IB Diploma Programme German B (SL & HL)
All major German tenses + Konjunktiv I & II, all four cases with prepositional governance, V2 word order, three adjective declensions, five prescribed themes and exam technique — your complete IB DP German B reference for 2026.
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Aligned with the latest 2026 syllabus and board specifications. This sheet is prepared to match your exam board’s official specifications for the 2026 exam series.
IB Diploma Programme German B is for students with prior experience of German. The course is built around 5 prescribed themes, 5 conceptual understandings (audience, context, purpose, meaning, variation) and a wide range of text types. This reference sheet brings together every essential tense, case, word-order rule, theme and exam technique you need at SL and HL for 2026.
All four cases with prepositional governance and adjective declensions
All major tenses + Konjunktiv I (indirect speech) and Konjunktiv II (hypothetical)
All 5 prescribed themes with sub-topics and key vocabulary
Exam technique for Paper 1, Paper 2 and the Individual Oral (SL & HL)
Plan to use at least 4 tenses in every long writing answer; mix Präsens, Präteritum/Perfekt, Futur and Konjunktiv II.
Habitual / current actions (also used for future with time markers).
Regular (machen)
ich mache · du machst · er/sie/es macht · wir machen · ihr macht · sie/Sie machen Stem-changing (sehen / fahren)
ich sehe, du siehst, er sieht; ich fahre, du fährst, er fährt. Two past tenses — Perfekt for spoken, Präteritum for written.
Perfekt
haben/sein (Präsens) + Partizip II → 'ich habe gemacht', 'ich bin gefahren'. Use SEIN with verbs of motion/change of state (gehen, fahren, kommen, werden, sein, bleiben). Präteritum
Written narrative tense. Regular: machen → machte; Strong: gehen → ging; sein → war; haben → hatte; werden → wurde; modals: konnte, musste, durfte, sollte, wollte, mochte. Plusquamperfekt
haben/sein (Präteritum) + Partizip II → 'ich hatte gemacht' (had done). Used for an action before another past action; common with 'nachdem'. Futur I
werden (Präsens) + infinitive → 'ich werde lernen' (will learn). Futur II
werden (Präsens) + Partizip II + haben/sein → 'ich werde gelernt haben' (will have learned). Used in journalism / formal reporting to mark indirect speech.
Formation
Infinitive stem + -e, -est, -e, -en, -et, -en. Often replaced by Konjunktiv II when forms clash with indicative. Direct: Er sagt: „Ich bin müde." → Indirect: Er sagt, er sei müde. Hypothetical, conditional, polite requests.
Common forms (memorise)
wäre (sein), hätte (haben), würde (werden), könnte, müsste, dürfte, sollte, wollte, möchte. Würde + infinitive
Most common substitute for full Konjunktiv II forms in spoken German: 'Ich würde es machen.' Conditional (wenn-Sätze)
Wenn ich Zeit hätte, würde ich reisen. ('If I had time, I would travel.') Vorgangspassiv (process)
werden + Partizip II → 'Das Haus wird gebaut.' (The house is being built.) Zustandspassiv (state)
sein + Partizip II → 'Das Haus ist gebaut.' (The house is built — finished state.) Agent
von + Dat. (person), durch + Akk. (means). Every adjective ending, article and pronoun depends on case. Examiners use case accuracy as a key marker.
Nominativ
Subject of the sentence ('Der Hund schläft.'). Akkusativ
Direct object ('Ich sehe den Hund.'). Dativ
Indirect object / receiver ('Ich gebe dem Hund Wasser.'). Genitiv
Possession / formal ('das Haus des Mannes'). Definite (the)
Nom: der/die/das/die · Akk: den/die/das/die · Dat: dem/der/dem/den · Gen: des/der/des/der. Indefinite (a/an)
Nom: ein/eine/ein · Akk: einen/eine/ein · Dat: einem/einer/einem · Gen: eines/einer/eines. für, um, durch, gegen, entlang, bis, ohne, wider. aus, außer, bei, gegenüber, mit, nach, seit, von, zu. an, auf, hinter, in, neben, über, unter, vor, zwischen. 'Wohin?' (Akk.) → Ich gehe in die Schule. · 'Wo?' (Dat.) → Ich bin in der Schule.
(an)statt, trotz, während, wegen, außerhalb, innerhalb, oberhalb, unterhalb. German word order is rule-based and heavily examined. The verb's position is the anchor.
