German · Chapter 9 · Lesson 8 · Grammar primer
Weil, dass, wenn: the verb goes last
Every subordinating conjunction charges the same tax: the conjugated verb is evicted to the end of the clause.
The short version
After weil, the verb waits until the end
weil, dass, wenn and ob all start a subordinate clause, and a German subordinate clause puts its conjugated verb last, however long it runs. It is the same rule for every one of them, so there is nothing new to learn per word. Say weil and then consciously hold the verb back until the clause is finished.
Ich bleibe zu Hause, weil ich müde bin.
If it means whether, say ob, not wenn
English uses if for two different jobs. When if means in the event that, German says wenn. When it means whether, German says ob. Ich weiß nicht, wenn er kommt is one of the commonest learner errors, and to a German it sounds like a sentence that stopped halfway.
Ich weiß nicht, ob er kommt.
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