The subjunctive I of haben (to have), sein (to be) and modal verbs in German

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The subjunctive I of haben (to have), sein (to be) and modal verbs

Remember: we use the subjunctive I mainly for indirect speech.

Der Gast sagt: „Ich fliege heute.“ → Der Gast sagt, er fliege heute. fliegen, Konj. I Präsens

The guest says: “I'm flying today.” → The guest says he is flying today.

Here's how we form the subjunctive I of haben (to have) and sein (to be).

haben en
ich habe
du habest
er/sie/es habe
wir haben
ihr habet
sie/Sie haben
sein en
ich sei
du seist
er/sie/es sei
wir seien
ihr seiet
sie/Sie seien

Since the subjunctive I is almost always identical to the present tense, we use it mainly in ich (I) and er/sie/es (he/she/it) forms. In all other instances, we use the subjunctive II.

Du behauptest: „Sie hat ein Diplom.“ → Du behauptest, sie habe ein Diplom.

You claim: “She has a degree.” → You claim she has a degree.

Wir sagen: „Wir haben Tickets.“ → Wir sagen, wir hätten Tickets. haben, Konj. II Präteritum

We say, “We have tickets.” → We say we have tickets (literally: “we would have tickets”).

The modal verbs Modalverben are regular and are also replaced with the subjunctive II to distinguish them from the present tense. We only use the subjunctive I in the ich (I) and er/sie/es (he/she/it) forms.

Die Kollegen sagen: „Wir müssen nach Hause gehen.“ → Sie sagen, sie müssten müssen, Konj. II Präteritum nach Hause gehen. 

The colleagues say: “We have to go home.” →  They say they have to go home (literally: “they would have to”).

Anna sagt: „Ich muss jetzt los.“ → Anna sagt, sie müsse jetzt los. müssen, Konj. I Präsens

Anna says, “I have to go now.” → Anna says she has to go now.


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