The conjugated verb is ALWAYS in 2nd position in main clauses. 'Heute gehe ich ins Kino.' (Subject-verb inversion after a fronted element.) After subordinating conjunctions (weil, dass, wenn, obwohl, als, während, damit, falls, bevor, nachdem, sobald) the verb goes to the END. 'Ich gehe ins Kino, weil ich den Film sehen will.' Adverbials usually appear in this order: Time → Manner → Place. 'Ich fahre morgen mit dem Zug nach Berlin.' Prefix detaches and goes to the end in main clauses: 'Ich rufe dich morgen an.' Stays attached at the end in subordinate clauses and infinitive: '…, weil ich dich anrufe.' Common: anrufen, aufstehen, einkaufen, mitkommen, fernsehen. When a modal is used with another infinitive in the Perfekt, the auxiliary haben goes BEFORE the double infinitive. 'Ich habe arbeiten müssen.' (I had to work.) Three declension patterns — pick by what determiner (if any) precedes the adjective.
der/die/das/die — adjective endings: -e, -e, -e, -en … (mostly -en).
der nette Mann · die nette Frau · das nette Kind · die netten Leute. Akk: den netten Mann. Dat: dem netten Mann. Endings: -er, -e, -es in the nominative; -en elsewhere (mostly).
ein netter Mann · eine nette Frau · ein nettes Kind · keine netten Leute. Akk: einen netten Mann. Adjective itself takes the article-like ending.
guter Wein · gute Milch · gutes Brot · gute Brötchen. Common with abstract nouns and quantities. Decline by gender and case of the role inside the relative clause.
Forms
Nom: der/die/das/die · Akk: den/die/das/die · Dat: dem/der/dem/denen · Gen: dessen/deren/dessen/deren. 'Der Mann, der dort steht, ist mein Lehrer.' (Nom.) · 'Das Buch, das ich lese, ist spannend.' (Akk.) · 'Die Frau, mit der ich spreche, …' (Dat.) aber, denn, und, sondern, oder. 'Ich bin müde, aber ich lerne weiter.' weil, dass, wenn, als, ob, obwohl, während, damit, bevor, nachdem, sobald, falls, seit(dem), sodass. wenn = if / whenever (recurring); als = when (single past event); ob = whether.
entweder … oder · weder … noch · sowohl … als auch · nicht nur … sondern auch · je … desto/umso. All Paper 1 prompts and most Paper 2 / IO content link to these five themes — build vocabulary banks for each.
Self-image, lifestyle, beliefs, language, health.
Sub-topics
Lebensstil · Glauben und Werte · Sprachen und Identität · Gesundheit und Wohlbefinden · Subkulturen. Key vocabulary
die Identität, die Zugehörigkeit, die Werte, die Vielfalt, das Wohlbefinden, das Selbstbewusstsein. Activities, holidays, life stories, rites of passage, migration.
Sub-topics
Freizeitaktivitäten · Urlaub · Lebensgeschichten · Übergangsriten · Migration. Key vocabulary
die Erfahrung, die Reise, die Migration, die Erinnerung, sich integrieren, die Heimat. Communication, technology, science, art, entertainment.
Sub-topics
Technologie · Medien · Kunst · Unterhaltung · wissenschaftliche Innovation. Key vocabulary
die Innovation, die Technologie, die sozialen Medien, die künstliche Intelligenz, die Kreativität. Family, education, work, community, justice.
Sub-topics
Familie · Bildung · Arbeitswelt · Gemeinschaft · Recht und Ordnung. Key vocabulary
die Gerechtigkeit, die Gleichberechtigung, die Staatsbürgerschaft, die Rechte, das Zusammenleben. Environment, human rights, peace, conflict, globalisation.
Sub-topics
die Umwelt · Menschenrechte · Frieden und Konflikt · Globalisierung · Armut. Key vocabulary
der Klimawandel, die Nachhaltigkeit, die Menschenrechte, die Armut, die Ungleichheit, die Flüchtlinge. Every Paper 1 task is judged on whether you address audience, context, purpose, meaning AND variation through the right text type.
