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German verb conjugation

The 34 most useful verbs in seven tenses and moods: tables with audio, what to know, examples and practice. Pick a verb to open its page with every form.

  • 34 verbs
  • 7 tenses and moods
  • Audio
  • Examples
  • Practice
See the verbsPractise

Verbs

Auxiliary, modal, strong, weak, mixed and separable verbs. Each has its own page with every tense.

Showing 34 of 34

Auxiliary verbs

Sein, haben and werden form the Perfekt, the future and the passive — and are the most used verbs themselves.

Modal verbs

Can, must, want, may: ich and er have no ending, and the infinitive goes to the end.

Strong verbs

They change the stem vowel in the Präteritum and the participle (fahren — fuhr — gefahren), and often in the Präsens.

Weak verbs

Regular: the stem never changes, the Präteritum adds -te, the participle is ge…t. Most verbs are weak.

Mixed verbs

The stem changes like a strong verb, but the endings are weak: bringen — brachte — gebracht.

Separable verbs

The prefix goes to the end of the clause: ich stehe um sieben auf.

Tenses and moods

Seven forms that will take you to B1. The names are in German, as in textbooks; the example is machen.

Speed

  • Präsens

    Present

    What happens now, regularly, and often in the future too: ich fahre morgen nach Berlin.

    How it’s formed: Stem + -e, -st, -t, -en, -t, -en. Strong verbs change the vowel in du and er: fahren — du fährst.

  • Präteritum

    Simple past

    The past of books and news; in speech mostly sein, haben and the modals: ich war, ich hatte, ich konnte.

    How it’s formed: Weak verbs: stem + -te (machte); strong verbs: a new stem with no ending in ich and er (ging).

  • Perfekt

    Spoken past

    The main past tense of speech: ich habe gegessen, ich bin gefahren.

    How it’s formed: Haben or sein in the Präsens + Partizip II. Sein goes with verbs of motion and change of state.

  • Plusquamperfekt

    Past perfect

    What had happened before another past moment: nachdem ich gegessen hatte, …

    How it’s formed: Hatte or war + Partizip II.

  • Futur I

    Future

    Plans, predictions and promises: morgen wird es regnen. The Präsens often replaces it.

    How it’s formed: Werden in the Präsens + the infinitive at the end.

  • Konjunktiv II

    Conditional

    Polite requests and imagined situations: ich hätte gern…, wenn ich Zeit hätte, würde ich reisen.

    How it’s formed: Most verbs: würde + infinitive; sein, haben, the modals and wissen have their own forms: wäre, hätte, könnte.

  • Imperativ

    Imperative

    Requests, advice, instructions: komm! Nehmen Sie Platz.

    How it’s formed: Du: the stem with no ending (geh!, e → i verbs: nimm!); ihr: as in the Präsens (geht!); Sie: infinitive + Sie (gehen Sie!).

Präsens endings

Three models: machen (regular), arbeiten (stem in -t) and fahren (strong, a → ä). Most verbs follow them.

Präsens endings
—machenarbeitenfahren
ich
du
er/sie/es
wir
ihr
sie/Sie

A stem in -t or -d (arbeiten, finden) adds an e before -st and -t: du arbeitest. Strong verbs change the vowel only in the du and er/sie/es forms.

Practice

A verb, a person and a tense — choose the right form. 10 questions on every verb in the guide.

FAQ

Didn’t find your answer? Send us a request — we’ll tell you everything.

How many tenses are there in German?

Six: Präsens, Präteritum, Perfekt, Plusquamperfekt, Futur I and Futur II. In speech you mostly need the Präsens and the Perfekt; the Präteritum is used mainly for sein, haben and the modals. Add the Konjunktiv II for polite requests and the Imperativ.

What is the difference between strong and weak verbs?

Weak (regular) verbs keep their stem: machen — machte — gemacht. Strong verbs change the vowel: fahren — fuhr — gefahren, and their participle ends in -en. Strong verbs have to be learnt by heart — there are about 200, but only a few dozen are really common.

When does the Perfekt take sein, and when haben?

Most verbs take haben (ich habe gegessen). Sein goes with verbs of motion (gehen, fahren, kommen), change of state (aufstehen, werden), and with sein and bleiben themselves: ich bin geblieben.

How can I learn conjugation quickly?

Start with sein, haben and the modals — they’re in every other sentence. Then learn the Präsens and Perfekt endings of regular verbs, and the strong verbs a few a day in their three forms: fahren — fuhr — gefahren. The practice on this page will help it stick.

What’s next

Rules in plain words — with tables, examples and a quiz in every topic.

All topics

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