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Perfect (past) Tense of Modal Verbs |
Modal verb form in present tense: (modal conjugated + helper verb at end of phrase): Ich muss die Hausaufgaben machen. To make past tense, use “haben” plus “double infinitive” at end: Ich habe die Hausaufgaben machen müssen. NOTICE: There is no "ge-" form of the participle here at all! This "double-infinitive" construction in the perfect tense also occurs with the verb lassen. The only time you use ge- with modals in the perfect tense is if there is NO HELPER VERB, but instead just an OBJECT: Das Geld will ich nicht. (present) BUT IF YOU ADD A HELPER VERB: Das Geld will ich nicht ausgeben. |
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