Audience (Publikum)
Who are you writing for? Adapt vocabulary, register and tone. Context (Kontext)
When/where does the text appear? Magazine? Speech? School blog? Purpose (Zweck)
Inform, persuade, narrate, entertain, instruct. Meaning (Bedeutung)
Choose register, syntax and vocabulary that convey your intended meaning precisely. Variation (Variation)
Adjust formality, dialect markers and tone for the situation. Internal
Memo · E-Mail · Blogeintrag · Tagebuch · persönlicher Brief. Mass media
Artikel · Reportage · Rezension · Interview · Podcast-Skript · Social-Media-Post. Academic / formal
Aufsatz · Bericht · Vorschlag · formelle Rede. Read at least two complete literary works originally written in German. Track theme, narrator, register, key extracts and one global issue you can discuss in the IO. Adding
außerdem, darüber hinaus, zudem, ebenfalls. Contrasting
jedoch, allerdings, dennoch, hingegen, im Gegensatz dazu, obwohl. Cause / consequence
weil, da, deshalb, daher, folglich, infolgedessen. Concluding
schließlich, zusammenfassend, alles in allem, letztendlich. Different components reward different skills — match yours to the task.
Choose ONE of three text-type tasks linked to the prescribed themes.
SL
1 hour 15 minutes · 250–400 words · 1 of 3 tasks. HL
1 hour 30 minutes · 450–600 words · 1 of 3 tasks. Plan
Identify text type → audience → register → purpose → outline 3–4 paragraphs → include opinion + justification + at least one Konjunktiv II. Two papers in one session.
Listening (SL ~45 min, HL 1 hour)
Three audio passages, multiple-choice and short-answer; you hear each twice. Reading (1 hour both levels)
Three written texts, mixed task types; HL texts include literary extracts. Read all questions BEFORE the audio. Watch for negatives, qualifiers and synonyms — answers rarely use exact words from the audio.
Internally assessed, externally moderated.
SL
15 min prep + 12–15 min recording. Photo describing a prescribed theme + theme question (3–4 min description) + 4–5 min discussion + general conversation. HL
20 min prep + 12–15 min recording. Extract from a literary work studied (3–4 min analysis) + 4–5 min discussion + general conversation on themes. Always: describe → analyse → give opinion + justification → connect to a prescribed theme → use a range of tenses.
Boost your Cambridge exam confidence with these proven study strategies from our tutoring experts.
Make a 4×4 case grid (definite/indefinite × Nom/Akk/Dat/Gen) and rebuild it daily for two weeks. Case accuracy is the single biggest accuracy lever in German B.
For each of the 5 themes, build a list of 30+ words with sub-topics. Note der/die/das + plural + a verb-of-the-week per theme.
Top-band Paper 1 answers use Präsens, Perfekt/Präteritum, Futur I AND at least one Konjunktiv II form ('Ich würde…', 'wäre', 'hätte'). Plan this in your outline.
Use Deutsche Welle (Langsam gesprochene Nachrichten), Easy German on YouTube, Tagesschau in 100 Sekunden. Ear training is the most-skipped revision step.
Quick answers about this free PDF and how to use it for exam revision and active recall.
Yes. This Tutopiya formula sheet is free to use and you can download it as a PDF from this page for offline revision. There is no payment or account required for the PDF download.
This page groups key German B formulas in one place for revision. Master IB Diploma Programme German B (SL & HL) with this 2026 reference sheet. Covers all major tenses, Konjunktiv I & II, all four cases with prepositional governance, word order, adjective declensions, the 5 prescri… Always cross-check with your official syllabus and past papers for your exam session.
No. In the exam you must follow only what your exam board allows in the hall—usually the official formula booklet or data sheet where provided. This page is a revision and teaching aid, not a replacement for board-issued materials.
It is written for students preparing for assessments at Post-Secondary in German B, including classroom revision, homework support, and independent study. Teachers and tutors can also share it as a quick reference.
Work through past paper questions, quote the correct formula before substituting values, and check units and notation every time. Pair this sheet with timed practice and mark schemes so you see how examiners expect working to be set out.
Explore Tutopiya’s study tools, past paper finder, and revision checklists linked from our tools hub, or book a trial lesson with a subject specialist for personalised support alongside this formula reference.
Practice IB-style Paper 1 tasks, listening and the Individual Oral with a native or near-native German tutor. We focus on case accuracy, word order, Konjunktiv II and IO technique.
Pair this reference sheet with past papers, revision checklists, and planners — all free on our study tools hub.
This reference sheet aligns with IB Diploma Programme German B (SL and HL) syllabus content for 2026 examinations.
Always include examples of past, present AND future tenses, plus at least one Konjunktiv II, in every long writing answer — range of tenses and moods is heavily rewarded.