B2 · GRAMMAR
Konjunktiv I and Indirect Speech
Konjunktiv I is used in news and formal texts to report what someone else has said: 'Der Minister sagte, er sei zufrieden' (The minister said he was satisfied). This structure creates a distance, indicating 'this is not my claim, but his/hers.' It is rarely used in daily conversation, but you will definitely encounter it in B2 reading and listening texts.
In this lesson
1. When?
News, reports, formal texts: to report someone else's words neutrally.
2. Structure
Stem + -e: er komme, er habe, er könne. Most common in the er/sie/es form.
Er sagt, er komme später.
He says he will come later.
3. sein
ich sei, er sei, wir seien, sie seien.
Sie sagte, sie sei krank.
She said she was sick.
4. If Konj. I = Indicative
If they are indistinguishable, use Konjunktiv II: sie haben → sie hätten.
5. Past
habe / sei + Partizip II.
Er sagte, er habe nichts gewusst.
He said he hadn't known anything.
💡 When reading, if you see forms like sei, habe, komme, könne, werde, think: 'This information is being reported, it is not the author's own claim.'