There are cases in which Luxembourgish and English word order are identical,however the word order in Luxembourgish is more variable and flexible than in English. In particular, sentences need not begin with the subject. BUT there are strict rules determining the position of the VERB and there are a few other rules to bear in mind.

1. The Verb is Always the Second Element

No matter which element begins a Luxembourgish declarative sentence (a statement), the verb is always the second element. If you remember nothing else about Luxembourgish word order, remember this. The subject for instance ech, den Hond, Meng Kanner, d’Haus will either come first or immediately after the verb if the subject is not the first element. This is a simple and fast rule. In a statement (not a question) the verb always comes second.

This rule applies to sentences and phrases that are independent clauses.

A “normal” word order places the subject first, the verb second, and any other elements third.

Examples:

Ech léieren haut Lëtzebuergesch. – I learn Luxembourgish today.

Haut léieren ech Lëtzebuergesch. – Today I learn Luxembourgish. (Lit: Today learn I Luxembourgish)

Remark:

“in second position” or “second place,” means the second element, NOT necessarily the second word.

Only one element can precede the verb, but it may consist of more than one word, for example Haut den Owend.

In such cases, the verb remains second and the subject must immediately follow the verb:

⇒Haut den Owend léieren ech Lëtzebuergesch. –This evening I learn Luxembourgish.

⇒Um wéi vill Auer bass du muer doheem. –At what time are you at home tomorrow

2. Time, Manner and Place: Wéini, Wéi, Wou

Another area where Luxembourgish syntax may vary from that of English is the position of expressions of time wéini?, manner wéi? and place wou?

In English we would say, Tom is coming home by train today. English word order in such cases is place, manner, time… the exact opposite of Luxembourgish. We say: time, manner, place.

Examples:

Den Tom kënnt haut mam Zuch heem. ⇒ haut (time), mam Zuch (manner), heem (place).

Ech ginn all Dag mam Auto op d’Aarbecht. ⇒ all Dag (time), mam Auto (manner), d’Aarbecht (place). – I go to work by car everyday.

3. Sentence Bracket

When you have a separable verb (with a prefix), a modal verb or when a verb is used in combination with a second verb then the conjugated verb still stays in POSITION 2. This creates a sentence bracket that contains all of the other information.

Examples: 

Meng Mamm fiert normalerweis um 6 Auer heem. – My mom usually goes home at 6pm.

Here we have a separable verb heemfueren. ⇒ fueren is the stem and heem is the a prefix. 

For such verbs, the prefix is separated from the stem and placed at the end of the sentence in the present tense (as long as the clause is not subordinate or relative).

Meng Mamm wëll haut um 6 Auer heemfueren. – My mom wants to go home at 6pm today.

Here we have the modal verb wëllen (the conjugated verb) and the 2. verb comes at the very end of the sentence. In this case a separable verb is no longer separated.

Meng Mamm ass haut um 6 Auer heemgefuer. My mom came home at 6pm today.

I know that the sentence order is quite challenging. That’s why And as there is much to say about the word order in Luxembourgish sentences I decided to create an online course – 10 day course: Understand the Basics of Luxembourgish Sentence Structure - this is included for FREE in the online course A1F

Summary :

1 Simple, declarative sentences are identical in Luxembourgish and English: Subject, verb, other. Ech léiere Lëtzebuergesch

2 The verb is always the second element in a Luxembourgish sentence. Am Summer ginn ech gär an d’Schwämm..

3 Luxembourgish sentences are usually “Time, Manner, Place.” Ech fueren um 8 Auer moies mam Auto op d’Aarbecht

4 With separable, modal verbs and tenses, the second verb goes last, but the conjugated verb is still second.

Ech fueren ëmmer um 6 Auer owes heem

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