Unreal Conditions with wenn
Combine wenn with the Konjunktiv II from the last lesson to imagine whole alternative worlds: if I had more time, if the rent were lower — and give advice with an deiner Stelle.
Real wenn, unreal wenn
You have used wenn since A2 for real conditions: Wenn es regnet, arbeite ich zu Hause — whenever it actually rains, I actually work at home. The grammar rule you learned there still holds: wenn opens a subordinate clause, so its verb goes to the end.
Now put Konjunktiv II into both halves and the condition becomes unreal: Wenn die Miete niedriger wäre, hätten wir mehr Geld für den Urlaub. The rent is not lower; the extra money does not exist. German marks this imagined world purely through the verb forms — wäre and hätten instead of ist and haben.
That is the whole recipe: wenn-clause with a Konjunktiv II verb at the end, main clause with a Konjunktiv II verb in its normal position. Everything else — the comma, the word order — you already know.
Wenn es regnet, arbeite ich zu Hause.
When it rains, I work at home.
A real condition in the normal indicative — your A2 pattern.
Wenn die Miete niedriger wäre, hätten wir mehr Geld für den Urlaub.
If the rent were lower, we would have more money for the holiday.
Konjunktiv II in both clauses makes the condition unreal.
Wenn ich im Homeoffice arbeiten dürfte, würde ich viel Zeit sparen.
If I were allowed to work from home, I would save a lot of time.
Building the two clauses
The standard combination is wäre, hätte or a Konjunktiv II modal in the wenn-clause, and würde plus infinitive in the main clause: Wenn ich mehr Zeit hätte, würde ich einen Sprachkurs machen. When the wenn-clause comes first, the main clause starts with its conjugated verb — the wenn-clause has taken position one, so the verb follows immediately after the comma. An optional dann may stand between them.
Both orders are possible. Main clause first is just as correct: Ich würde mich bewerben, wenn die Stelle in meiner Stadt wäre. Choose whichever half you want to emphasise by putting it first.
One stylistic note for reading: written German sometimes uses one-word Konjunktiv II forms of common strong verbs instead of würde — käme (would come), ginge (would go), gäbe (there would be). You do not need to produce them yet, but you will meet es gäbe constantly in opinion texts.
Wenn ich mehr Zeit hätte, würde ich einen Sprachkurs machen.
If I had more time, I would take a language course.
Wenn das Büro näher wäre, käme ich mit dem Fahrrad.
If the office were closer, I would come by bicycle.
käme is the one-word Konjunktiv II of kommen — common in writing; würde ich kommen is equally correct.
Ich würde mich bewerben, wenn die Stelle in meiner Stadt wäre.
I would apply if the position were in my city.
Main clause first works too — the meaning does not change.
Wenn wir einen Garten hätten, könnten die Kinder draußen spielen.
If we had a garden, the children could play outside.
an deiner Stelle: advice as a condition
The most idiomatic advice pattern in German is a hidden unreal condition: An deiner Stelle würde ich mit dem Chef sprechen — in your place, I would talk to the boss. The full wenn-clause (wenn ich an deiner Stelle wäre) is dropped; the short phrase an deiner Stelle carries the whole imagined swap of positions.
The phrase adapts to the person: an Ihrer Stelle for formal Sie, an seiner Stelle, an ihrer Stelle, an eurer Stelle. Because Stelle follows the preposition an in the dative here, the possessive takes its feminine dative form — deiner, Ihrer, seiner.
You can also ask for advice with the same pattern: Was würdest du an meiner Stelle tun? This question is a gift in any B1 speaking exam — it invites your partner to produce Konjunktiv II while you catch your breath.
An deiner Stelle würde ich mit dem Chef sprechen.
In your place I would talk to the boss.
An Ihrer Stelle würde ich das Angebot annehmen.
In your place I would accept the offer.
Formal Sie becomes an Ihrer Stelle — capitalised, like all Sie-forms.
Was würdest du an meiner Stelle tun?
What would you do in my place?
An seiner Stelle hätte ich keine Angst vor dem Gespräch.
In his place I would not be afraid of the conversation.
Arguing with unreal conditions
Unreal conditions are the engine of every discussion about advantages and disadvantages. To argue for home office, you imagine the world where everyone has it: Wenn alle im Homeoffice arbeiten würden, gäbe es weniger Verkehr. The condition is unreal precisely because you are debating whether to make it real.
The same machine produces personal arguments: Wenn ich jeden Tag pendeln müsste, würde ich mir eine neue Stelle suchen. Notice müsste — the Konjunktiv II modal sits at the end of the wenn-clause, exactly where a modal always sits in a subordinate clause.
A single Konjunktiv II sentence can also stand alone once the condition is clear from context: Das wäre für viele Familien einfacher. In your writing tasks, one wenn-sentence followed by one or two short wäre-sentences reads far more naturally than a chain of full conditions.
Wenn alle im Homeoffice arbeiten würden, gäbe es weniger Verkehr.
If everyone worked from home, there would be less traffic.
es gäbe — there would be — is the Konjunktiv II of es gibt.
Wenn ich jeden Tag pendeln müsste, würde ich mir eine neue Stelle suchen.
If I had to commute every day, I would look for a new job.
Das wäre für viele Familien einfacher.
That would be easier for many families.
Once the condition is clear, a bare Konjunktiv II sentence carries it along.
Check yourself
Quick checks on this lesson. Get at least three quarters right to mark it as completed.
Wenn ich mehr Geld hätte, würde ich ein Auto kaufen. — What do we know about the speaker?