konnt / wollt / sollt / duerft

Simple Past of Modal Verbs

Level 3

Four modals have a one-word past: konnt, wollt, sollt and duerft. Ech wollt dech uruffen. (I wanted to call you.)

How It Works

1. The forms

  • kënnen: ech konnt, du konnts, hie konnt, mir konnten, dir konnt, si konnten
  • wëllen: ech wollt, du wollts, hie wollt, mir wollten, dir wollt, si wollten
  • sollen: ech sollt, du sollts, hie sollt, mir sollten, dir sollt, si sollten
  • däerfen: ech duerft, du duerfts, hien duerft, mir duerften, dir duerft, si duerften

The ech and hien forms are the same and have no ending. The mir and si forms end in -en, which follows the n-rule: mir konnten net but mir duerfte keng.

2. Word order
As with a modal in the present, the modal is in second place and the other verb goes to the end: Mir konnten net kommen.

3. Simple past or perfect?
Both are correct and common. The simple past is shorter: Ech wollt kommen is the same as Ech hu wëlle kommen. See Perfect of Modal Verbs. It is used like war and hat.

4. Polite wollt
Ech wollt Iech eppes froen (I wanted to ask you something) is a polite way to start a request.

5. Sollt has two meanings
Sollt is also the conditional should: Du sollts méi schlofen. The context shows which one is meant. See Could, Should, Would Have To. Kéint (could) and dierft (would be allowed) are conditionals too; they are not past forms.

6. Mussen
For mussen, the perfect is the usual past: Ech hu misse schaffen.

Examples (6)

  1. Ech wollt dech uruffen.

    I wanted to call you.

    Wollt is in second place; uruffen goes to the end.

  2. Mir konnten net kommen.

    We couldn't come.

    Konnten keeps its n before the n of net.

  3. Mir sollten um aacht Auer do sinn, mee de Bus hat Verspéidung.

    We were supposed to be there at eight, but the bus was late.

  4. Als Kanner duerfte mer owes net Tëlee kucken.

    As children we weren't allowed to watch TV in the evening.

    Duerften loses its n before m.

  5. Ech wollt Iech eppes froen.

    I wanted to ask you something.

    A polite way to start a request.

  6. Wollts du net matkommen?

    Didn't you want to come along?

    The du form ends in -s.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding a German-style -e to the ech form.

    Ech wollte dech uruffen.
    Ech wollt dech uruffen.

    The ech form of the simple past has no ending: ech wollt, ech konnt, ech sollt, ech duerft.

  • Leaving out the -s in the du form.

    Du wollt net matkommen?
    Du wollts net matkommen?

    The du form ends in -s: du wollts, du konnts, du sollts, du duerfts.

  • Mixing the perfect and the simple past.

    Ech hu wollt dech uruffen.
    Ech wollt dech uruffen.

    Use either the simple past (Ech wollt dech uruffen) or the perfect with two infinitives (Ech hunn dech wëllen uruffen), not a mixture.

How It Connects

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

konnt / wollt / sollt / duerftLevel 3Simple Past of Modal Verbs

Learn This First

Before Simple Past of Modal Verbs, learn Simple Past of Sinn and Hunn, May: Däerfen and Should: Sollen.

Learn Next

Patterns that build on this one.

Words in This Pattern

kënnenwëllensollendäerfen