auxiliary verbs are used along with semantic ones. The meaning of the semantic verb dictates the choice of the auxiliary - it will be haben or sein. Verbs of movement, rapid change of state form complex constructions using sein, and transitive, reflexive, modal verbs and verbs that convey any long state (sleep - schlafen, stand - stehen, etc.) require you to stop the choice on the verb haben , For example:
Unser Kind ist heute sehr schnell eingeschlafen. - Our baby fell asleep very quickly today (quick change of state = sein).
Ich habe einen sehr interessanten Auftrag für Ihre Firma gefunden. - I found a very interesting order for your company (transitive verb = haben).
Mein Mann hat sich fünf Monate lang nicht rasiert. - My husband has not shaved for five months (reflexive verb = haben).
Er ist gegen meinen Willen in me Auto eingesprungen! - He jumped into my car against my will (movement verb = sein).

Tenses in German (regular verbs)

In this way, as shown in the table, tenses in German are formed by the main part of the verbs called regular. However, German also has irregular verbs. To form tenses with such verbs, you will have to get acquainted with their main forms Präteritum and Partizip II, which are impossible to do without. The basic forms of irregular verbs show characteristic root alternations. For example:
regular verbs: zerlegen (disassemble, butcher (carcass)) - zerlegte - zerlegt; vergrössern (increase) - vergrösserte - vergrössert; lösen (release, release, terminate (agreement, etc.), decide, dissolve) - löste - gelöst;
irregular verbs: hingehen (to go there, in a given direction) - ging hin - hingegangen; zerbrechen (break, break) - zerbrach - zerbrochen; entnehmen (take away, borrow, take out) - entnahm - entnommen, etc.

As already mentioned, the existing six German grammatical tense forms are distributed unevenly over real tenses (past, future, present). The present tense is expressed with Präsens, the future with Präsens and Futurum I, and the past with Perfekt, Präteritum or Plusquamperfekt. The tense form Futurum II is specific and is used only when it is necessary to express the precedence of one action in the future to any other. The three forms that reflect the past tense do not differ from each other in any specific temporal shades, but are only inherent in different types of speech activity. So, Perfekt is an integral part of dialogues and, accordingly, colloquial speech, Präteritum mainly finds use in monologues and lengthy descriptions, and Plusquamperfekt (which in such cases can be replaced by the form Perfekt) helps to convey the precedence of an action to another action transmitted using Prateritum.

Past tense Plusquamperfekt and conjunction nachdem

In life, situations often arise when, when describing some action in the past, there is another action that took place somewhat earlier than it. Accordingly, to reflect this earlier action in the past, an earlier past tense is also necessary. Just such a case of an earlier action in the past is the German Plusquamperfekt. Plusquamperfekt predates German Perfekt in its meaning. Consider simple speech examples:
Petra hat den Pullover gestrickt. - Petra knitted a pullover.
Petra ist aus dem Urlaub zurückgekehrt. Petra is back from vacation.

In both examples, the perfect is used (past tense, perfect). However, if we combine the events into one text, it turns out that first one action took place, and only after it another: Petra first returned from vacation, and then knitted a pullover. In order to correctly reflect this in German, it is necessary to construct statements as follows:
Petra war aus dem Urlaub zurückgekehrt. Petra hat den Pullover gestrickt.

Now the time sequence of actions is observed, however, the proposals are not completely interconnected. To establish this relationship, it is necessary to link these simple sentences into one complex one. This will require german union"after that; after - nachdem. It is this union that most often links complex sentences with the forms of the past and pre-past tenses. At the same time, when using Plusquamperfekt as the past tense, the past in a complex sentence will be the simple past Präteritum (this is a grammatically perfect agreement of tenses). The use of perfect forms in such situations (instead of Präteritum) also seems quite possible and is not erroneous, for example:
Nachdem Petra aus dem Urlaub zurückgekehrt war, strickte sie den Pullover. = Nachdem Petra aus den Urlaub zurückgekehrt war, hat sie den Pullover gestrickt. - After Petra returned from vacation, she knitted a pullover.

From the above examples, it can be seen that if for the formation of perfect forms auxiliary verbs are put in the Präsens forms, then for the formation of pluperfect forms they are put in the Präteritum forms, but in practice Perfect is also widely used.

The Plusquamperfekt forms can also be used in the passive voice, for example:
Nachdem der Bankräuber von der Bezirkspolizei festgenommen worden war, konnten sie nach Hause fahren. - After the bank robber was caught by the regional police, they could go home.
Nachdem diese leckere Pilzsuppe zubereitet worden war, wurden wir alle zum Mittagessen eingeladen. - After this delicious mushroom soup was prepared, we were all invited to dinner.

In general, the past tense form Plusquamperfekt is used very infrequently in German speech, and is especially rare in its colloquial variant.

Ways of expressing time in German

There are different ways to express time in German. If some event or action took place only once in the past, then the German union "als" is used, for example:

Als Thomas Sarah sah, war sie schon zu einer Tasse Kaffee eingeladen. - When Thomas saw Sarah, she was already invited for a cup of coffee (a one-time action in the past).
Als unser Vater nach Hause kam, war das Abendessen schon fertig. - When our father came home, dinner was already ready (in the past, a single action).

When actions or phenomena are not inherent in a single character, and they occur repeatedly, the German union "wenn" is used, for example:
Immer wenn Thomas Sarah sah, war sie schon zu einer Tasse Kaffee eingeladen. - Whenever Thomas saw Sarah, she was already invited for a cup of coffee (a multiple action in the past).
Jeweils wenn unser Vater nach Hause kam, war das Abendessen schon fertig. - Every time our father came home, dinner was already ready (in the past - multiple action).
Wenn er eine günstigere Lösung findet, muss er sich bei uns melden. - When he finds a better solution, he must inform us (in the future - a single action).
Wenn er Fehler findet, muss er uns sofort darüber informieren. - When he finds errors, he must immediately inform us about this (in the future - multiple action).
Wenn du das erforderliche Spielzeug findest, sage mir Bescheid. - If you find the right toy, tell me (in the future, a single action).
Wenn Barbara in der Schule frühstücken wird, müßt ihr das bezahlen. - If Barbara eats breakfast at school, you have to pay for it (multiple action in the future).

