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From Bis mindestens März 2027: Grenzkontrollen sollen erneut verlängert werden, tagesschau.de, 18 August 2026. Quoted for study. The words are the publisher's; the analysis is ours.
Meaning
Almost all of them went back again later.
Word for word: Almost all went later again back.
Says that nearly everyone returned (went back) at a later point in time; typical in narratives about a group, e.g. after an outing or a stay somewhere.
A simple main clause in the preterite. The subject is the pronoun-like numeral phrase 'Fast alle' in the nominative; the finite verb 'gingen' (preterite of 'gehen') stands in second position and agrees with the plural subject. 'später' is a temporal adverb, 'wieder' a modal adverb, and 'zurück' is the separated prefix of the separable verb 'zurückgehen', which in a main clause is sent to the end.
Rules at work(5)
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Fast alle gingen
The finite verb 'gingen' occupies the second position of the main clause after the subject phrase.
In a German main clause the finite verb is always the second element. The first element can be the subject, but it can just as easily be a time expression, an object or a whole subordinate clause; whatever it is, it counts as one element and the verb follows it. This is why putting something other than the subject first pushes the subject after the verb.
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gingen
Narrative past is expressed with the simple preterite of 'gehen' rather than the perfect.
The simple past is the written narrative past. In speech it survives mainly in sein, haben and the modals, where hatte and war are far commoner than the perfect forms.
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gingen ... zurück
The prefix 'zurück' of 'zurückgehen' is separated and placed at the end of the main clause.
Some verbs carry a prefix that detaches in a main clause and moves to the very end: aufstehen becomes Ich stehe um sieben auf. The prefix is stressed, which is what tells a separable prefix from an inseparable one. In a subordinate clause and in the infinitive the verb stays whole.
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alle gingen
The plural subject 'alle' takes the plural preterite form 'gingen'.
The finite verb takes an ending that matches its subject in person and number. The endings for regular verbs in the present are e, st, t, en, t, en.
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Fast alle
The subject 'fast alle' stands in the nominative.
The nominative marks the subject of the clause: whoever or whatever is doing the verb. It is also the case used after the verbs sein, werden and bleiben, so both sides of Das ist mein Bruder stand in the nominative.
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Words(6)
- fast
almost, nearly
adverbA2degree
- alle
all, everyone
pronounA1indefinite
Used substantively here, meaning 'all of them'.
- gehen
to go, to walk
verbA1gehen, ging, ist gegangenmit seinstrong
With a bare infinitive it means to go somewhere to do that thing: 'gehen joggen' = go jogging.
- spät
late, later
adverbA1temporal
- wieder
again, once more
adverbA1temporal
Do not confuse with wider 'against'.
- zurückgehen
to go back, to return
verbA2zurückgehen, ging zurück, ist zurückgegangenmit seinseparablestrong