A main sentence, or Hauptsatz in German, is a sentence that can stand by itself and is on the top level of the sentence hierarchy. That’s why some linguists (me) also call them alpha chad sentences.
- I am tired.
- The bus has arrived one hour late.
- I will take your beer and then I will go home.
The “opposite” of a main sentence is a side sentence (also known officially as subordinate clause, and inofficially as soy sentence, beta clause and so on).
Those are INTEGRATED into another sentence, and they can be several levels deep, but not the top level. Because they’re integrated, they can often be moved around in their containing sentence.
- I am tired, because I am working so much.
- ————-, ________________ .
- Because I am working so much, I am tired.
- ______________________, ————– .
In German, main sentences and side sentences are significantly different in terms of word order. The main difference is the placement of the verb, and you will have mad fun learning this stuff.
Learn more
**Here are the posts in which I have talked about this concept in detail.**In the first episode of this three part series, we'll get a general overview over sentences structure and explore the famous "verb-second" rule in German.
After learning all about verb second, we'll now explore the beginning and end of a main sentence and see what we can and can't do. Surprises guaranteed.
