Subjective modal verbs
sollen and wollen for claims, müssen, dürften and können for how sure you are.
German reuses the modal verbs for a second job entirely. In this second use they say nothing about permission or ability — they say where a claim comes from, or how certain the speaker is.
| Verb | Subjective meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| sollen | it is said, allegedly | Er soll sehr reich sein. |
| wollen | he claims of himself | Sie will davon nichts gewusst haben. |
| müssen | strong inference — surely | Er muss schon angekommen sein. |
| dürfte | probably | Das dürfte stimmen. |
| können | possible / (negated) impossible | Das kann nicht richtig sein. |
sollen = somebody else says it. wollen = the person says it about themselves. Neither says whether it is true.
Er soll sehr reich sein.
He is said to be very rich.
hearsay — not "he is supposed to be rich"
Sie will davon nichts gewusst haben.
She claims to have known nothing about it.
her own claim, and the speaker is visibly unconvinced
Das dürfte stimmen.
That is probably right.
Er muss schon angekommen sein.
He must have arrived by now.
an inference from evidence, not an obligation
Das kann nicht richtig sein.
That cannot be right.
How do you tell the two uses apart? Two clues do almost all the work. A second verb in the infinitive with an inanimate or stative meaning (sein, stimmen, gewusst haben) points to the subjective reading. And the past form gives it away completely: an obligation would be Er musste kommen; an inference is Er muss gekommen sein.
| Ordinary use | Subjective use |
|---|---|
| Er muss um acht kommen. (obligation) | Er muss schon da sein. (inference) |
| Sie will nach Hause. (wants) | Sie will nichts gewusst haben. (claims) |
| Du sollst pünktlich sein. (instruction) | Er soll krank sein. (hearsay) |
| Das kann er gut. (ability) | Das kann nicht stimmen. (impossibility) |
For the past, the subjective modal stays in the present and the second verb becomes a perfect infinitive: gemacht haben, gewesen sein.
Er soll dort gewesen sein.
He is said to have been there.
Sie will ihn nie getroffen haben.
She claims never to have met him.
Das dürfte damals anders gewesen sein.
That was probably different at the time.
Reading "Er soll krank sein" as "He is supposed to be ill.""He is said to be ill" — somebody reported it.
This one mistranslation turns a piece of reported gossip into an instruction. It is the commonest B2 reading error with modals.
Words from this topic
- angeblichallegedly, supposedly
- vermutlichpresumably
- offenbarapparently, evidently
- das das Gerüchtthe rumour
- stimmento be right, to be correct
- zutreffento be accurate, to apply
- bezweifelnto doubt
- der der Zeugethe witness