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German word order trips up many English speakers because the verb often doesn't sit where English puts it. These free games and explanations aim to build the verb-second instinct, the time-manner-place rhythm, and the verb-final reflex for subordinate clauses.
Main clauses follow the verb-second rule (V2): the conjugated verb sits in second position, no matter what comes first. 'Ich gehe heute ins Kino' / 'Heute gehe ich ins Kino' / 'Ins Kino gehe ich heute' are all correct — the verb stays second.
Adverbials tend to follow the time-manner-place order: when, then how, then where. 'Ich fahre morgen mit dem Zug nach Berlin' (when → how → where). It's a soft rule, but following it generally makes you sound noticeably more natural.
In subordinate clauses (after weil, dass, wenn, obwohl, etc.), the conjugated verb jumps to the very end: 'Ich bleibe zuhause, weil ich krank bin.' This is one of the rules learners forget most often, and getting it right is one of the clearer signals of intermediate-to-advanced German.
In a main clause, the conjugated verb sits in the second position — no matter which element comes first. 'Heute esse ich Pizza' (today, eat, I, pizza) and 'Ich esse heute Pizza' are both correct because esse stays in slot two.
At the very end. After conjunctions like weil, dass, wenn, obwohl, ob, als, bevor, nachdem, the conjugated verb jumps to the end: 'Ich gehe nach Hause, weil ich müde bin.' This is one of the word-order rules learners forget most often.
When you stack adverbials in a sentence, German tends to prefer the order time → manner → place. 'Ich fahre morgen mit dem Zug nach Berlin' (tomorrow → by train → to Berlin). It's a soft rule, but following it generally makes your German sound more natural.