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Conjugating Regular Verbs
To conjugate means to give the different forms of a verb depending on the subject. English only has two regular conjugations in the present tense, no ending and -s ending (I, you, we, they run vs. he/she/it runs). Refer back to the subject pronouns and the conjugations of to be and to have. The following table is in the same format. To form regular verbs in German, take off the -en ending and add these endings:
Regular Verbs
| kaufen-to buy |
arbeiten-to work |
besuchen-to visit |
passieren-to happen |
| sitzen-to sit |
helfen-to help |
bleiben-to remain, stay |
verdienen-to earn (money) |
| stehen-to stand |
lernen-to learn |
brauchen-to need |
verstehen-to understand |
| sagen-to say |
rufen-to call |
fliegen-to fly |
gewinnen-to win |
| liegen-to lay |
lehren-to teach |
suchen-to look for |
verlieren-to lose |
| gehen-to go |
stecken-to put |
schreiben-to write |
benutzen-to use |
| fragen-to ask |
finden-to find |
laufen-to run |
erlauben-to permit |
| machen-to make |
denken-to think |
lieben-to love |
rennen-to run |
| kommen-to come |
glauben-to believe, think |
dauern-to last |
schlafen-to sleep |
| schwimmen-to swim |
wünschen-to wish, desire |
antworten-to answer |
treffen-to meet |
| tanzen-to dance |
essen-to eat |
bezahlen-to pay for |
ziehen-to move |
| beginnen-to begin |
trinken-to drink |
entdecken-to discover |
sehen-to see |
| reisen-to travel |
singen-to sing |
erfinden-to invent |
vergessen-to forget |
| studieren-to study |
fischen-to fish |
ergänzen-to complete |
waschen-to wash |
| rauchen-to smoke |
sparen-to save (money) |
warten-to wait |
kennen-to know (people) |
| erzählen-to tell |
trennen-to separate |
wischen-to wipe |
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| bekommen-to get |
versprechen-to promise |
winken-to wave |
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English has three ways of expressing the present tense, such as I run, I am running, I do run. All three of these tenses are translated as one tense in German (ich laufe.) However, you can add gerade after the verb to indicate the progressive form. Ich mache meine Hausaufgaben can be translated as I do my homework or I'm doing my homework. Ich mache gerade meine Hausaufgaben is translated as I'm doing my homework.
Reflexive Verbs
Reflexive verbs express an action that reciprocates back to the subject. In other words, whoever is speaking is doing an action to himself. Examples in English would be: I wash myself, he hurts himself, we hate ourselves. Usually the -self words are a clue in English, however there are more reflexive verbs in German than in English.
Reflexive Pronouns
| Accusative |
|
Dative |
| mich |
uns |
|
mir |
uns |
| dich |
euch |
|
dir |
euch |
| sich |
sich |
|
sich |
sich |
The reflexive pronoun follows the verb and agrees with the subject. When a clause contains another object besides the reflexive pronoun, then the reflexive pronoun is in the dative case since the other object is in the accusative case. This is when you use the dative reflexive pronouns instead of the accusative ones.
Accusative: Ich fühle mich nicht wohl - I don't feel well.
Dative: Ich ziehe mir den Mantel aus - I'm taking off my coat.
Also note that parts of the body and articles of clothing use the definite article, not a possessive.
Reflexive Verbs
| sich ärgern |
to get angry |
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sich aufregen |
to get excited |
| sich ausruhen |
to rest |
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sich erkälten |
to catch a cold |
| sich freuen |
to be happy |
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sich (wohl) fühlen |
to feel (well) |
| sich hinlegen |
to lie down |
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sich anziehen |
to get dressed |
| sich verletzen |
to get hurt |
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sich ausziehen |
to get undressed |
| sich beeilen |
to hurry |
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sich setzen |
to sit down |
| sich erholen |
to relax |
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sich vorstellen |
to imagine |
| Reflexive Verbs + Accusative: |
| sich ärgern über |
to be angry at/about |
| sich erinnern an |
to remember |
| sich freuen über |
to happy about |
| sich gewöhnen an |
to get used to |
| sich kümmern um |
to take care of |
| sich interessieren für |
to be interested in |
| sich verlieben in |
to fall in love with |
| Reflexive Verbs + Dative: |
| sich erkundigen nach |
to ask about |
| sich fürchten vor |
to be afraid of |
Irregularities in Regular Verbs
1) Some verbs require an umlaut over the a in the 2nd and 3rd person singular.
Fahren-to travel
| fahre |
fahren |
| fährst |
fahrt |
| fährt |
fahren |
Examples: fallen-to fall, schlafen-to sleep, tragen-to carry, waschen-to wash, laufen-to run
2) Some verbs change the e to ie in the 2nd and 3rd person singular.
Sehen-to see
| sehe |
sehen |
| siehst |
seht |
| sieht |
sehen |
Examples: lesen- to read, befehlen-to command, empfehlen-to recommend, geschehen-to happen, stehlen-to steal
3) Some verbs change the e to an i in the 2nd and 3rd person singular.
Geben-to give
| gebe |
geben |
| gibst |
gebt |
| gibt |
geben |
Examples: brechen-to break, essen-to eat, helfen-to help, sprechen-to speak, sterben-to die, treffen-to meet, werfen-to throw
*nehmen has another irregularity: it doubles the m and drops the h*
| nehme |
nehmen |
| nimmst |
nehmt |
| nimmt |
nehmen |
4) Verb stems ending -d or -t, add an e before three endings.
Reden-to speak
| rede |
reden |
| redest |
redet |
| redet |
reden |
5) Verb stems ending in an s or z sound, have -t for du form ending instead of -st.
Sitzen-to sit
| sitze |
sitzen |
| sitzt |
sitzt |
| sitzt |
sitzen |
6) Infinitives ending in -n (not -en) only have -n ending for wir and sie forms. Infinitive stems ending in -el or -er can drop the e in the ich form.
Tun-to do / Segeln-to sail
| tue |
tun |
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segle |
segeln |
| tust |
tut |
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segelst |
segelt |
| tut |
tun |
|
segelt |
segeln |
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German - Conjugating Regular Verbs , Reflexive Verbs, Irregularities in Regular Verbs
