ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the use of infinitives and modal verbs in the German grammar. The infinitive is the form of the verb, usually ending in -en, which is always given in dictionaries. It most commonly occurs in a clause with zu (known as an ‘infinitive clause’) which is dependent on a preceding (or, less frequently, following) clause with a finite verb. Modal verbs are unusual in that when they occur with another verb, it is always a bare infinitive. A few other verbs can also occur with a bare infinitive: verbs of perception, such as sehen, hören, fühlen; some verbs of motion, such as fahren, gehen, kommen; and the verbs lassen and bleiben. As modal verbs are very frequently used, students are advised to learn all their forms, many of which are irregular.
