egal wéi / egal wat

No Matter How or What: Egal

Level 4

Egal + question word means no matter: Egal wéi spéit et ass, ruff mech un.

How It Works

1. The combinations

  • egal wat: no matter what, whatever
  • egal wéi: no matter how
  • egal wéini: no matter when, whenever
  • egal wou: no matter where, wherever
  • egal wien: no matter who
  • egal ob: no matter whether (see ob)

2. Verb at the end
Ech sinn ëmmer fir dech do, egal wat geschitt. Hie kënnt, egal ob et reent oder net.

3. Where it goes
The egal clause often follows the main clause. It also works well at the start, before a request: Egal wéi spéit et ass, ruff mech un.

4. Short forms
Without a verb, egal and a question word can stand alone at the end: Du kanns mech uruffen, egal wéini.

5. Egal on its own
Dat ass mir egal. means I don't care. Careful: egal wat as an object can also mean any old nonsense: Hien huet egal wat geschriwwen. (He wrote any old rubbish.)

For no matter when, use the question word wéini, not the conjunction wann. The official rules do not split egal ob or egal wéi with a comma.

Examples (6)

  1. Egal wéi spéit et ass, ruff mech un.

    No matter how late it is, call me.

    Ass goes to the end of the egal clause.

  2. Ech sinn ëmmer fir dech do, egal wat geschitt.

    I'm always there for you, no matter what happens.

  3. Hie kënnt, egal ob et reent oder net.

    He's coming whether it rains or not.

  4. Du kanns mech uruffen, egal wéini.

    You can call me whenever you like.

  5. Du bass wëllkomm, egal wou s de hierkënns.

    You are welcome, no matter where you come from.

    After wou, du appears as s de, and the verb goes to the end.

  6. Ech maachen d'Dier op, egal wien et ass.

    I'll open the door, no matter who it is.

Common Mistakes

  • Putting the verb second in the egal clause.

    Egal wéi spéit ass et, ruff mech un.
    Egal wéi spéit et ass, ruff mech un.

    The egal clause works like a subordinate clause, so ass goes to its end.

  • Using wann for no matter when.

    Du kanns mech uruffen, egal wann.
    Du kanns mech uruffen, egal wéini.

    Egal combines with question words. The question word for when is wéini; wann is a conjunction.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

egal wéi / egal watLevel 4No Matter How or What: Egal

Learn This First

Before No Matter How or What: Egal, learn Indirect Questions.

Words in This Pattern

egalwéiwatob