Where does the main (auxiliary) verb go in a subordinating clause when the perfect tense is formed with a modal verb?

This is a slight technicality of German word order. Whilst the normal rule for a clause following a subordinating conjunction (e.g. dass, weil, obwohl) is to place the main verb at the end of the clause (e.g. '... weil wir meinen Onkel besucht haben'), when there are two infinitives dependent on the main (auxiliary) verb in a subordinate clause, the main verb immediately precedes the infinitives.
Consider the following sentence: 'Wir haben meinen Onkel besuchen können'. This clause exhibits a perfect tense formation with 'können', where 'können' acts as an infinitival part participle. If this clause is subordinated, the correct formation would be as follows: 'Ich bin froh, weil wir meinen Onkel haben besuchen können.'

WT

Related German A Level answers

All answers ▸

"Das Fernsehen zerstört das Familienleben." Erklären sie Ihre Meinung zu dieser Aussage


Analysieren Sie die Persönlichkeit der Hauptfigur(en) im Werk des von Ihnen gewählten Schriftstellers. Was wollte der Schriftsteller mit Ihnen sagen? (Analyse the main character of your chosen author. What did the author want to say through them?)


How do you know when to use a relative pronoun, and which one do you use?


How does dativ change definite articels of substantives?