German · C1 · Everyday language
A claim is not a verified fact in German
In a news interview, a person's account of their own actions is not automatically a verified fact. German uses subjective wollen plus a perfect infinitive to attribute an earlier action or experience to the subject's own claim. This wording keeps the claim at a distance and often suggests scepticism, without proving it false.
What you'll learn
- Use wollen plus a perfect infinitive to report what someone claims about their own past actions or experiences.
- Keep the source of a claim clear without presenting it as verified.
- Distinguish self-attributed claims from intentions and externally sourced reports.
- Recognise active and passive perfect infinitives in this construction.
German phrases for a claim is not a verified fact
Der Moderator will jede Zahl persönlich überprüft haben.
The presenter claims to have checked every figure personally.
The presenter is the source of the claim; the sentence does not confirm that the checks happened.
Die Zeugin will den Fahrer sofort erkannt haben.
The witness claims to have recognised the driver immediately.
Will … erkannt haben attributes the earlier recognition to the witness's own account.
Die Sprecherin will nichts von der Zahlung gewusst haben.
The spokesperson claims to have known nothing about the payment.
Nichts belongs to the claimed lack of knowledge: she claims she knew nothing.
Der Autor will den Ausschuss schon Monate zuvor gewarnt haben.
The author claims to have warned the committee months earlier.
Schon Monate zuvor places the claimed warning well before the relevant past event.
Der Beamte will sich vollständig an die Regeln gehalten haben.
The official claims to have acted entirely within the rules.
Sich an die Regeln halten naturally expresses acting within the rules; compliance remains his claim.
Die Forscherin will den Fehler unabhängig von anderen entdeckt haben.
The researcher claims to have discovered the error independently.
Unabhängig von anderen makes clear that she claims an independent discovery.
Die interviewte Person will aus dem Zusammenhang gerissen zitiert worden sein.
The interviewee claims to have been quoted out of context.
The passive perfect infinitive zitiert worden sein reports what the subject claims happened to them.
Der Redakteur will den Artikel vor der Veröffentlichung korrigiert haben.
The editor claims to have corrected the article before publication.
The timing of the correction is part of the editor's claim, not independently confirmed information.
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Try it free for 7 daysKey words
der Moderator; plural: die Moderatoren
presenter, host
Female form: die Moderatorin; plural: die Moderatorinnen.
die Zahl; plural: die Zahlen
figure, number
Here, a numerical figure being checked.
die Zeugin; plural: die Zeuginnen
witness
Male form: der Zeuge; plural: die Zeugen.
die Zahlung; plural: die Zahlungen
payment
der Ausschuss; plural: die Ausschüsse
committee
der Beamte; plural: die Beamten
official, civil servant
Specifically a civil-service official, rather than any organisational representative. Female form: die Beamtin; plural: die Beamtinnen.
die Forscherin; plural: die Forscherinnen
researcher
Male form: der Forscher; plural: die Forscher.
aus dem Zusammenhang gerissen
out of context
Used with zitieren. Noun: der Zusammenhang; plural: die Zusammenhänge.
der Redakteur; plural: die Redakteure
editor
An editor working on journalistic content. Female form: die Redakteurin; plural: die Redakteurinnen.
die Veröffentlichung; plural: die Veröffentlichungen
publication
Here, the act of publishing the article.
Subjective wollen: the subject is the source
Subjective wollen means that the subject claims something about themselves. With a perfect infinitive, the claimed action or experience precedes the claim. This is common in journalistic language and often carries a sceptical undertone: the writer does not vouch for the account, but does not establish that it is false either.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Self-attributed earlier action | subject + conjugated wollen + … + past participle + haben/sein | Die Zeugin will den Fahrer erkannt haben. |
| Claimed lack of knowledge | subject + will + nichts + … + gewusst haben | Die Sprecherin will nichts von der Zahlung gewusst haben. |
| Plural subjects | plural subject + wollen + … + perfect infinitive | Die Forschenden wollen den Fehler unabhängig voneinander entdeckt haben. |
Building the perfect infinitive
Keep wollen conjugated and place the perfect infinitive at the end of a main clause, without zu. Use haben or sein as required by the underlying verb. A claimed passive experience uses past participle + worden sein; use worden, not geworden.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Active with haben | will + … + überprüft haben | Der Moderator will jede Zahl überprüft haben. |
| Active with sein | will + … + gegangen sein | Die Zeugin will schon vor dem Streit gegangen sein. |
| Passive experience | will + … + zitiert worden sein | Die interviewte Person will falsch zitiert worden sein. |
Claim, intention or external report?
Check both the infinitive and the source. In the target construction, wollen plus a perfect infinitive presents the subject's own account of the past. Ordinary wollen plus a simple infinitive commonly expresses an intention or wish. Reportative sollen attributes the information to another source, not to the subject's own claim. Context still matters: a perfect infinitive with wollen can express an intended future completion when a future deadline is given.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Own claim about the past | will + perfect infinitive | Der Redakteur will den Artikel bereits korrigiert haben. — The editor claims to have already corrected the article. |
| Intention | will + simple infinitive | Der Redakteur will den Artikel korrigieren. — The editor intends to correct the article. |
| External report | soll + perfect infinitive | Der Redakteur soll den Artikel bereits korrigiert haben. — The editor is said to have already corrected the article. |
| Future completion, not a past claim | will + future deadline + perfect infinitive | Der Redakteur will den Artikel bis morgen korrigiert haben. — The editor intends to have corrected the article by tomorrow. |
More examples
Die Sprecherin will nichts von der Zahlung gewusst haben. Ob das stimmt, ist noch unklar.
The spokesperson claims to have known nothing about the payment. Whether that is true is still unclear.
The follow-up makes the distinction between a claim and verification explicit.
Der Moderator will jede Zahl persönlich überprüft haben. Eine unabhängige Bestätigung fehlt jedoch.
The presenter claims to have checked every figure personally. However, independent confirmation is lacking.
Missing confirmation does not itself prove that the claim is false.
Die interviewte Person will aus dem Zusammenhang gerissen zitiert worden sein. Die Redaktion prüft die Aufnahme.
The interviewee claims to have been quoted out of context. The editorial team is checking the recording.
The subject can claim an earlier experience, not only an action they performed.