There are such speech situations when a thought can be expressed without using a subordinate clause. In such situations, clauses are replaced by the words "meanwhile - inzwischen" or "then - dann", which, as a rule, take on the functions of secondary members and require the use of reverse word order in sentences (otherwise, they take places after the main members inside statements), for example:
Zuerst kam Holger an, danach kann sein Neffe. - Holger arrived first, and then his nephew arrived.
Zunächst hat unser Chef diese Entscheidung getroffen, dann verstand er seinen Fehler. - At first, our boss made this decision, and then he realized his mistake.
Seine Kollegen führten alle Versuche durch, inzwischen bekam unsere Vertriebsabteilung neue Vorschriften. - His colleagues have already carried out all the tests, and in the meantime our sales department has received new regulations.
Alle Familienangehörigen waren gerade beim Abendessen, da klopfte jemand an der Tür. All family members were just having dinner when someone knocked on the door.

In addition to the aforementioned unions, "wann" - an interrogative pronoun, can also be used to express temporary relations, for example:
Wann bekomme ich meinen Stempel? - When will I receive my seal?
Jennifer weiß nicht, wann sie ihren Koffer bekommt. Jennifer doesn't know when she will get her suitcase.

There is a definite difference between "wann" and "wenn" and should not be confused. When the moment at which the event will occur is unknown, "wann" is used, for example:
Die Kinder wissen nicht, wann der Spiel beginnt. - The children do not know when the game will start.
Wisst ihr, wann wir die nächste Lieferung bekommen? - Do you know when we will receive the next shipment?

Historical and futuristic presence

Starting to learn German, the student first of all encounters simple forms of words and expressions that are used in the present tense. This is because it is difficult for a beginner to remember basic information about the construction of sentences, about the ending of verbs, about such an interesting part of speech in German as the article. At first, many lose it, forget about it, because it has no analogue in Russian. Therefore, it is methodically correct to build your knowledge gradually, as they say, brick by brick.

The simplest tense form is the present tense Präsens. But at the very beginning, only its main meanings are studied:
An indication of an event that occurs at the moment of speech.

Z. B: Ich gehe in die Bibliothek. - I'm going to the library.
An action taking place at the moment of speech, which has an indefinite duration.
Z.B.: Wir besuchen die Schule nur ein Jahr. - We attend school for only a year.
Everyone known facts e.g. book titles.

Z. B.: Kerstin Gier „Robinrot. Liebe geht durch alle Zeiten.“

But, unfortunately, the additional meanings of Präsens are always skimmed over. These include:

The present tense of historical events, the so-called historical Präsens,

And the events that have taken place in terms of the future are a futuristic presence.

Historical presence is used to make historical events more real or to introduce the reader to that period so that he feels part of what is being said.

Z. B.: Der letzte preußische Posten ist passiert; der kleine Trupp marschiert über baumlose Landstraße, vorbei an den Feldern, auf denen Inseln mit Unkraut wuchern. (bredel)

That is, the reader is directly transferred to the time in which the events take place. It turns out that historical time lives in the present and there is a reduction in time frames.

Die Londoner Literatur des 19. Jahrhunderts fängt an mit Charles Dickens (1812-1870); aber der gehört doch eher schon in die nächste, die viktorianische Epoche. (Die Zeit, 07/03/1992, Nr. 28)

Of course, the use of presence in this case is optional, it can be replaced by the simple past tense, but then the vivid sense of perception of past events is lost. And also the transfer of the reader to the thick of things disappears.

There are such forms of historical presentation:
"reporting presence" is different in that it is used to convey events that have just happened. If such information is transmitted using the preterite, then it will be necessary to indicate additional explanatory words that would clarify the period of what is happening in the recent past. This form describes events in a clear sequence.
The "imagined" presence is used to describe imaginary events that cannot be connected by any time. For example, the titles of paintings or remarks in plays.
Approximation of real past events to real time:

Z. B: Gestern gehe ich die Einkaufsstraße hinunter, da sehe ich, wie zwei bewaffnete maskierte Männer aus der Bank gelaufen kommen.

With regard to futuristic presence, it must be taken into account that in German there is some blurring between the present and the future tense in conversation. Therefore, the present tense is often used in the sense of the future when there are well-defined words indicating an action that will happen soon (morgen, bald, in einer Zeit). In addition, most often this form refers to a text that semantically refers to a planned action.

Of course, futuristic presence can be used without the above adverbs, then the context itself indicates the future of the action:

Wir halten Sie auf dem Laufenden. - We will keep you updated [“Stern”, 2004].

Or the adjective weiter can indicate that the action will take place in the future or sequentially:

Weitere Infos erhalten Sie bei Ihrem Skoda-Partner unter: www/octavia-combi/de etc.
["Der Spiegel", 2006].

Thus, semantically, the German language is characterized by an extended form of presence.

Then another question arises: when is it worth returning to this important part of German grammar? For many methodologists, the answer will be very simple: when all the main temporary forms are mastered by the student. It was then that it was fashionable to show the blurring of the futuristic presence and the completeness of the historical.

As exercises, you can use the following tasks:
Determine the temporal form of the text, indicate the differences between the historical and future presentation.
Describe these ongoing events using historical presence. In other words, write some news.
Replace the future tense with a form of futuristic presence where necessary.