Formal hypothetical reasoning

You can already build these forms. The question at B2 is what they are for — and in written argument they do three specific jobs.

• Ohne diese Maßnahme wäre die Situation noch schwieriger.

  Without this measure the situation would be even more difficult.

  ohne + Nomen replaces a whole wenn-clause

• Es wäre sinnvoller gewesen, die Zahlen vorher zu prüfen.

  It would have made more sense to check the figures beforehand.

  the standard formula for judging a past decision

• Unter anderen Umständen hätte man anders entscheiden können.

  Under different circumstances one could have decided differently.

• Ich würde argumentieren, dass die Kosten überschätzt werden.

  I would argue that the costs are being overestimated.

  softer than "ich behaupte" — and standard in written argument

With a modal, the past counterfactual takes two infinitives, not a Partizip II: Man hätte reagieren müssen — never "gemusst".

Note what the modal choice does to the criticism. müssen says it was necessary and did not happen. sollen says it was the right thing to do. können says it was possible — which is the mildest of the three, and often the fairest.

One more structure worth having: the hedge. Written German softens strong claims constantly, and it is not weakness — it is precision about how much you are prepared to defend.

• Das dürfte kaum ausreichen.

  That is unlikely to be enough.

  dürfte = probable, not permitted

• Man könnte einwenden, dass die Daten alt sind.

  One could object that the data are old.

  raising an objection without adopting it

• Es ließe sich argumentieren, dass beides zusammengehört.

  It could be argued that the two belong together.